By Jim McCurdy Sometimes the toughest task is competing against


one of your own. When Corona Angels-Marty met up with Corona Angels-Kim, that was just the scenario a summer- tested softball team was in for. Corona Angels-Marty needed an International Tiebreaker time-rule game to decide the 4-3 win over Corona Angels-Kim in the quarterfinals of the Champions Cup 18U tournament in mid-July in Irvine, Calif. "That particular game was a big game," Angels-


Marty assistant coach Jeff Langdon said. "It's always fun to go against your sister team and measure yourselves." It took a two-out double by Bethany Kemp, an


Arizona State signee, to get past its sister squad in the quarterfinals of the Irvine event. Nisa Ontiveros, who is headed to California, recorded the win in the circle in a game in which Angels- Marty used four pitchers. It brought the best out of Angels-Marty, which


went on to win the Champions Cup to begin a stretch that had them playing for three straight weeks. "It seems like we've been gone a long time,"


pitcher Taylor Langdon told her dad afterwards. Corona Angels-Marty beat SoCal 3D, 6-2, in the semifinals. The Angels trailed 2-0 before tying the game in the fifth. Nicole Girard, an Arizona State recruit, collided with the catcher at the plate on a


By Jim McCurdy Irvine, CA. -- There’s nothing light about California


Lite. In fact, these girls are packing a heavy punch. When California Lite made it to the tournament round of the Champions Cup July 11, in Irvine, Calif., they were nearly unstoppable. So much so, that despite surviving a one- run battle in the quarterfinals, California Lite cruised to the 16-under championship. California Lite beat the California Cruisers, 6-0, in the


title game. That followed an 8-0 win over the Firecrackers-RP in the semifinals. California Lite’s biggest test in the tournament bracket came in a 12-11 nine-inning win over the Firecrackers-JB in the quarterfinals. “I am especially proud of the team in the Champions


Cup tournament,” California Lite head coach Pam Newton said. “They played exceptional, and made many believe in their abilities. After taking third in the 18-under division at the Colorado Fireworks (tournament) less than a week before, they came back and continued their success.” California Lite went 10-1 in the tournament, losing its


10


only game in pool play to the Firecrackers-JB. CA. Lite scored 94 runs in the 11 games, and hit .408 as a team. In the five tournament bracket games, California Lite outscored teams, 42-11, and posted four shutouts. The Firecrackers scored five runs in extra innings, only to be one-upped by California Lite, which scored six


Corona Angels (Marty) defeated Minors Gold 9-1 for the 18U Champions Cup title.


passed ball, allowing the Angels to tie the game at 2-2 when a second runner came around from second to score. The Angels tacked on four runs in the sixth to secure a trip to the championship game. Ontiveros went three innings, allowing two runs in the


win. Danielle O'Toole, who is headed to San Diego State, worked the final four innings, allowing two hits and no runs. In the championship against Minors Gold, Amber


Freeman hit a three-run homer that cleared the 200-foot fence by 30 feet, and the Angels scored four runs in the third to take an 8-0 lead. Langdon, who will play at Fresno


runs in the additional innings, decided by the international tiebreaker. Pitcher Erin Rodriguez won five games in the tournament, starting the championship game. Rodriguez allowed just four earned runs in 23 1/3 innings pitched, and struck out 25 batters. California Lite pounded 109 hits in the Champions Cup,


while driving in 83 runs. Linn batted a team-best .567 and had 14 RBIs and eight stolen bases. Third baseman Brandi Harkness batted .536 and drove in 12 runs while pounding seven doubles. Second baseman Taylor Purdy, who committed to San Jose State, hit .500 with a double, triple and team-high 12 singles. She and Harkness were two of 10 California Lite players with a 1.000 fielding percentage. “The team believes they are stronger, faster and more


confident because of all our organization training,” Newton said. In February, California Lite partnered with EM Speed and Power Training, a non-profit speed and agility company. The players train there twice a week. “Our players swear that their success of more power is directly related,” Newton said. “I have seen their bodies develop with more muscle tone, more power in first step explosiveness, and their reaction times are much faster.” Catcher Kirsten Mack hit two homers in the Champions


Cup and drove in a team-high 17 runs while batting .433. She had four doubles and a triple and had a team-best .833 slugging percentage. Rogers went 4-1, with a 2.78 ERA. “The coaching staff has made a combined effort to train


specifics, dedicate time to every player’s weakness and to motivate them to believe in those special abilities they


California Lite beat the California Cruisers, 6-0, in the title game for the 16U Champions Cup title.


State, picked up the win, pitching four innings, allowing a run on four hits. UCLA recruit Stephany LaRosa had two hits for the Angels as they went on to defeat Minors Gold 9-1. Corona Angels-Marty placed third in the Women's Open


state tournament and second in the Fastpitch Championship Invitational in Henderson, Nev., where college players compete in the summer. All 21 players on this Angels team signed or gave a


Division I school a verbal commitment. Angels-Marty will lose 10 seniors from this year's team, with 11 juniors returning and a talented sophomore class moving up.


each possess,” Newton said. “Coach Francisco Rodrigez and coach Chris Abacherli have helped me build a successful formula with a special group of young female athletes.”


Softball Today • August 2011


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