I never did take the time to write about my tournament team from summer of ’07. We had a really great group of kids, they showed a level of dedication and love of the game that impressed me deeply. My most sincere thanks to my assistants, Maria Morris and Lauren White, all the parents and families that were involved, and OGSL – all of whom supported this cause all the way. Here are among my recaps:
We got dusted in San Ramon, went 0-3-1, tying Alameda in a late inning rally that kept the weekend from being an entire bust. I knew this would be our most challenging tournament, my approach was to give the girls a jolt of reality and see how they responded…
Next up: Carmel, June 30, July 1.
wow.
this was a weekend I will long remember – I think we all will. I was hoping to have played 2 more games by the time it was over, but we walked away with a lot to be proud of. Contributions from every player up and down the roster, the support of families, great setting, great weather, a great Saturday night get-together – I wish all tournaments were as much fun as this one. The win over the Valley Magic was a game to remember all in its own. Ask me some time in person.
Saturday:
Oakland 9, Belmont 5; Oakland 3, Valley Magic 1; Oakland 12, San Carlos 9
Sunday:
Oakland 4, San Anselmo 2; Almaden 6, Oakland 4
San Jose – Wess Jones Memorial
this was a fun tournament, and the kids really gave it their all. We finished 2nd, lost the championship game by a single run. Ouch (but not THAT painful)
Natalie pitched all or parts of 6 games. Home runs by Callie, Lexi and Kera. Very proud of all our girls!
Official recaps
Benicia, August 10-11
Our season has come to a conclusion this weekend in Benicia, and I’m glad to tell you all that we fought our way once again to the championship game. But alas, bridesmaids again: we were soundly defeated by a very strong Redding team. It seems as though they had the philosophy “we’re not driving 4 hours down highway 5 to not bring home the big hardware!”
We played pretty tough all weekend though, we consistently jumped out to leads in every game we played. Our batteries were outstanding, especially Natalie (she makes me so proud) and Erin (our team MVP, catcher and leadoff hitter), they worked 5 complete games together. Haley also pitched very well with Alexis catching. We played some great D on and off, and it seems we learned from a couple of key mistakes, then turned similar opportunities into big outs in the field.
In Sunday morning elimination play, we went back and forth with Santa Rosa, scrapping for runs after blowing a 5-2 lead. We’re playing defense and up 8-6 in their last at bat. With two out and a runner on second, there’s a single hit sharply to our left fielder. In the previous inning our left fielder Kera had tried to play a single back to the infield and thrown poorly, missing the cutoff and allowing 2 runs to score. Naturally, the third base coach remembers this in the next inning and sends his runner home, only to see her get HOSED!!! at the plate to end the game. A very strong throw to the plate and our catcher had her pegged by 15 feet. YEAH!! Winning on Sunday, baby, that’s all that matters! (thank you Al Davis – hey, we’re Oakland, right?)
3 weeks ago we lost a close one to Lamorinda in the championship game in South San Jose. Well, this weekend we exacted some sweet revenge. In Sunday’s semifinal, we sent them home as we advanced with a 6-3 victory. Nursing a lead coming into the bottom of the final inning, Nat strikes out the leadoff batter, then gives up a hit and a run on an error. One out later, but with the momentum clearly on their side, Natalie goes to her change up to induce a game ending ground out by their slugging catcher. A 13-year old girl in an 18-year old’s frame, she blasted a triple in the first inning. With Erin calling pitches brilliantly, Natalie kept her off balance the rest of the game, retiring her on a pop up and the aforementioned ground out to Alexis at short.
In the championship against Redding, we could only manage to spread out 5 hits, while the Rapids parlayed 5 hits and a number of errors into an 8-run second inning. One of our theories: Redding is a warm weather town, and as our girls looked to be withering in the 80+ degree sunshine, the (perceived) heat hindered the Rapids not at all.
So there you have it, my summer coaching girls softball. Our record: 12 wins, 9 losses, 2 ties. Combined with our league’s 10 and under team coming away with a second in Half Moon Bay and a first in Rohnert Park, we’re making great strides in travel ball. Gone for now are the 3 hour practices and the hauling of equipment, trading keys to Owen Jones and getting booted from Flood without permits. Time for me and the family to get a little R&R – aloha, peeps!
go VIPERS!!!