Charlotte Blaze 12U Red - 1997: My Site News

The Blaze ended their season with a 13th place finish out of 45 teams in the NSA World Series. We didn't play very consistently in the World and struggled to find our groove. We only played well a couple of games and we know you can't do that against good teams.

We opened pool play against the Crown Point Bulldogs from Indiana that eventually finished 2nd in the tournament. We faced a very good pitcher and fell short in an international tie-breaker loss 6-5. We had runners on 3rd and 2nd with no outs in ITB but couldn't execute to tie or win the game. Our next pool game was against the Philadelphia Spirit. Ally pitched a great game in shutting out the Spirit 8-0. On to Tuesday am and our first bracket game.

Our first bracket game against Compuware (MI) started with a bang but ended with a wimper. We scored 4 runs in the 1st and had runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out but couldn't break the game open. We then had a bad inning and allowed Compuware to get back in the game with 3 runs. The next inning wasn't any better and we gave up 4 more runs to lose 7-4.

Our second bracket game was against Team Indiana in heavy rain. We were up 2-0 when the rain came and we got caught on defense in the downpour. We struggled throwing strikes in the rain and fell behind 4-2 in the 3rd. We then rallied in the 4th with Haylee getting a big bomb over the centerfielders head with 2 outs to plate 2 runs to tie the game. Kaylee then singled in Haylee to plate the go ahead run and a 5-4 Blaze win. Next up was the Wellington Wild from West Palm Beach, FL. We again started off quickly with 2 runs in the 1st. We struggled again in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th innings and gave up 5 runs but added 1 run in both the 3rd and 4th to stay within one run of the Wild. Once again Haylee was the hero for us by tripling in the rightcenter gap to score Macy B. and Ally to put us up 6-5. Ally once again had a solid outing in relief and held the Wild in their last at bat to preserve the win. Our 3rd game of the day was against the Loudoun Storm - Black from VA. Amanda gave us a solid effort on the mound and we put up runs in every inning but 2 to win going away 9-2.

Our next bracket game was against The Tsunami 97 from Jacksonville, FL. We played a complete game just didn't have our bats going against a pitcher that we just couldn't solve. Macy and Ally pitched a very good game but the Tsunami scored all 3 of their runs in the 2nd inning on 3 hits and that was enough. Our season ends with a disappointing 3-0 loss.

Tournament summary: Record 4-3, runs scored 37, runs allowed 27, overall record 41-12. 

The Blaze headed to Spartanburg, SC and came home with their 4th title of the spring/summer.

Our first game was a pool game against the Georgia Fire. We came out a little slow due to not playing in a month, but we eventually pulled away for a 7-0 win. Next up, the Belton Blaze from SC in our first bracket game. We played a complete game in all facets and won 14-0. We were then matched up with the Atlanta Vipers (Miller). They were a very scrappy team and some pitching problems made for a very close game. We were able to score the last 3 runs of the game to win a hard fought game 7-4. We then had to play the Collins Hill Eagles in a battle of the unbeatens. The Eagles were also very well coached and had very good pitching. We broke through in the 3rd when Haylee doubled over the centerfielders head to drive in two runs to put us ahead. In the fifth, Kaylee doubled to right to drive in another two runs to put us us 4-0. We then had another good inning in the sixth to extend our lead to 7-0. Our pitching struggled a little in the bottom of the sixth, but we were able to hang on for a 7-4 win.

After the game, the Georgia Fire and Collins Hill had their berths to the Nationals so everyone decided to call it a day. We were awarded first place due to being undefeated, Collins Hill finished second due to defeating the Fire and the Fire were awarded 3rd. Thanks to all the teams, we really enjoyed the competition this weekend.

Weekend summary, record 4-0, runs scored 35, runs allowed 8, overall record 37-9.

On Friday, the Blaze travelled to Rock Hill again to compete in the NSA State Championship. We were matched up with the JC Clippers 98 on Friday afternoon. We came out ready to play and really ready to hit. We totalled 18 hits in 3 innings to run rule the Clippers 98 16-1.

