PGFOct 18, 2015 by Brentt Eads
Upsets, Top Players Highlight Day 1 at PGF Shootout
Upsets, Top Players Highlight Day 1 at PGF Shootout
Single Elimination started at the PGF Shootout on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015 and by the end of the day the finalists were the Beverly Bandits and the Corona Angels.
Pictured: Action in Round 1 as the Birmingham Thunderbolts beat the So Cal Diamonds.
The PGF Shootout held this weekend in Huntington Beach, California for the 32 teams in the 18U age level and Fountain Valley for the same number of 16U teams and Saturday it got serious as Single Elimination began at 8 am.
Here's a look at the older age group as the 18U battled all day in action that included some upsets in the first round, but two familiar names in the finals to take place Sunday...
By Martin Henderson
***
The Orange County California Batbusters-Stith/Haning may have the same blood running through the program that won back-to-back national titles, but the team definitely has a different heartbeat.
Stars such as Taylor McQuillin, Alyssa Palamino and Amanda Lorenz are gone, relegated with nine other graduated players as footnotes in the program’s history.
But the returning core of players continue to pump life into the team, albeit in a much different way. Coach Mike Stith’s squad on Saturday relied on pitching to win two games before falling in the quarterfinals of the PGF Shootout Fall Championshp in Huntington Beach.
Its downfall was at the hands of the Corona Angels-Tyson, 4-3.
Natalie Lugo pitched a three-hitter to beat the Ohana Tigers in the first round, and Without the potent offense of 2014, the team has to rely on McQuillin-like performances to get by. Natalie Lugo pitched a three-hitter to beat the Ohana Tigers, 1-0,in the first round, and Mariah Lopez struck out 11 with a three-hitter in 6-1 second round victory over USA Athletics Gold. The offense was paced by a two-run single by Terra McGowan and three RBIs from Dejah Mulipola.
Yet there has to be growth if the team is round into the form that might carry it to a third national championship.
“We just have to rely on people growing up a little bit,” Stith said. “We have to bear down.”
Certainly, an example of that came in the quarters. Vanessa Foreman “pitched fine,” Stith said, but lost the game on a couple of walks and her own throwing error. “She has to learn to be more focused for an extended period of time.”
Although winning the tournament was Stith’s obvious goal, he was also a big picture guy in the aftermath of his team’s loss.
“There are so many things more important than winning,” he said. “We have bigger fish to fry, to develop as a team.”
Among those who stood out were Terra McGowan, who had some clutch hits in victories over the Ohana Tigers, 1-0, and OC Athletics Gold, 6-0. He also praised Lauren Gutierrez, who split time at third base and second base. “She competed well and did a good job,” Stith said.
First Round Blues
The first round was unkind to a couple of the top teams in the tournament.
The SoCal Athletics fell to the SoCal Breakers, 2-0. Hannah Bailey pitched a two-hitter, but didn’t allow any after the third of seven innings. Dani Romero had a home run, and Olivia LaQua added an RBI single.
The Firecrackers-Rico fell to the Northwest Bullets Gold-Campos, 6-1. The big blow in that one belonged to Sacramento State-bound Morgan Spieth. Kelsey Broadus allowed only three hits in five innings.
But Then …
After the impressive victory by the SoCal Breakers over the SoCal Athletics in the first round, the team was tasked with beating the OC Athletics-Lastrapes in the second round. And it looked like they were going to do it. They were up 4-2 heading into what would have been the last inning, the fifth, but Bailey surrendered two runs to tie the score that forced an international tiebreaker.
In the bottom of the eighth, Bailey’s bases loaded walk to Bella Loya provided the winning run for the Athletics.
The second round went better for the upset-minded Northwest Bullets. The Oregon team beat the Explosion, 7-5, a game it led at one point, 7-0. Nobody said it would be easy.
Into the Wind
Calling the Huntington Beach Sports Complex breezy is a bit of an understatement. It can get downright windy. But that wasn’t enough to stop Tristen Edwards for the Corona Angels-Tyson. She blasted a three-run home run into the wind to pace her team’s 5-0 victory over West Coast Intensity in the second round. Her shot to left-center was actually her second of the game; in the second inning, she pulled one more toward the line, her first rebuke of Mother Nature.
