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LLB Datacenter
Last updated
12-28-09 04:23 PM
 
Palmdale Little League
(661) 285-2166
P.O. Box 900732
55th Street East & Avenue R-4
Palmdale, California
93590
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Monday, August 15
2005 Big League Softball World Series - The going is much tougher in Michigan
The going is much tougher in Michigan
This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Monday, August 15, 2005.
By SEAN LYNCH Valley Press Staff Writer
PALMDALE - Many around the Antelope Valley thought a trip by the District 51 Regional All-Star team to the Big League Softball World Series for the second consecutive year was a forgone conclusion, long before the tournament ever drew to a close. Now, having proven itself worthy of such hype with a perfect six-game run through the Western Regional, the District 51 team is back to square one. With the Big League World Series opening today in Kalamazoo, Mich., the talented District 51 squad faces expectations just as high as before, but against a much higher level of competition. "The girls playing as one unit is what it will take for us to seperate ourselves from everyone else," District 51 manager Scott Rutledge said. "Everyone the makes the tournament is equally talented. It's who does the small things that will make the differences between who wins and loses." Although it won't be able to walk through the World Series the way it did through the Western Regional, District 51's approach to the tournament will be the same. "If we continue to have solid pitching and defense mixed with our timely hitting and aggresive base running, we're going to be tough to beat," Rutledge said. If District 51 wishes to return a World Series championship to the Antelope Valley for the first time since 1996, pitching will be key. Despite the absence of Nickie Perez from the tournament, Rutledge still has quality arms to call upon from his roster. Laura Calvert, Amanda Nelson and Ashley Thomas all picked up wins for District 51 in the Western Regional, including a no-hitter from Thomas to seal the victory. On top of that trio, Johanna Ilejay and Candice Miller both pitched for their respective schools during the Golden League season and Rutledge said Nicole Torres saw action in last year's World Series. "Without Nickie we still have five or six pitchers to call upon at anytime," Rutledge said. Another advantage District 51 takes with them into the World Series is speed on the base paths. The tandem of Alaina Devenney and Nikki Cordova wreaked havoc on their Western Regional opponents, constantly applying pressure with aggressive base running. Rutledge said District 51 will continue to use its speed, but not quite in the same ways. "When you reach level everyone has the same talent, so you need to choose your spots," Rutledge said. According to Rutledge, District 51 will stick with the basic lineup that earned them the Western Regional championship. "Our core of Katie Cornelison, Brooke Stix, Ashley Thomas, Kelsie Blankemeyer and Rebecca Zapata will pretty much remain the same," Rutledge said. "You never know who's going to get hot, so the rest will be up in the air." Rutledge said he was quite pleased with the contact his team was making at the end of the Western Regional and expects it to carry over into the World Series. "You could see at the end of the Western Regional that the bats were starting to heat up," Rutledge said. "The girls hadn't played ball in a while and it took a few games for them to get their swings back." Along with District 51 the Big League Softball World Series is comprised of nine other teams, representing regions from all over the country and world. The 10 teams are and are broken up into two pools for round-robin play. District 51 finds itself in Pool A, accompanied by EMEA Regional winner Netherlands, Asia Pacific Regional winner Philippines, South Region winner West Virginia and the host team from Kalamazoo, Mich. Pool B is made up of Texas East, Puerto Rico, Ontario, Michigan and Delaware. Each team will play everyone in their pool once, with the top two teams from each pool advancing to the semifinals. District 51 will play a pair of games today to open the tournament vs. Netherlands at 11 a.m. and Kalamazoo at 4 p.m. "Its always been that way," Rutledge said. "We always have a doubleheader the first game, with the second game at night against Kalamazoo in front of the home crowd." On Tuesday, District 51 will square off against the Philippines at 1:30 p.m., and then finish up its pool play Wednesday at 11 a.m. against West Virginia. "It's a big task in front of us, but this is the most talented Big League team I've ever coached and I believe we're up to it," Rutledge said. "Ray Beltrami compares this year's team to the 1996 team that won it all and I agree that we are fully capable of repeating the feat."
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