Firecrackers win tourney title

Behind the pitching of Amy Nunez and Ashley McNiff, and keyed by the

defensive play of Kendall Kraiss, Rachel Sumner, Kaleigh Moses and

Jessica Balmer, the Firecrackers, a Huntington Beach girls’ softball

team, won the Fast Pitch under-1O Tournament held Sunday in Huntington

Beach.

They eased their way to the title as they shut down another Huntington

Beach Girls’ Softball team, the Sisters of Swat, 8-0, in a tournament

final that was closer than the final score indicated. The difference in

the game was the three-hitter Nunez tossed at Sisters of Swat, who were

led defensively by Autumn Martinez, Rachel Gaber, Ariel Tedesco and

pitcher Daae Cantu.

The Firecrackers began a day of tournament play by edging Yorba Linda,

3-2. Key hits in the triumph were supplied by Kraiss, Moses and Balmer.

They followed that win with a 7-1 drubbing of Pacific Coast with Nunez,

Kraiss, Rebecca Sumner, Alex Demascio and Kailey Jackson pacing the

offense.

In tournament semifinal action the Firecrackers blanked Fountain

Valley, 4-0, behind a 16 strikeout, no-hit effort turned in by Nunez. She

was backed by solid defense and key hitting from Sumner, Brittany Wooten,

Ashleigh Anderson and Christine Kubeck.

In other games:

UNDER 14 DIVISION

PacSun 8, Fountain Valley 2

Heather Langner’s bases loaded triple in the fifth inning broke open a

tightly contested game and propelled PacSun to the win. The triple scored

two runs and Langner later scored in the inning. Nicole Acosta and Kara

Rutkin each finished with two hits and Eryika Rodriguez and Mica Ayache

each had key singles.

Rutkin scattered four hits while striking out seven for PacSun.

PacSun 3, CIA 2

Nicole Acosta’s sacrifice fly in the sixth inning drove in the winning

run as PacSun got past their rivals from South Huntington Beach.

Acosta also singled in the first inning to score one run and big

defensive stops by Eryika Rodriguez and Danielle Hoffman backed the

strong pitching of Michelle Fuzzard, who allowed only three hits while

striking out eight in seven innings.