Ali, Ali, Ali
The SoCal Choppers reached the quarterfinals with a 5-2 win over the Diamond Hotshots. Ali Shipman had the big blow, a three-run homer in the second inning.
Long Day
All American Sports Academy had to put in some extra work to get past the second round. AASA knocked off Sorcerer, 3-2, in 11 innings. AASA won the game using the international tiebreaker on a throwing error.
AASA came thiiiis close to being history despite Narissa Eason in the circle. The Oregon State-bound pitcher faced situations in the eighth and ninth with the bases loaded and nobody out, and the bases loaded with one out in the 10th. The Sorcerer 11th ended on a squeeze bunt that was popped into a double play.
AASA got through the first round with a 3-1 win over Lil Rebels-Gordie behind UCLA-bound Maddy Nichols.
In the quarterfinals, ASA had to face the day’s Cinderella team, the Northwest Bullets. It did not go well.
Speaking of Glass Slippers
The day went better day than expected for the Northwest Bullets-Campos, who beat Firecrackers-Rico 6-1, Explosion 7-5 and AASA 4-2.
It was a banner outing for Morgan Spieth. She began the day with a three-run homer in the first inning against Firecrackers-Rico. In the quarterfinals against AASA, her three-run homer with two minutes left under the time limit produced a 4-2 victory.
“She adds a lot of power, she’s a great teammate, and she’s a good third baseman,” said her coach, Tony Campos. “She has had a great weekend. The home run against Rico set the tone for the day.”
Spieth homered in the semifinals as well, but her team lost to the Beverly Bandits, 6-2. It ended a great tournament for the Oregon team.
Dropoff
SoCal Choppers coach Dean Fausett said he fully expected his team to reach the finals as it headed into the semifinals.
“We’ve played well in all four tournaments we’ve been in, and we have two pitchers who can pitch and not just throw,” Fausett said, referring to Taylor Dokins and Brooke Yanez. “As a coaching staff, we don’t care who’s pitching right now.”
Yanez, though, was the wood in the way of the buzzsaw of the Corona Angels-Tyson. She was knocked out after four innings while trailing, 5-1.
Still, the future looks good for the Choppers. In the pre-Thanksgiving tournament, they will be joined by Caylan Arnold, a Tennessee commit from the Tennessee Fury.
“Then,” Fausett said, “we should have three No. 1s.”
No Dropoff
Instead of getting sloppy in its fourth game of the day, the Corona Angels looked pretty good, especially pitcher Megan Faraimo. She pitched a five-hitter with 10 strikeouts, and faced only four batters over the minimum in a 6-1 victory over the SoCal Choppers.
The Angels got a two-run single in the first inning by Noelle Hee, and a three-run bomb by Madison Huskey in the fourth. It was the highest-scoring game of the day for the Angels.
The Angels allowed only four runs on the day—three coming in the quarterfinal. But, obviously, they bounced back as the day dragged into its long hours.
End Game
The Beverly Bandits closed the second day of the tournament well beyond its anticipated end because extra innings caused the schedule to get pushed back. The Bandits got plenty of rest between the quarters and semis in advance of playing the Northwest Bullets, who played directly after its third game.
The Bandits, from Orland Park, Ill., beat Arizona Storm Gold 7-2, Birmingham Bolts 3-2, OC Batbusters-Lastrapes 4-0, and finally the Bullets, 6-2.
Brittany Anderson had a two-run single and two-run homer against the Bullets.
“She’s had a breakout weekend here,” said Coach Jennifer Tyrrell.
Miranda Elish, one of the top players in the Class of 2016, was the winning pitcher. She already beat the Corona Angels-Tyson once this weekend, 4-3, in a Friday pool game. If Elish doesn’t get the ball for Sunday’s final, Notre Dame-bound Alexis Holloway will.
“We’ll have both ready,” Tyrrell said.
The championship takes place at Irvine’s Bill Barber Park at 11 a.m.
