Time to return the favor
This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Saturday, August 20, 2005. By STEVE UNGREY Special to the Valley Press
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - If Antelope Valley District 51's Big League softball team needed a wake-up call, the girls heard the alarm clocks loud and clear during Wednesday's action against Charleston, W.Va. "I think we learned an awful lot about ourselves from that game," third baseman Brooke Stix said. Catcher Rebecca Zapata added, "It was a slap in the face." Today, in the Big League Softball World Series championship game, Antelope Valley will get a chance to return that slap and deliver Charleston a wake-up call of its own. When the teams meet at 10 a.m. (Pacific time) at Vanderberg Park, Antelope Valley will vie for its second World Series title and the first one since 1996. Antelope Valley reached the title game in 2000, but lost to Michigan District 2. No one will call this year's World Series predictable, especially when last year's championship-game teams (District 2 and Michigan District 9) both finished below .500 and out of the running. That has helped Antelope Valley to success it has not seen in a few years. The West Region champions began the tournament with wins over the Netherlands, Michigan District 2 and the Philippines before losing to West Virginia. The win over District 2 was the first time an Antelope Valley team beat the host squad in five years. "We knew we could do very well here," Zapata said. "We ended up beating District 2 and then we knocked off the number one team in the other pool (Delaware District 3, by a 5-4 margin on Thursday)." Pitcher Ashley Thomas didn't think for one second that her team would miss out on a chance to play for the world championship. "I had total confidence in my team," Thomas said. Manager Scott Rutledge also had confidence in his top pitcher, who did not play last year on Antelope Valley's team. "As it happened, Ashley was on the second All-Star Big League team from our area last year, and that was the team we beat to move on to the regional round," Rutledge said. "She's making up for lost time. Ashley has done a fantastic job for us." West Virginia has two ace pitchers, Allison Judy and Diane Humphreys, throwing. It is not known which one will go to the circle today, but Judy threw against Antelope Valley in the 2-1 loss. West Virginia also beat the Netherlands and District 2, but lost to the Philippines. Now, as Antelope Valley stands on the edge of a possible World Series title, Zapata admits there are a few nerves. They are nerves she'll gladly take if it means getting a chance to run around the stadium with the championship banner. "We want to leave here knowing we had an opportunity to give it everything," Zapata said. "We want to give it our all."