STARS GO 6 AND O TO WIN THE BLUE-GRAY USSSA FASTPITCH SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT

The Maryland Stars 14u Black took First Place at the Blue Gray USSSA Fast pitch Softball tournament! The Stars first opponent on Saturday was Riviera Beach Spirit with Mary Sobota and Nikki Lunn on the mound, with two doubles by Sobota and a triple by the MVP of the game Megan Liebknecht, the Stars won 7 to 5.

The Stars then went on to play Churchville Lightning with great pitching by Lunn! With a two run triple by Samantha Lang and a RBI single by Kaitlyn Griffith, The Stars defeated Churchville by a score of 5-1. The MVP of the game, Kayleigh Shaul had a tremendous defensive effort in right field!

Finally, The Stars played the final game of the day against the Lady O’s 93’. With Grace Beuchert hitting 2 singles, Mary Hartman went 3 for 3 , and MVP of the game, Bridgit Hawvermale hit a homerun. The Stars won the game with the score 5 to 4. After seeding 1st from Saturday’s Pool Play, The Maryland Stars started the Championship round facing The Champions (Red). After the first inning, the stars were down 2 to 0. Ashley Franklin lead off getting on base and Liebknecht who was on second when Lang hit a 2 run triple to tie the game. From that point forward the stars dominated with excellent offense and defense. The final score was 10 to 2.

The second game of the day was amazingly stressful for not only the players, but the spectators as well. For most of the game, the Stars were down by three runs to The Maryland Chill, making it difficult for the stars to come back. In the last inning the Stars had two outs and were down by two runs when Beuchert, Sobota and Shaul were all able to get on base. Christa Giannaccini came up to bat and was able to send the ball screaming up the middle to win the game! The final score was 7 to 6!

The Stars showed amazing heart and never gave up throughout the entire game! The Stars were now in the championship game against the Vienna Stars 93’. Sobota had a spectacular performance on the mound with Franklin catching, the Stars dominated the game with a final score of 10-3! The MVP of the game was Giannaccini for her stellar defense in left field.

Stars Defend Title at The Mountaineer

The Maryland Stars 14u Black Fastpitch Softball team paticipated in the Mountaineer ShowdownTournament in Martinsburg West Virginia.

On Saturday May 5th the Stars played three games .The first game versus the Maryland Flames, the Stars won the close contest 3-2.The Stars scored runs in the 2nd inning when Sam Stitely and Nikki Lunn singled, Grace Beuchert then doubled in both runs.The Stars last run was scored in the 4th when Samantha Lang scored on a sac fly from Bridgette Havermale. Mary Hartman tossed a two hitter .

Saturdays 2nd game pitted the Stars against the PA. Intensity. The game ended in a 1-1 tie.The game featured hits by Havermale and Beuchert some spectacular defese by game MVP Sam Lang and great pitching from Lunn.

The Stars finished the day with an 8-5 win over the Glade Valley Gators.The offense in the Game was supplied by Megan Liebknecht who homered, Kaitlyn Griffith who went 2 for 3 Ashley Franklin and Hartman who tripled.

On Sunday the Stars easily defeated the Virginia Vixens 12-1 with the offense being supplied by Franklin going 2 for 3 with a double and a triple. Christa Gianniccinni had two hits including a double and drove in three runs. Also Kayliegh Shaul had two hits with two runs batted in. Mary Sobota tossed a one hitter with Sam Stitely getting the save.

The Stars played Glade Valley in the next game. Mary Hartman pitched a perfect game striking out 9 batters and going 4 for 4 with 3 doubles. Bridgette Havermale supplied additional offense for the Stars with a double and a triple as the Stars cruised to a 6-0 win.

In the champioship game the Stars faced the PA Intensity. In what started out to be a very close contest the Intensity grabbed a 2-0 lead, The Stars countered when Samatha Lang singled and Havermale tripled,Grace Beuchert then singled in the second run of the game for the Stars. On defense the Stars held the Intensity with some stellar defense led by Ashley Franklin who made a spectacular over the shoulder catch at the outfield fence.

The Stars bats came alive in the 6thand 7th with Liebknecht going 2 for 4, Havermale who recieved the game MVP going 3 for 4 including a double and a triple with 3 rbi and Mary Sobota who went 2 for 3 with 2 rbi.Nikki Lunn pitched a nice game securing the victory and the Championship for the Stars.

The Stars won the Mountaineer as a 12u team in 2006