On Saturday, we were matched up with the Diamond Crushers Blue. We didn't pitch or field well but were very fortunate to come out on top 9-8. That win paired us up with the Carolina Edge. We didn't play particularly well but came out on top 10-3. Next up Alexander Gold in the winner's bracket semi-finals Sunday morning at 8:00am.

The Blaze and Alexander Gold were locked in a 0-0 pitcher's duel through four innings. The Gold used some timely hitting and 2 Blaze errors to score three runs in the fifth to put us behind the 8 ball. Our hitting continued to be non-existant and with time running out we threw the ball down the middle and gave up 3 more runs to lose 6-0 to the evenually state champions. We then had a rematch with the Diamond Crushers Blue who had fought through the loser's bracket and beat some really good teams. We were fortunate to play very well and to get a tired team and were able to run rule the Diamond Crushers 13-1. Next up: NC Rockers. We played the NC Rockers earlier in the year and were able to score 5 runs in the last inning to win. This game was eerily similar but this time we came back twice. We spotted the Rockers a 4-0 lead before we rallied to tie the game at 4. We then fell behind 5-4 going into our last at bat. Again we were able to get the job done and score 3 runs to win 7-5. Next in the loser's bracket final is our rivals the Carolina Sharks. This game was also a pitcher's duel. Macy O. and Brooke locked up in a 0-0 game until the top of the sixth inning. The Sharks were able to push 3 runs across on a solid hit by Brooke and a bloop hit over third and a Blaze error. We never were able to solve Brooke today and we lose 3-0 and finish a disappointing 3rd in the state.

Weekend summary, record 5-2, runs scored 55, runs allowed 27. Overall record 33-9.

The 12U Blaze Red traveled south to Rock Hill, SC for the Mighty Casey, big NSA tournament (22 teams), and finished 1st Place in our Bracket (Double Bracket Format) and then downed a very good Aftershock Blue from Va. in a one game showdown for Overall "Super" Champion. THIS IS OUR 3RD STRAIGHT TOURNAMENT WIN!!!!!!!!

We started bracket play (no pool games in this tournament) against the SC Hurricanes. Our bats and Macy O. were hot and we prevailed 16-0. Macy O. continued her great pitching with a 3 inning perfect game with 8 strikeouts. After a 10 hour break, we were matched up against the NC Vipers. We came out flat from the break and we really struggled with the Viper pitcher. We pushed a run across in the last inning to win 5-4.

We started Sunday with the winners bracket final against our close rivals the Weddington Outlaws. We again had Macy O. on the mound and our girls were really hitting. We were able to run rule the Outlaws and win 11-1. WAY TO GO MACY O. TWO HITTER ON THE MOUND AND ANOTHER HOMERUN OUT OF THE PARK!!!! Next brought a rematch with the Outlaws for our bracket championship. Amanda struggled some in the first inning and our defense also let us down and we quickly fell behind 5-0 and eventually had the favor returned with the Outlaws winning in a 10-0 run rule. Our girls were a little shaken but determined to win the championship. We jumped out to a 1-0 lead and then Madelyn F. came up with a huge hit with the bases loaded to give us a little breathing room and a 3-0 lead. Macy O. continued her superb pitching with another shutout and the Blaze prevailed 4-0 and are "BRACKET CHAMPIONS"!!!!

Next up is the tough Aftershock Blue. The Aftershock had really been hitting the ball well this tournament and we were very fortunate to come out on top. The Aftershock scored two runs in the first on pass balls and another run in the second to put us down 3-0. Our bats woke up and some key hits enabled us to tie the game 3-3. The Aftershock batted in the bottom of the fourth and was able to push across a run to lead 4-3 entering the 5th inning with time expired. It was do-or-die for the Blaze girls. Lizzy lead off with a hard single to left to get us started. She then stole second and scored on a base hit up the middle by Macy O. to tie the game at 4. Macy B. then drove a double over the rightfielders head but some dumb coach (that is me) got Macy O. thrown out at the plate with no outs but Macy B. advanced to 3rd on the throw. After another out, we were down to our last out of the inning and had Ally at the plate. Ally battled throughout her at bat and laced a two-out, two-strike pitch to left center to put us ahead for the first time 5-4. Amanda was determined to complete the win and really went after their hitters in the bottom of the fifth. Amanda quickly got the first two outs but an error gave the Aftershock life. Amanda then got the last out to ground out to Ally at third and the Blaze Girls Celebrated Their "Overall Championship"!!!!!!!

