10/19/15
8th Annual Marion Halloween Bash

 

 

After two rain shortened fall tournaments, the 12U Great Lakes Sharks finally had a chance to show what they are made of in cool but dry conditions. We beat Wicked Fastpitch and Heart of Ohio Rattlers I pool play both by the same score of 14-2. These two games earned us the #1 seed heading into double elimination bracket play. A 14-1 first round victory over Wicked Fastpitch, again, capped off a 3-0 Saturday. Sunday morning we knocked off Rapture 12-3 to move on to the winners bracket semifinals. That's where we ran into Heart of Ohio Shockers who proved to be too much with solid hitting from top to bottom. Despite some silly errors, we still hung in there with clutch hitting before eventually falling 14-9. Then the circus began. We faced the Dirt Dogs in the losers bracket semis and it wasn't pretty for a while. Despite great pitching from Berlynn Keller, we couldn't find our hot bats or our gloves to keep us in the game. Trailing by 9 runs in the 4th, we tried to make a comeback only to have our gloves give it right back.  We ended up tying the game heading into 7th inning but the Dirt Dogs didn't quit and plated a run.  We tied it up in the bottom of the final frame and had the winning run at 3rd with the wrecking ball, Hannah Pfundt, at the plate. She hit a bullet off the pitcher's kneecap that dropped her like a rock but the ball kicked right to the second baseman who made the third and final out.  On to international tiebreaker we went. They only plated one run, thanks to an inning ending double play by us to keep our hopes in reach.  That's when the girls sucked it up and got it done on a single to right from Jordon Pratt to drive in the winning run and end the two and a half hour marathon.  After a very brief ten minute break we had to take the field again against the Shockers.  They were fresh and it showed and they took it to us early and often.  Nevertheless, despite losing in the finals, the runner-up finish earned our 2016 ASA Eastern National berth.  

All the girls were key contributors but special mention goes to the heavy hitting of Hannah Pfundt, Chloe Carpenter, Jenna Bloomfield, Jordon Pratt, Berlynn Keller, and Angel Dorris.  Olivia Desjardins came up with some clutch hits to drive in multiple runs, as did Mikki Sampson.  Great glove work and quality at-bats from Josie Quick were huge strides for her. And last but not least, the main battery mates of Maggie Summers and Makenzie Lucas were incredible. Maggie was in the circle in 6 of the 7 games, starting 5 of them and going 4-2 over the weekend.  Makenzie was like the energizer bunny catching every inning of the tourney except for the last inning of the championship game.  She also scored somewhere around 12 or 13 runs over the weekend, hitting from the leadoff spot.  

Maggie Summers was named tourney MVP from the tourney director.  Kudos to everyone