The District 7 age 9-10 Fastpitch All-Star Championship took place this past week, hosted by Seattle Central Little League at Garfield High School. The Championship pitted the All-Star teams from South Highline National Little League (SHNLL) and Seattle Central Little Little League (SCLL) against each other in an exciting 3 game series, with the winner heading to the state tournament in Poulsbo, which started Saturday, July 16.
The first game was held on Monday, June 27. SHNLL looked strong early, bringing out the big sticks and putting up 12 quick runs in the first three innings, including an amazing three run home run by Marianna De Simone. SHNLL was also paced by star pitcher Graciana Mecklenburg, as she struck out five of the seven batters she faced to start the game three.
SCLL made a comeback attempt in the fourth, and closed the gap to 13-7 before new pitcher Kimberly Basbe put a stop to it all and got them out of the inning. The final three innings would prove to be much tougher, as SHNLL would only score three more runs. With SCLL threatening to make another comeback, Mecklenburg would return to the mound in the fourth to close out the game by striking out seven of the final 12 batters she faced. SHNLL wins the game, 15-8, with a chance to close out the series Tuesday night. Some highlights came from all over the lineup. Shortstop Tatiana Leahy went 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Catcher Taylor McGillis went 4-for-5 with three RBI. Marianna DeSimone went 3-for-4 with a home run and five RBI. Pitcher Graciana Mecklenburg threw four innings, striking out 12 and allowing only one earned run.
The second game on Tuesday would prove to be a test of patience, for both parents and players alike. With tournament rules in effect, SHNLL could not turn to Graciana this game and had to go with some of their more unproven pitchers to get them through. With that said, the theme of this game became walks, with SHNLL issuing 19 free passes to SCLL over the course of this three inning marathon. SHNLL fell behind early, going down 15-5 after the first two innings and putting themselves in a pretty deep hole. With the threat of becoming victims of the 10-run mercy rule, SHNLL made a fierce comeback in the top of the third and got back to within two runs, bringing the score to 15-13. But the charge only lasted so long, and SCLL came up and put another 15 runs on the board in the bottom of the the third to put the score at 30-13. SHNLL had one last chance to claw back, but they couldn't put anything together in the fourth and that was that. SCLL won game two, 30-13, setting up the final and decisive third game for Wednesday night.
Some highlights, Kelsey Wieland allowed two walks and one run scored. Taylor McGillis scored three runs and Nicole Pham, stole two bases and two runs scored.
As Wednesday rolled in, the weather looked as though it wasn't going to cooperate and possibly delay this game until Thursday. But, as luck would have it, the skies cleared up and the game was on. The wind was blowing pretty hard for most of the game, kicking up some serioulsy nasty dust clouds that would halt the game temporarily from time to time, but the conditions were otherwise great for this final showdown between two great All-Star teams.
SHNLL would again call on Graciana Mecklenburg to pitch in the final game. The girls from both sides were pretty amped up, knowing that a spot in the State tournament was only one win away. SHNLL raced out to a 6-2 lead after two innings, led by Mecklenburg at both the plate and one the mound. She went 2-2 with three RBI at the plate, and struck out five from the mound, giving SHNLL a small cushion early on.
The third inning would prove a bit more difficult, as SHNLL went down 1-2-3 in their half. SCLL would plate three runs in theirs to bring the score to 6-5 in favor of SHNLL at the half way point.
You could start to see it in the girls' eyes that this game was tense and the girls were as focused as ever.
SHNLL would score two more runs in the fourth and another in the fifth, led by shortstop Tatiana Leahy, who went 1-2 with one RBI and one run scored. Mecklenburg would continue to hold off SCLL, and the score was 9-5 in favor of SHNLL at the end of five. As the final inning came, you could feel the excitement brewing in the Nationals dugout. They would score two more insurance runs in the top of the sixth off a 2 run single by Samantha Box, giving them a comfortable 11-5 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth.
Once again, Graciana would be in a position to shut the door and pitch her team to victory. She would strike out the side once again, compiling a total of 15 strikeouts for the game. The girls went crazy with excitement, but quickly turned to giving their opponent a big round of applause. SCLL did a great job and played their hearts out, but they ran into a buzz saw and had to watch as the SHNLL celebrated their trip to the state tournament.
Tournament MVP honors went to Graciana Mecklenburg, no surprise there. Over two games pitching she struck out 27 batters, and in three games at the plate went 8-for-11 with eight runs scored. Some other highlights from the game: Marianna DeSimone went 3-for-3 with four runs scored. Tatitana Leahy scored three runs. Kelsey Wieland had two stolen bases.
The South Highline National Little League Nationals combined with South Highline American Little League and PacWest Little League for the postseason.
Players on the team roster are Anglicia Lucero, Chloe Johnson, Graciana Mecklenburg, Jessica Quackenbush, Kaya Fernandes, Kelsey Wieland, Kimberly Basabe, Marianna De Simone, Nicole Pham Samantha Box, Shayla Felix, Tatiana Leahy and Taylor McGillis. The manager is Mark McGillis and the assistant coaches are Mike Leahy and Darrly Felix.