FIRST ROUND
All American Sports Academy (CA) 3, Lil Rebels-Gordie (NV) 1
Sorcerer (CA) 5, Cal Cruisers (CA) 2
NW Bullets Gold (OR) 6, Firecrackers – Rico (CA) 1
Explosion (CA) 6, Jersey Intensity (NJ) 2
OC Batbusters-Lastrapes (CA) 6, American Freedom (TX) 1
SoCal Breakers-Richardson (CA) 2, SoCal Athletics-Richardson (CA) 0
Beverly Bandits (IL) 7, Arizona Storm Gold (AZ) 0
Birmingham Bolts (AL) 6, SoCal Diamonds (CA) 2
Corona Angels-Howard (CA_ 4, Arizona Hotshots (AZ) 3
Grapettes Krueg 6, KG Hitters (CA) 3
SoCal Choppers 3, Ladyhawks (WA) 2
Diamond Hotshots (TX) 3, Firecrackers-Brashear (CA) 0
West Coast Intensity (CA) 4, TNL (CA) 2
Corona Angels-Tyson (CA) 5, Dirt Dogs JH (CA) 0
USA Athletics (CA) 5, SC Athletics PV (CA) 4
OC Batbusters-Stith/Haning 1, Ohana Tigers-Quarles 0
SECOND ROUND
AASA 3, Sorcerers 2 (12)
Northwest Bullets 7, Explosion 5
OC Batbusters-Lastrapes 6, SoCal Breakers 5
Beverly Bandits 3, Birmingham Bolts 2
Corona Angels-Howard 3, Grapettes Krueg 2
SoCal Choppers 5, Diamond Hotshots 2
Corona Angels-Tyson 5, West Coast Intensity 0
OC Batbusters-Stith/Haning 6, USA Athletics Gold 0
QUARTERFINALS
Northwest Bullets 4, AASA 2
Beverly Bandits 4, OC Batbusters-Lastrapes 0
SoCal Choppers 5, Corona Angels-Howard 0
Corona Angels-Tyson 4, OC Batbusters-Stith/Haning 3
SEMIFINALS
Beverly Bandits 6, Northwest Bullets 2
Corona Angels-Tyson 6, SoCal Choppers 1
FINALS
Beverly Bandits vs. Corona Angels-Tyson, Bill Barber Park in Irvine, 11 a.m.
The PGF Shootout held this weekend in Huntington Beach, California for the 32 teams in the 18U age level and Fountain Valley for the same number of 16U teams and Saturday it got serious as Single Elimination began at 8 am.
Here's a look at the older age group as the 18U battled all day in action that included some upsets in the first round, but two familiar names in the finals to take place Sunday...
By Martin Henderson
***
The Orange County California Batbusters-Stith/Haning may have the same blood running through the program that won back-to-back national titles, but the team definitely has a different heartbeat.
Stars such as Taylor McQuillin, Alyssa Palamino and Amanda Lorenz are gone, relegated with nine other graduated players as footnotes in the program’s history.
But the returning core of players continue to pump life into the team, albeit in a much different way. Coach Mike Stith’s squad on Saturday relied on pitching to win two games before falling in the quarterfinals of the PGF Shootout Fall Championshp in Huntington Beach.
Its downfall was at the hands of the Corona Angels-Tyson, 4-3.
Natalie Lugo pitched a three-hitter to beat the Ohana Tigers in the first round, and Without the potent offense of 2014, the team has to rely on McQuillin-like performances to get by. Natalie Lugo pitched a three-hitter to beat the Ohana Tigers, 1-0,in the first round, and Mariah Lopez struck out 11 with a three-hitter in 6-1 second round victory over USA Athletics Gold. The offense was paced by a two-run single by Terra McGowan and three RBIs from Dejah Mulipola.
Yet there has to be growth if the team is round into the form that might carry it to a third national championship.
“We just have to rely on people growing up a little bit,” Stith said. “We have to bear down.”
Certainly, an example of that came in the quarters. Vanessa Foreman “pitched fine,” Stith said, but lost the game on a couple of walks and her own throwing error. “She has to learn to be more focused for an extended period of time.”
