Series 2 of the AUSL All-Star Cup wrapped up in Rosemont, Ill., on Sunday night. Team Ricketts took on Team Brown and came away with the 4-2 win.
Kat Sandercock took the ball for Team Brown. Other than putting Maya Brady on via hit by pitch, she breezed through the top of the first with a strikeout recorded.
After Rachel Garcia recorded two strikeouts with a walk issued in between, she gave up a single to Morgan Zerkle to put two on in the bottom of the first. Then, Reese Atwood put Team Brown up 1-0 with an RBI double. That also banked 10 inning win points for Team Brown, taking the first inning.
Team Ricketts applied pressure in the top of the second inning by loading the bases. But Sandercock and Team Brown were able to escape without damage. Sandercock struck out Aubrey Leach to leave the bases juiced.
In the top of the third, Sandercock gave up a leadoff single to Maya Brady, then turned the ball over to Kenzie Brown. Brown got out unscathed and picked up a strikeout. Garcia worked a clean bottom of the third. She recorded her third strikeout, fanning Morgan Zerkle.
No team had scored since Team Brown’s run in the first inning, so inning points rolled over. In the top of the fifth, Team Ricketts changed that. Brady smacked a one-out single, then moved to third on a Sydney Romero double. After Brown loaded the bases with a Sydney Sherrill walk, she turned the ball over to Megan Faraimo.
That is when Sami Williams, who earned MVP 1, ambushed the first pitch for a bases-clearing three-RBI triple to give Team Ricketts the 3-1 lead. All 3 runs were charged to Brown. After a Jordan Woolery flyout, Amari Harper hit an RBI double to the right-center gap to bring Williams home, increasing Team Ricketts’ lead to 4-1. Faraimo retired the side on a strikeout of Dejah Mulipola.
Keilani Ricketts took the ball to begin the bottom half and retired the side in order. That secured Team Ricketts’ 40 inning win points. Garcia turned in a great outing. She threw 4.0 innings of one-run ball on three hits and struck out four with two walks. She accumulated 38 stat points and claimed MVP 2.
Bella Dayton led off the top of the sixth for Team Ricketts’ 10th hit of the game, but after making it to third, she was left stranded.
Megan Grant burst into the bottom of the sixth with a leadoff solo home run over the scoreboard. That brought Team Brown within two runs, 4-2. Grant went on to claim MVP 3. Then, Atwood knocked a one-out double to put a runner in scoring position. But Ricketts closed out the inning with back-to-back strikeouts.
Amber Fiser came to the circle for Team Brown to begin the seventh, and Williams led off with a single just over shortstop. However, Fiser retired the side with no damage and recorded a strikeout. Karlyn Pickens took the circle in the bottom of the seventh and finished it off to record her second save of the All-Star Cup.
Garcia picked up the win, with Brown taking the loss. Sherrill took the defensive player of the game.
With the conclusion of Series 2, the captains are set for Series 3. Sharlize Palacios, Baylee Klingler, and Sam Landry will draft their teams on Monday.
