Brentwood Press - Index

Brentwood Press - BrentwoodPress_08.15.08 - Index

6B | THEPRESS.NET SPORTS AUGUST 15, 2008
Hot Shots from page 1B
their fi rst contest of the championship
round. That momentum carried over into
the second game, as the Tracy team took a
commanding 12-8 lead into the bottom of
the seventh and fi nal inning.
However, the Hot Shots, down to their
fi nal three outs, were far from defeated.
The East County girls stormed back,
scoring four runs, seemingly in the blink
of an eye, tying the game at 12-12 before
recording the fi rst out of the inning.
After making two quick outs following
tying the game, the Hot Shots sent Nathalie
Paskell, who hadn’t been able to play for
a signifi cant portion of the season due to
knee injuries, to the plate. She walked, then
alertly took second base on a passed ball.
When Morgan Perry smacked a single into
center fi eld, Paskell took off on contact and
never hesitated, rounding third and heading
for home, beating the throw from the
outfi eld to slide home with the tournamentwinning
run.
After the game, Paskell revealed that
her family would be moving to Ohio, and
that the NSA World Series championship
game would be her last with the Hot Shots.
“It was really neat for her because she’d
hurt both her knees earlier in the season
and she hadn’t been able to play in the fi eld
and she’d just been hitting,” said Bradshaw.
“There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when
she gave us her speech to tell us she was
leaving.”
The 10U Hot Shots also made their
way into a championship game in Reno,
and they did it the hard way, losing early
and fi ghting tooth and nail through the
loser’s bracket. However, their World Series
dreams were dashed by the Acers from
Washington, who defeated them in a hardfought
7-6 battle to claim the crown.
The 14U Hot Shots competed hard in
the 14A Division, making it all the way to
the semifi nal round before being eliminated
by the division’s eventual champion, the
Yucaipa Pass Dynasty, 2-0. And although
they were eliminated early, the 12U Hot
Shots gained valuable experience by facing
the best competition available.
“You always tell your players that if
they work hard, they can achieve anything,”
said Bradshaw. “But to actually do it …
No matter where they go and what they do
now, they’ll have that belief that with hard
work they can accomplish anything, and
that means so much.”
Players for the 13U Hot Shots are
Brittany Barnett, Morgan Perry, Victoria
Bradshaw, Chandler Kirkman, Lyvie Ilayan,
Nathalie Paskell, Brianna Simpson, Ashley
Baughman, Maliyah Victor, Kelly Blalock,
and coaches Anthony Victor, Richard
Bradshaw, Dennis Perry and Will Blalock.
Although Fall Ball tryouts have already
passed, the Hot Shots are always looking
for talented, motivated young players to
join their program. Roster spots might
still be available. For more information
about Hot Shots softball, visit www.
eastcountyhotshots.com.
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