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.
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