GREAT JOB GIRLS!!!!!!!!! NOW IT'S ON TO THE NSA STATE BACK IN ROCK HILL!!!!!

Weekend summary, record 5-1, 41 runs scored, 19 runs allowed. Overall record 28-7.

The Blaze Red journeyed to Spartanburg for the ASA Memorial Day Invitational and came home with their second straight Championship. The Blaze was anchored by Macy O. who led the way with three complete game shutouts (one was a full 7 inning shutout) in her four appearances on the mound. Overall, she allowed 2 total runs and only 1 earned run for the weekend. GREAT JOB MACY O. Also, great job Haylee, Macy O., Amanda and Regan for hitting over .400 this weekend.

We started the weekend with a pool game against the Lady Eagles from VA and after a slow start in the first inning, we cranked things up and won 10-0. Our second pool game was against the Lady Hawks from GA. We played our worst game of the year. Our hitting didn't show up and our pitching struggled in the 9-2 loss. After some soul searching, we matched up with the eventual tournament runnerups, the Fire '97. We really came out ready to play and were able to run rule the Fire 97 in 3 innings, 12-0. That performance ended our Saturday on a good note and set up a match up with the SC Jets on Sunday morning in the winners bracket semifinals.

Sunday was a pretty day for softball and we again played well. Amanda rebounded from a bad day pitching on Saturday and our hitters continued to produce runs and enabled us to pull away from the Jets for a 9-2 win. Next game was a rematch with the Lady Hawks in the winners bracket final. The game was a classic battle between two very good pitchers. We were fortunate to get a walk, a stolen base and two wild pitches to score the only run of the game in the top of the 6th. Macy O. was able to hold on the last two innings and we were on to the championship game with a 1-0 seven inning win. The Fire 97 fought back through the loser's bracket and met us in the championship game. Our hitting and some continued good pitching by Amanda staked us to an early lead. The Fire 97 battled us tooth and nail and Macy O. came in to nail down the championship with 3 innings of relief (another 7 inning game). Final Score BLAZE WIN 8-4.

GREAT JOB GIRLS!!!! NOW IT'S ON TO THE MIGHTY CASEY IN ROCK HILL.

Weekend summary, record 5-1, 42 runs scored, 15 runs allowed. Overall record now 23-6.

We traveled to Statesville to play against some of the best teams in NC & SC. The tournament featured the DC Thunder, Alexander Gold and Charlotte Starz Gold from NC and the Palmetto Thunder from SC.

Our girls really stepped up and played their most complete tournament of the year and played at the level we think we should be at. CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR FIRST TOURNAMENT WIN AGAINST A STRONG FIELD!!!!

We opened pool play against the scrappy Carolina Edge. Our girls were a little out of it due to the drive and a long week in school but we were able to pull out a hard fought win   6-2. We then had to play our last pool game against the Palmetto Thunder and we got great pitching and hit the ball well to beat a good Thunder team 9-0. That win allow us to get a first round bye for the tournament. We then played our first bracket game, after the bye, against the DC Thunder. We got great pitching again and timely hitting and were able to pull away from the Thunder for a 7-1 win. The win put us in the finals. The Palmetto Thunder were able to upset the Alexander Gold and beat the Carolina Edge to get back to us in the finals. Our girls were ready for the challenge and started off hot by scoring 2 runs in the top of the 1st but Palmetto was not going to go easy and put up 2 runs in the bottom of their 1st to tie the game. Our girls were just in a groove and determined to win their 1st tournament of the year. They again continued their outstanding hitting and struck back for 7 runs in the 2nd inning to take the wind out of Palmetto's sails. We continued to hit and Amanda settled down after a rough first inning and we prevailed 11-3 to win the CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!

Summary of the weekend, record 4-0, runs scored 33, runs allowed 6. Overall record now 18-5.

Off to Greensboro for the NSA Super Bash. This is one of the biggest tournaments of the year for NSA!