Although winning the tournament was Stith’s obvious goal, he was also a big picture guy in the aftermath of his team’s loss.
“There are so many things more important than winning,” he said. “We have bigger fish to fry, to develop as a team.”
Among those who stood out were Terra McGowan, who had some clutch hits in victories over the Ohana Tigers, 1-0, and OC Athletics Gold, 6-0. He also praised Lauren Gutierrez, who split time at third base and second base. “She competed well and did a good job,” Stith said.
First Round Blues
The first round was unkind to a couple of the top teams in the tournament.
The SoCal Athletics fell to the SoCal Breakers, 2-0. Hannah Bailey pitched a two-hitter, but didn’t allow any after the third of seven innings. Dani Romero had a home run, and Olivia LaQua added an RBI single.
The Firecrackers-Rico fell to the Northwest Bullets Gold-Campos, 6-1. The big blow in that one belonged to Sacramento State-bound Morgan Spieth. Kelsey Broadus allowed only three hits in five innings.
But Then …
After the impressive victory by the SoCal Breakers over the SoCal Athletics in the first round, the team was tasked with beating the OC Athletics-Lastrapes in the second round. And it looked like they were going to do it. They were up 4-2 heading into what would have been the last inning, the fifth, but Bailey surrendered two runs to tie the score that forced an international tiebreaker.
In the bottom of the eighth, Bailey’s bases loaded walk to Bella Loya provided the winning run for the Athletics.
The second round went better for the upset-minded Northwest Bullets. The Oregon team beat the Explosion, 7-5, a game it led at one point, 7-0. Nobody said it would be easy.
Into the Wind
Calling the Huntington Beach Sports Complex breezy is a bit of an understatement. It can get downright windy. But that wasn’t enough to stop Tristen Edwards for the Corona Angels-Tyson. She blasted a three-run home run into the wind to pace her team’s 5-0 victory over West Coast Intensity in the second round. Her shot to left-center was actually her second of the game; in the second inning, she pulled one more toward the line, her first rebuke of Mother Nature.
Ali, Ali, Ali
The SoCal Choppers reached the quarterfinals with a 5-2 win over the Diamond Hotshots. Ali Shipman had the big blow, a three-run homer in the second inning.
Long Day
All American Sports Academy had to put in some extra work to get past the second round. AASA knocked off Sorcerer, 3-2, in 11 innings. AASA won the game using the international tiebreaker on a throwing error.
AASA came thiiiis close to being history despite Narissa Eason in the circle. The Oregon State-bound pitcher faced situations in the eighth and ninth with the bases loaded and nobody out, and the bases loaded with one out in the 10th. The Sorcerer 11th ended on a squeeze bunt that was popped into a double play.
AASA got through the first round with a 3-1 win over Lil Rebels-Gordie behind UCLA-bound Maddy Nichols.
In the quarterfinals, ASA had to face the day’s Cinderella team, the Northwest Bullets. It did not go well.
Speaking of Glass Slippers
The day went better day than expected for the Northwest Bullets-Campos, who beat Firecrackers-Rico 6-1, Explosion 7-5 and AASA 4-2.
It was a banner outing for Morgan Spieth. She began the day with a three-run homer in the first inning against Firecrackers-Rico. In the quarterfinals against AASA, her three-run homer with two minutes left under the time limit produced a 4-2 victory.
“She adds a lot of power, she’s a great teammate, and she’s a good third baseman,” said her coach, Tony Campos. “She has had a great weekend. The home run against Rico set the tone for the day.”
Spieth homered in the semifinals as well, but her team lost to the Beverly Bandits, 6-2. It ended a great tournament for the Oregon team.
Dropoff
SoCal Choppers coach Dean Fausett said he fully expected his team to reach the finals as it headed into the semifinals.
“We’ve played well in all four tournaments we’ve been in, and we have two pitchers who can pitch and not just throw,” Fausett said, referring to Taylor Dokins and Brooke Yanez. “As a coaching staff, we don’t care who’s pitching right now.”
Yanez, though, was the wood in the way of the buzzsaw of the Corona Angels-Tyson. She was knocked out after four innings while trailing, 5-1.
