Colorado Phoenix Softball

The schedule was not kind to us--we had two 8 a.m. starts--but the players overcame their grogginess and finished 3-2 against a tough field in a round-robin format. Our roster was only nine deep, so every girl played every inning, and we even won a game with just eight players. Great hustle!

Congratulations to our four 2014 graduates (and one 2013 holdover). Best wishes for their college careers and beyond!

There were many tears at what was the Colorado Phoenix's last tournament, now that Coach Larry Olander is retiring from softball coaching. We finished 7th with a 1-2 record, not the way we wanted to go out, but the players were united and played as a team to the end. Many thanks and best wishes to Coach Larry, Coach Duane, the players and the parents for a season we will never forget.

The team won the Perri Jaye Lang championship for the second year in a row, thanks to a combination of terrific hitting and stingy defense. We went 5-1 and led scoring and run differential, notching home runs from Jenna, Shaye and Cassie, the tournament MVP. The most suspenseful moment: Our walk-off victory in the semi-final, when Jenna stole home on a pass ball to put us ahead 5-4. That was also the only game all weekend in which we were the home team. Way to repeat!

We always have fun in Steamboat, even when we wind up losing two close games in extra innings. Finished 1-3, but the team fought hard and you can't beat the scenery.

The team logged a hard-fought 2-2 record, including two games decided by one point and one game decided by two points. A highlight was Dolly's booming home run over the left field fence. Way to hang tough!

The team had a great weekend in Gunnison, reaching the championship game and taking 2nd place with a 4-2 record. The players won the semi-final in dramatic fashion: Trailing 3-1 in the bottom of the final inning, Leah hit a two-run triple, scoring Mo B. and Cassie, then Kaylee plated Leah with a clutch single. Terrific performances all around on defense. Congratulations to the winning team, the Cardinals (Sand) 18A, and all the girls for a phenomenal tournament!

The team went 1-2 before the tournament was rained out on a cold, drizzly weekend. We had home runs from Cassie and Leah, new hair bows from Abby, and fun photo ops in between games.

The team went 4-1 and took 5th place at the Berthoud Blaze, a tournament marked by hot sun, bitter cold and gale-force winds. In other words, a typical Colorado weekend. The bats came alive: We won the Scoring Differential (5.2) and Best Scoring (9.8), helped by a home run from Leah Huizenga. The fields were located near Johnson's Corner, which meant that many cinnamon rolls were consumed. Great weekend!