The Oaklandon Red Storm 14U full-time travel softball team journeyed to Savannah, Georgia to compete in the World Fastpitch Connection World Series July 18-21. The girls came home with a third place finish!
Playing through the humid Georgia heat of 96-98 degrees with a heat index up to 116 degrees, the girls faced tough competition from teams from Ohio, Virginia, Alabama, Georgia, and North and South Carolina.
Strong pitching from Shannon Swingle and Ali Conger was backed up by tremendous infield plays from first baseman Jessie Price, second baseman Chelsea Dayton, shortstop Caitlin Laughlin, and third baseman Hanna McBride. Genelle Eggleston had a great dive-and-roll catch in center field and help from left fielder Caroline Fairfax and right fielder Kaitlyn Dayton. Allie Nash did a fantastic job behind the plate at catcher. Abby Jenkins, third baseman and back-up catcher, was unable to make the trip.
After pool play, the team earned a sixth seed to start bracket play. After an early loss on Saturday to the eventual winners, the Georgia Thunder, the Red Storm fought their way through four back-to-back games to end up with the 3rd Place trophy!
The girls out-scored their opponents 45-22 in 10 games going 8 wins and 2 losses. Leading the Red Storm with a batting average of .577 was Caitlin Laughlin and Hanna McBride with a .415 batting average.
Comments 1
congrats to a great group of girls.and verry well coached .not just a team but a family