Still, the future looks good for the Choppers. In the pre-Thanksgiving tournament, they will be joined by Caylan Arnold, a Tennessee commit from the Tennessee Fury.
“Then,” Fausett said, “we should have three No. 1s.”
No Dropoff
Instead of getting sloppy in its fourth game of the day, the Corona Angels looked pretty good, especially pitcher Megan Faraimo. She pitched a five-hitter with 10 strikeouts, and faced only four batters over the minimum in a 6-1 victory over the SoCal Choppers.
The Angels got a two-run single in the first inning by Noelle Hee, and a three-run bomb by Madison Huskey in the fourth. It was the highest-scoring game of the day for the Angels.
The Angels allowed only four runs on the day—three coming in the quarterfinal. But, obviously, they bounced back as the day dragged into its long hours.
End Game
The Beverly Bandits closed the second day of the tournament well beyond its anticipated end because extra innings caused the schedule to get pushed back. The Bandits got plenty of rest between the quarters and semis in advance of playing the Northwest Bullets, who played directly after its third game.
The Bandits, from Orland Park, Ill., beat Arizona Storm Gold 7-2, Birmingham Bolts 3-2, OC Batbusters-Lastrapes 4-0, and finally the Bullets, 6-2.
Brittany Anderson had a two-run single and two-run homer against the Bullets.
“She’s had a breakout weekend here,” said Coach Jennifer Tyrrell.
Miranda Elish, one of the top players in the Class of 2016, was the winning pitcher. She already beat the Corona Angels-Tyson once this weekend, 4-3, in a Friday pool game. If Elish doesn’t get the ball for Sunday’s final, Notre Dame-bound Alexis Holloway will.
“We’ll have both ready,” Tyrrell said.
The championship takes place at Irvine’s Bill Barber Park at 11 a.m.
FIRST ROUND
All American Sports Academy (CA) 3, Lil Rebels-Gordie (NV) 1
Sorcerer (CA) 5, Cal Cruisers (CA) 2
NW Bullets Gold (OR) 6, Firecrackers – Rico (CA) 1
Explosion (CA) 6, Jersey Intensity (NJ) 2
OC Batbusters-Lastrapes (CA) 6, American Freedom (TX) 1
SoCal Breakers-Richardson (CA) 2, SoCal Athletics-Richardson (CA) 0
Beverly Bandits (IL) 7, Arizona Storm Gold (AZ) 0
Birmingham Bolts (AL) 6, SoCal Diamonds (CA) 2
Corona Angels-Howard (CA_ 4, Arizona Hotshots (AZ) 3
Grapettes Krueg 6, KG Hitters (CA) 3
SoCal Choppers 3, Ladyhawks (WA) 2
Diamond Hotshots (TX) 3, Firecrackers-Brashear (CA) 0
West Coast Intensity (CA) 4, TNL (CA) 2
Corona Angels-Tyson (CA) 5, Dirt Dogs JH (CA) 0
USA Athletics (CA) 5, SC Athletics PV (CA) 4
OC Batbusters-Stith/Haning 1, Ohana Tigers-Quarles 0
SECOND ROUND
AASA 3, Sorcerers 2 (12)
Northwest Bullets 7, Explosion 5
OC Batbusters-Lastrapes 6, SoCal Breakers 5
Beverly Bandits 3, Birmingham Bolts 2
Corona Angels-Howard 3, Grapettes Krueg 2
SoCal Choppers 5, Diamond Hotshots 2
Corona Angels-Tyson 5, West Coast Intensity 0
OC Batbusters-Stith/Haning 6, USA Athletics Gold 0
QUARTERFINALS
Northwest Bullets 4, AASA 2
Beverly Bandits 4, OC Batbusters-Lastrapes 0
SoCal Choppers 5, Corona Angels-Howard 0
Corona Angels-Tyson 4, OC Batbusters-Stith/Haning 3
SEMIFINALS
Beverly Bandits 6, Northwest Bullets 2
Corona Angels-Tyson 6, SoCal Choppers 1
FINALS
Beverly Bandits vs. Corona Angels-Tyson, Bill Barber Park in Irvine, 11 a.m.