A second straight two-win day has the Victoria Devils 2001 team in perfect position, tied atop the standings of the 10-team Cup division at the 2015 Under-14 Girls Canadian Softball Jamboree at Helmcken-Centennial diamonds in View Royal.
The Devils 2001 defeated the Brampton Blazer 3-1 on Thursday evening to move them into a first-place tie with fellow B.C teams the Surrey Storm and Delta Heat, all at 4-0.
Earlier in the day, the Devils 2001 defeated the Oakville Angels of Ontario 4-1 thanks to three runs in the opening inning. Victoria added another run in the fourth before surrendering the Angels鈥� only score in the sixth inning.
鈥淲e had a good day. The bats are coming, the pitching has been very good and the defence has been great,鈥� said Devils coach Bruce Lubinich, whose team got through a couple of character builders Thursday. 鈥淓verything is working for us.
鈥淚t moves you along and it gets you ready because the next one could be very close. I鈥檓 really happy with the kids today and [Wednesday].鈥�
Today, the Devils 2001 will face the Waterloo Ghosts at 12:15 p.m. and the Quebec Rebelles at 6:15 p.m. before playoffs begin on Saturday.
The top eight teams in the division advance to playoffs with the top four having two lives in a double-knockout format.
鈥淥ne more win will get us into the top half and get us that double life, so that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e going for and two more wins will put us exactly where we want to be, so it鈥檚 all good,鈥� said Lubinich.
Against Brampton, Izzy Snow got the start on the mound for the Devils and she allowed just one hit while the team also surrendered an error in her four innings of work. Kylie Katz then mopped up the final three innings.
Katz allowed a home run to Jaclyn Thompson with one out in the final seventh inning.
鈥淲e called a can shot [right down the middle] and that鈥檚 what she threw for me,鈥� said Lubinich. 鈥淲e had been blowing it by that kid all day and she caught up to one. Oh well, nobody is perfect.鈥�
Offensively, Lauren Thomas and Melissa Haire scored in the third inning for Victoria as the Devils used an error and a wild pitch to record the runs. Taylor Chenard made it 3-0 in the fourth.
Maddie Hickingbottom got the start for Brampton (2-2) with Thompson and Veronica Glover making relief appearances in the fourth and sixth innings.
鈥淥ur team played well defensively,鈥� said Snow, who also legged out a double in the second inning. 鈥淎t provincials [where the Devils were fifth] we weren鈥檛 as strong. We鈥檝e improved from a week ago and our bats are coming along.
鈥淚 know our team can still do better. I think we can win this, but the biggest competition will be Surrey.鈥�
The Devils have benefitted from the fact that they do not have to play their sa国际传媒 opponents until the playoffs.
Thursday鈥檚 results followed 15-0 and 6-1 victories over the Edmonton Wild Warriors and Saskatoon Lasers, respectively, in opening play on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the younger Devils 2002 team split a pair of games on Thursday, defeating the P.E.I. Superior Selects 14-5 before dropping a tight 5-4 decision to the Sherwood Park Storm. Those results came after 8-0 and 3-1 losses on Wednesday to the Six Nations Orange and Tri-City Titans, respectively.
Today, Victoria Devils 2002 (now 1-3) challenge the Surrey Storm at 8:30 a.m. and the White Rock Renegades at 12:30 p.m. The top six will make the playoffs, which also begin Saturday, in the younger Plate division that features seven teams.
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