Squad makes history

A relentless offense and overwhelming pitching has put the

Kryptonite, a Huntington Beach girls softball 12-and-under division

team, into the league’s record book.

Kryptonite won the Central District All-Star Tournament title,

capping a four-game win streak with a 15-5 mercy rule win over West

Garden Grove.

The tournament, held in Rancho Santa Margarita, drew 15 different

leagues to the double-elimination event.

In three previous postseason appearances, Kryptonite had finished

second in each instance.

Brooke Hitchcock’s two-run double and Jenny Pilecki’s run-scoring

single started Kryptonite on its way against West Garden Grove.

Hits by Amy Nunez, Lana Rutkin and Alex McCollum led to three more

runs in the third as Kryptonite took a 6-2 lead.

After West Garden Grove had narrowed the deficit to 6-5,

Kryptonite came back with six more runs behind singles by Autumn

Martinez, Nunez, Rutkin and Jacqueline Kent, and a triple by Taysia

Kaufman.

Kryptonite added three insurance runs in the fifth as Martinez

singled, Nunez doubled and Rutkin singled.

Nunez led Kryptonite’s potent offense with four hits.

Martinez and Rutkin each had three hits and McCollum and Hitchcock

each had two hits.

The game was called after five innings. In five innings,

Kryptonite batters racked up 19 hits.

Rachel Gaber and Kent shared pitching duties for Kryptonite.

Kryptonite’s prowess was evident in its tournament opener against

Garden Grove.

A four-run first inning put Kryptonite in control, the big hit

being McCollum’s three-run double, for a 4-0 lead.

Kryptonite went on to record an 11-0 shutout.

Rutkin had an RBI, Nunez tripled, Kaufman had two hits and Pilecki

and Martinez each had key, first inning singles.

Kaufman got the win. She struck out six and allowed only four hits

in four innings of work.

Kryptonite next routed Central Orange, 12-0.

Rutkin, who singled, and McCollum scored in the second inning, and

Brooke Hitchcock delivered a two-run single for a 4-0 lead.

Kryptonite broke the game open with an eight-run third inning

behind hits by Hitchcock, Pilecki, Rutkin, McCollum and Gaber.

Gaber threw a four-hitter in notching a complete-game victory.

In their third outing, Kryptonite overcame an early 2-0 deficit to

defeat Canyon Hills, 9-4.

Trailing, 2-0, Rutkin and Kaufman each had an RBI single during a

five-run third inning, which gave Kryptonite a 5-2 lead.

In the fifth, they struck for four more runs, as Pilecki doubled,

Nunez followed with a triple and Rutkin and Kaufman each singled home

a run.

Kaufman again got the win and at one stretch of the game, struck

out 13 consecutive batters.