The La Cañada Baseball Softball Association’s 12U Spartan All-Star softball team won four games last weekend to finish as runner-up at USA Softball’s Western District Tournament in Thousand Oaks and earn a berth in the upcoming state tournament, which will be held in Lancaster from June 30-July 2.
The Spartans’ two losses, both to Northridge, were each by two runs, the latter of which occurred in the tournament’s championship game where the score was 5-5 heading into the sixth and final inning.
The Spartans banged out 22 extra-base hits in their six games and were paced by Katie Baker (two doubles), Leela Ditullio (home run), Brooke Soto (two doubles), Ale Kelly (double), Lilly Kazazian (double), Harlinn Moriarty (home run and double), Chloe Dugan (three home runs, two triples and a double) and Katia Tzec (three home runs, two triples and a double).
Other offensive contributors were Mady Carmack (four hits and four runs), Brooklyn Nakasone (a hit, two walks and three runs), Chloe Yee (two walks and five runs) and Molly Danni (one hit, one RBI and three runs).
Moriarty won three games as pitcher while Soto won one game. Yee also pitched and recorded two strikeouts. Kazazian was a standout behind the plate. Katie Baker played solid defensively at second base though many others flashed leather in the infield (Tzec and Danni at first base, DiTullio and Nakasone at shortstop and Kelly at third base). Outfield play from Dugan, Soto, Nakasone, Yee, Moriarty and Carmack was also strong.
Defensive highlights included a diving play from DiTullio at shortstop in the championship game, two spectacular catches by Soto, and an ice-cream cone catch by Dugan in centerfield.
First published in the June 22 print issue of the Outlook Valley Sun.
