NOVEMBER 28
UPDATE
Commitments
Silva, Stacey. Signed
with
McKenney, Korey. P,
Hot
Quan, Jessica. OF,2nd,
CA Grapettes, to U
Guy, Kala. SS,3rd,C,
Houston Power Gold, committed
Evans, Jessica. IF, IL Typhoons, signed with DePaul
Frazier, Tasha. SS,
Allen, Katie. Spokane Sliders 18A, signed with Coastal Carolina
Masterson, Kathy.
Washburn, Nicole. KC
Peppers Gold, to Univ of
Winter, Stephanie.
Hamby, Ashley.
Littrell, Candis. SS,Tn. Outlaws, MTSU
Donley, Sheri-SS-Amer
Athletics{Ortiz} to Villanova
Pick, Candice. P,
West Bay Nuggets, signed with
Dillon, Shelbi.
3rd, West Bay Nuggets, signed with
Miller, Mary.
WA Heat, signed with Univ of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.
Correction:
Jackie Ludwig, P,3b, Philadelphia Spirit, signed with
Correction: The
coaches booklet given out for Amie Stewart’s Rebels at the Batbuster contains
a serious error. The book says “P
Heather Gutterud” committed to
Amanda
Scarborough
Hearst, Pulitzer and the New York Times were agreed: one
source, hedge; two sources, be declarative and confident; three sources, golden.
Not so. SPY was told by two
separate sources at Alicia and one coach who sent an email, that Laura Durham
hit that monstrous homer for the Texas Storm against the Cruisers.
As I have now been informed by numerous people east of the Pecos and
south of the Red, Laura Durham hit some long shots against Lake Breeze, none for
HRs, but, 04 Amanda Scarborough launched that rocket against the Cruisers.
There’s more. Amanda has
committed early to Texas A&M where she will once again team up with
The Olympic
Envelope, Please
Readers of USA Today believe that the IOC, meeting today in
Seniors at the
Batbuster
We have accumulated quite a batch of information on unsigned seniors – and we know a number college coaches at all levels who are still looking for players. However, having spent several hours this Thanksgiving evening responding to emails, and, putting together this brief report, we will publish our seniors report on Friday.
More Batbuster
Scores
We continue to receive additional scores which had not been previously posted. All of the following are reports provided by coaches.
From Alicia Park
Classics 1
vs Cal Waves 1
Classics 0
vs SD Renegades 1
Classics 4
vs So Cal Instinct 2
Classics 0
vs Pony Express 1 (unreported)
Classics 0
vs Grapetttes 0 (unreported)
From
OC Batbusters Tyronne 4, Irving Sting 2
American A's Ortiz 9-
A's 11- Wa Ladyhawks 3 (at Bill Barber)
A's 6 Orion Hunter 0
A's 1
A's 6 Full Mooners 2
From
Cari Koopman four strikeouts in three innings of work, shortstop, Allison Smith,
two RBI single, CF Brittni Carino scored three times in three plate appearances,
two walks and a single.
West Bay Nuggets def. Las Vegas Desert Fury 10-0
RF Kristen Carranza with a solo homerun, Allison Smith with an RBI triple,
pitchers Pick and Park, Candice and Stephanie respectively, combined on the
second shutout of the day.
Sunday @
Catchers Rachael Vogl and Stacy Compton with back-to-back two-out triples in
late game comeback attempt. Candice Pick threw three scoreless innings.
West Bay Nuggets def. San Diego Renegades 4-2
LF Nickie Jarrett two-out full-count two RBI double, RF Kristen Carranza a
two-run homer on a 1-2 count with two outs for the game winner.
West Bay Nuggets def. San Diego Power Surge 6-3
Five run second inning capped by RF Kristen Carranza's 2 RBI double.
Stephanie Park and Cari Koopman stifled the Surge's Power from the circle.
Xplosion Vs. So Cal Select Gold Xp 2-1
over Select, Great pitching on both sides with Xplosions Jenni
Wilson starting and Amanda Taylor relieving, holding the game at 1-1 for 6
innings. A game winning double, on a fake bunt hit by Danielle Schmidt,
drove in Cassie Clark for the win. Nice start for the weekend.
Xplosion 0- So Cal Splash 0 Pitching duel; few hits and great
defense on both sides to limit any runs. Double plays were the name of the
game for Xplosion showing an outstanding middle infield combination with Lisa
Teberg and Danielle Schmidt. Also great effort by Ashley Kirkpatrick at third
nailing lead runners when Splash tried to bunt them over.
Xplosion 0 -Bakersfield Babes 0 Another pitching duel with both
pitchers severely affecting the batters ability to contact the ball. Jenni
Wilson(Junior, Mountain Ridge HS,
Sunday
So
SD Breakers 4- Xplosion 2 Again unable to capitalize on bringing in
the base runners from scoring position, a passed ball that allowed a run and a
couple of Great hits on Breakers part led to the loss for Xplosion.
(SPY: thank you coach.)
A note on the Batbuster.