We started pool play against the Galaxy from Virginia. Though our bats didn't show up, we came out on top 3-1. We started bracket play against a much improved Southern Alamance Sluggers and due to some great pitching and our bats heating up late in the game, we won  7-0. We then had to play a very good and undefeated team from Virginia the Aftershock Blue. We fell behind in the first inning 1-0 but with good pitching and timely hitting we were able to pull out the victory 4-1. Next up is the NC Rockers, one of the top teams in NC, the Rockers pitcher really baffled our hitters throughout the game until the last inning. We trailed 3-0 in our last at bat and we were finally able to solve their pitcher and hit the ball really well and scored 5 runs to pull out the win 5-3. That win puts us in the Gold Bracket Final 4. Over night the rains came so the tournament was changed from double elimination to single elimination so NSA could get the tournament finished.

Sunday came and it was a beautiful day after the overnight rains. Next up is the DC Thunder, again one of the best teams in NC. We were able to get a lead on the DC Thunder only to see a error allow them to take a 3-2 lead late in the game. We battled back in our at bat to score two runs and take a 4-3 lead into the Thunder's last at bat. The Thunder were able to load the bases courtesy of 3 walks by Blaze pitching with no outs. Then Kaylee made the play of the tournament, the Thunder hitter lofted a flyball to right field and Kaylee made a running catch and fired home to cut down the DC Thunder player at the plate to keep us ahead. The next Thunder hitter grounded out to third and we secured a hard fought 4-3 victory. Now it's on to the championship game against the undefeated Alexander Gold. Our bats were hot from the start scoring 2 runs in the top of the first but Alexander battled back with 2 runs of their own in the bottom of the first. While our bats went cold, Alexander was able to add 2 more runs to take a 4-2 lead into our last at bat. With the championship on the line, we came alive and loaded the bases with two outs, a groundball to SS and a bad hop allow us to pull within 4-3. Hallie then grounded up the middle but the Alexander 2nd baseman made a sliding stop and flipped to the SS to end the game. Alexander wins 4-3. Overall we played very well and proved we were one of the top teams in NC. It seems like we are continuing to get better every tournament. Summary for the tournament, 5-1 record, 26 runs scored and 12 runs allowed. Overall record now 14-5.

After a disappointing first tournament, we move up a step and play with the 14's. We started the tournament in pool play against the DC Heartbreakers and won 8-3. We were then matched against the UC Extreme Purple and won a hard fought game 2-0. Our first 14U tournament and we are the #3 seed in the "A" Bracket. We played the Carolina Cool in the first bracket game and had to face our pitcher from last year. Lacee was on the top of her game and we came out on the short end of a 2-0 score. Our first loser's bracket game was against the Carolina Smackdown and we were able to move forward with a 11-2 win. We then had to play the Diamond Crushers Blue, one of the top teams in AAU. We trailed 3-1 in our last at bat and rallied to score three runs to win 4-3. That win put us in the Loser's Bracket semifinals against the Carolina Cool and Lacee again. The Cool scored a run in the top of the first to go up 1-0 but we struck back in the bottom of the first when Macy O. hit her first homerun over the fence. CONGRATULATIONS MACY O. ON YOUR BLAST! We were tied with the Cool 1-1 in the bottom of the last inning and our pitching and defense fell apart and we ended up going home with a 10-1 loss. For our 1st weekend in 14's, we had a record of 4-2, scoring 26 runs and allowing 18 runs. Overall record now 9-4.

First tournament of the year is here. The girls were getting antsy from all the practicing and needed to get started. We played our pool game against the Weddington Outlaws and came out on top 5-3. We then started bracket play and downed the Lady Braves 13-0. We then ran into a very good Charlotte Starz Gold team and they sent us to the loser's bracket with a 4-3 loss. When came back on a chilly Sunday morning to face the Carolina Edge and won 9-2. We then met up with the Weddington Outlaws again and once again we were the winners 7-4. We then met up with the Lady Braves and had our bats working and our pitching working and won 15-0. That win set up a rematch with the Charlotte Starz Gold, we had a very bad first inning in which we gave up 5 runs and ended up losing once again to the Starz 5-2. All in all, we had a pretty good tournament even though we didn't do as well as we had hoped. Overall, 5-2 scored 54 runs and gave up 18 runs.

 Off to play 14's in 3 weeks.