The Richmond Islanders stepped up their game when it mattered the most to capture the U19 Lower Mainland Cup last weekend in North Delta.
The rep “B” girls fastpitch team entered the playoff round as the eighth seed after going 1-2 in round-robin play.
The Islanders began to battle their way into championship contention with an 11-1 drubbing of the No. 5 seed Cloverdale ’01 Fury, then prevailed in a tight battle against the South Delta 2001 Invaders. With the game scoreless, the Islanders exploded for five runs in the sixth to go onto a 5-0 victory.
The locals then took care of the No. 4 seed South Delta 2000 Invaders 9-4 in the semi-finals, setting the stage for the gold medal tilt against the No. 1 Ridge Meadows Rage.
The Islanders opened up a 2-1 lead after one then took control with five more runs in the third en route to a 7-1 victory.
Throughout the playoff round, the team received outstanding and clutch pitching from Harper Gibson, Morgan Glover and Shanelle Gutenberg.
The defence came to play too with some timely and terrific plays from infielders Ayden Foort, Capri Horstmann, Jessica Porter, Josie Cooke and Natalie Caras. More More spectacular catches and extra effort were produced by outfielders Ellen Yam, Riley Yodogawa, and Sheetal Reddy.
The girls out scored their competition 32-6 in the four playoff games. The batting display was very impressive from all our team members.
Head coach Troy Cooke and assistants Scott Porter and Ed Yee were extremely pleased with the turnaround in the playoffs, while overcoming a difficult draw.
Missing for the tournament were Katie Yee and Abby Parson.
The Islanders enjoyed a standout regular season, going 15-4-0 in league play. They also captured a tournament in Surrey after finishing second at an event in Kelowna.
The girls are looking forward to closing out their season at the Canada Cup at Softball City in South Surrey next month.
