Wrapping up the summer tournament season, the Pleasanton Phantom Rose 12c girls softball team struck gold in the Sierra foothills. Playing in the AMA Lightning tournament in Angels Camp the Phantom girls dug down deep to out score their opponents 57-5 over six games to take first place.
Saturday’s pool play began in the scorching heat with convincing wins over the Stockton Storm, Northern Cali-Cats, and Shasta Gold Rush. Dharini Clare with a triple, Jenel Firneno with a triple and two singles, Andie Becker with a double and Brienna Brown with two singles contributed to the offensive explosion over the Storm. Becker pitched against Stockton and recorded seven strike outs and a shut out in the one-hitter.
Against the Cali-Cats, Brown blasted two singles and a double, Lyndsay Godwin hammered a ground rule double over the center field fence, Ellen Freitas powered a triple and a single and Jana Johnson punched a triple to left center and a single. Clare pitched a three hit shut out, striking out six in the one hour and twenty minute game. In the third game on Saturday against a strong Gold Rush team, the Phantom girls didn’t stop their offensive onslaught. Johnson went three for four, Godwin went two for three, Firneno doubled and singled, Syd Okumura went two for three. The shut out win was recorded by pitcher Godwin and supported by the entire Phantom defense.
Greeted by the intense Sierra Foothills heat and finishing undefeated in their pool, the Phantom girls faced the host team AMA Lightning on Sunday morning. Playing their best defense of the year, stated after the game by their head coach, the Lightning stayed in the game to the end. But with an early three run lead, Phantom pitcher Becker settled in and struck out eleven in the three to one victory. In the second of three back to back games the Phantom girls squared off against the Galt Illusion. “Break it open; rattle the bats” was the motto of this game. Godwin launched a towering double to left center to score the first two runs. Johnson executed two textbook bunts down the first base line going two for three. Firneno and Brown came up big, both going two for three. Firneno had two doubles and Brown had a double and a single. Freitas doubled to right center. Pitcher Godwin got the semi-final win striking out eight of the seventeen batters she faced. The final score was eleven to one.
In the final game for the tournament championship the Phantom faced the Stockton Rockettes. It was a tight game in the beginning with each team scoring one run through the first four innings. In the fourth inning the Phantom girls got the edge by adding a run driven in by Freitas. In the top of the six inning a huge two out single from Haley Buteau garnered two more runs for the Phantom. The Phantom girls added two more insurance runs in the top of the seventh. With a fired up Godwin on the mound the Rockettes were sent home losing the championship game six to one. Big hitters in this contest were Freitas going two for four with a single and a double, Godwin going three for four with a double and two singles, Becker going two for four and Katie Bindert going two for four. The final score to win the trophy was Pleasanton Phantom 6, Stockton Rockettes 1.
–Bill Godwin
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