A parent wanted to make sure SPY differentiated between the two Strike
Zone teams, since one had placed 7th at Nationals, and the other was
an 18A team. I responded that the
schedule advised that the Gold team was at Alicia by putting Don Ford’s
initials next to the name, while the 18A team was at Harvard.
Anyone who saw the two teams would not be under any doubt as to which
team played Gold. The larger
problems for college scouts is that neither of these teams (and several others)
got their rosters in on time so they were not in the college coaches guide.
The other problem is that there are simply too many teams with the same
name, and, if you don’t know the coaches and/or players, it’s confusing: 3
AZ Hotshots; 2 Strike Zones; 3 OC Batbusters; 2 WA Ladyhawks; 2 Pastime; 2 SD
Renegades. The Cruiser team at
Alicia was not the Gold team but you might not know that unless you knew the
difference between the lineups. Using
the coaches’ initials helps – if you know the coaches names.
NFCA Names VA Shamrocks
Coaching Staff of the Year
Shamrocks (
The Shamrocks posted a 60-6
record in 2002 and finished first at the PONY Softball 18-Under National
Championship with a 10-0 mark. Including the Pony Nationals, the Shamrocks
recorded first-place finishes in six of nine tournaments in 2002. The Shamrocks
also placed third out of 91 teams at the Boulder Independence Day Tournament,
posting a 12-1 record at
The Shamrocks staff will be
recognized as the 2002 Speedline/NFCA Travel Ball National Coaching Staff of the
Year at the NFCA National Convention in
Face Guards: A
True Story
After we reported on several injuries at the Batbuster (some of which would not have been prevented by a face guard), we received this story from a long-time reader. We have erased the names. Incidentally, regarding injuries, the mother of the Phoenix Storm player who was injured wrote to inform me that her name is Elizabeth Buck, not Liz.
Kxxxxxxx was playing for Rxxxxxxxx and the xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx. Her
dad was in a sporting goods store with her, picked up a face mask, and asked if
she wanted one. She refused as no one else on her team wore one.
Just 2-3 weeks later she was at softball practice and we received a phone call.
She had been practicing bunting off the pitcher, Sxxxxx, and a bunt had
come off the bat and hit her in the mouth. The result was a split upper
lip and six loosened teeth.
Her dad has forever regretted not making her wear the face guard which would
have cost only $20. Her teeth were stabilized, but one still died and had
a root canal. The total cost for saving her teeth was $4,000, and we
battled for months with insurance. Dental said it was an emergency injury
so health should pay for it, and health said it was dental so dental should pay
for it. Further work was delayed while she wore braces. Her gum was
damaged and it healed, but it could still use some work, and the dead
tooth should probably be capped. However, that's another $2000 minimum and
insurance judges it to be cosmetic and therefore not covered.
The good part? Kxxxxxxxx has worn a face mask ever since. She left
the xxxx xxxxxx and joined the xxxxx for several years; both teams ended up with
all their players wearing masks. It also carried over to her high school
team - most players purchased their own. In all the games we've watched
over the last several years, we've seen many a serious injury prevented by the
wearing of face guards.
Top
Ten Reasons for Playing College Softball
(contributed
by a reader; thanks, Charlie)
TOP TEN
REASON WE PLAY COLLEGE SOFTBALL
>>
>>10. Polyester is so flattering to the figure.
>>9. You attend more ballgames then you do classes in a week.
>>8. The sweet aroma of the bathroom on the bus after a weekend
>>tournament.
>>7. The pre-game huddle filled with motivational, inspirational,
>>intellectual conversation and a lot of swearing.
>>6. The gut rot that results from three months of eating fast foods.
>>5.FRESHMEN--Need I say more?
>>4. Having the best tan on campus--until you are out of uniform
>>3. The only reason the team buys so much equipment is so the coaches can
>>throw it.
>>2. Seven months of distance training for the 60-foot sprint to first.
>>1. The crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd, the smell of freshly
>>cut grass and the scream from the third base side--GET THE BUNT DOWN
>>
Thanksgiving
We want to thank the dozens of readers who wished us well on Thanksgiving, many commenting favorably on our Thanksgiving message, and a few penning their own thoughtful observations.
A perspective of Thanksgiving as a time of family gatherings came home to me this morning. Having been on the road for 3 weeks, and with a bare larder, I stopped after Mass to have a quick breakfast at MacDonald's, the only restaurant open. Sat next to three elderly people and could not help overhearing their sad excuses for being alone today. One man said his twin daughters were now grown, living in California with their families, and he didn't have the funds to go there but didn't want them spending money on him. A lady said she knows her 15-year old grandson would miss her, but this was the year for the other grandparents. The third lady simply said she didn't see much of her children and grandchildren anymore But, when the man suggested that perhaps the three of them, who were obviously strangers sitting at adjoining tables, could find a restaurant for dinner, the women assured him they had many friends to visit -- and the man said he would do the same. Somehow, having spent years hearing what people say and listening for what they don't say, I sensed that each of these three people would be very much alone today. God bless the churches and community groups who reach out to the poor and also to elderly like these at Thanksgiving and Christmas, so they are not as alone as I think these people were..