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By Loren Kopff • @LorenKopff on X
IRVINE-Over a dozen area players competed with their respective travel softball teams in the Champions Cup showcase tournament, put on by USA Softball. This is the 21st summer the tournament has had an 18-Under division, in which 50 teams vied for a championship.
Each team played five pool play games, which began on July 10, and lasted three days until the single elimination playoffs kicked off last Saturday. All the games were played at Harvard Park in Irvine. Also this past weekend was the 15th summer of the 16-Under division with those games played at The Great Park. No area players were among the 28 teams in this division.
Jumping out to a fast start to the Champions Cup were the (Pasadena) Firecrackers-Vines, home to Jailynn Banda of Norwalk High and Angelie Kennedy of La Mirada High. The Firecrackers won all five pool play games, scoring 34 runs and allowing just four. Then the Firecrackers defeated the (Simi Valley) CASE Batbusters 4-1 and the (Garden Grove) West Coast Lady Dukes 5-4 last Saturday to advance to the quarterfinals. There, the Firecrackers fell to the (San Dimas) Orange County Batbusters-Delgado, a 16-Under team, 5-2.
Banda, a right-handed pitcher who will be going to St. John’s University next month, pitched 20 innings in the three playoff games, giving up 14 hits and six earned runs while striking out 14 batters. Kennedy, an outfielder and catcher who has one year remaining with the Matadores but is a Harding University commit. Had a hit in each of the three games, scored twice and drove in a pair of runs.
The West Coast Lady Dukes, with La Mirada’s Alyssa Avila and Angelyna Conde, finished second in their pool at 3-1-1, then eased past the (Orangevale, CA) Foothill Gold-Marderos 14-4 and the (Fountain Valley) Orange County Batbusters-Aldrich 7-2 before their loss to the Firecrackers.
Avila, a shortstop, went a combined two for eight with four runs and an RBI in the three playoff games while Conde, a third baseman, had her lone hit against the O.C. Batbusters-Aldrich but scored five runs in the first two playoff games and drove in a run against the Foothill Gold and the Firecrackers.
Luna Cruz of La Mirada plays for the (Torrance) California Cruisers-Smith, which went 1-3-1 in pool play, then knocked off the (Hesperia) Royalty Fastpitch-Kirby/Ruben 9-3 last Saturday morning before falling to the (Kent, WA) WA Acers Gold-Anderton 3-0. In five games played in the Champions Cup, Cruz, a corner infielder, went three for 10 with three runs scored and an RBI.
The (Downey) Nemesis Elite Gold-Manny, which has Zoee Barrett and Choyce Chambers of Valley Christian High, went winless in pool play action before routing the (Livermore, CA) Lady Hustle-Marshall 17-2 last Saturday morning before falling to the (Livermore) Batbusters-Ching 4-3. Barrett, a first baseman, batted .500 in six games played and drove in a run while Chambers, a left fielder, went five for 14 with nine runs scored and two RBI.
Diana Bravo and Sienna Contreras of John Glenn High, Arianna Franco of Artesia High and Amber Valdez of La Mirada play for the (Downey) Ohana Tigers-Colenzo, which went 4-1 in pool play, but fell to the (Arcadia) Titans Fastpitch-Aspeitia 9-4 last Saturday afternoon.
Bravo played in four games but had one at-bat against the CASE Batbusters, Contreras has not played since June 15, Franco played in five games going two for six with two runs scored and Valdez played in all six games, going four for 10 with two doubles, three RBI and two runs scored. Bravo and Contreras will be attending Park University, Franco will be going to Pacific Lutheran University and Valdez is headed to Ottawa University in Arizona.
Whitney High’s Audrey and Nuella Anyama’s team the (Whittier) USA Athletics-Garcia, went 1-2-2 in pool play, then eliminated the (Lake Forest) Semper Fi-Campos 8-1 last Saturday morning before being blanked by the (Meridian, ID) USA Explosion-Kloczko 7-0 later in the day.
In four games played, Audrey Anyama went four for eight with a double, a run scored and drove in a run against the Semper Fi while her sister did not appear in a game.
Finally, Kylie Manibusan (Cerritos High/George Fox University) and Kendall Nakano (Norwalk/Biola University) saw their (La Palma) Wildcats-Hunter team go 3-2 in pool play, then lose to the (Los Angeles) Athletics Mercado-Gurrola 6-3.
Nakano, who played third base, went nine for 20 with seven RBI and four runs scored. She had hits in every pool play game before going hitless against the Athletics Mercado. Manibusan, who primarily played in right, was four for eight with six runs scored and two RBI.
