Athletes Unlimited: Strong Pitching Prevails in Sunday Action of Games 17 & 18

Sunday saw another great pair of games in the 2023 Athletes Unlimited season as Games 17 through 18 were held at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Ill.

Thanks to AU’s Jade Hewitt, who shoots the great photos for Athletes Unlimited; those used in this article were by her.

Here’s a look at the results, stats and game notes from the pair of games…

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Athletes Unlimited Softball Post-Game Notes/Game Recap – Game 17

Game #17: Team Alexander 4, Team Romero 1 | August 13, 2023 | Parkway Bank Sports Complex (Rosemont, Ill.)

Team Alexander Starters: Aliyah Andrews (CF), Kelsey Harshman (2B), Bubba Nickles (LF), Danielle Gibson (1B), Gwen Svekis (C), Hannah Flippen (3B), Odicci Alexander (DP), Madi Huskey (RF), Josie Muffley (SS), Alyssa Denham (P)

Team Romero Starters: Morgan Zerkle (CF), Sierra Romero (2B), Amanda Lorenz (LF), Rachel Garcia (DP), Jessi Warren (3B), Taylor Edwards (C), Lilli Piper (1B), Sydney Romero (SS), Shannon Rhodes (RF), Aleshia Ocasio (P)

Winning Pitcher: Alyssa Denham (3-1)
Losing Pitcher: Aleshia Ocasio (1-3)
Save: Kathryn Sandercock (3)
Time of Game: 2:12
Game MVPs: 

• #1 – Danielle Gibson (Team Alexander), +60 points
• #2 – Bubba Nickles (Team Alexander), +40 points
• #3 – Odicci Alexander (Team Alexander), +20 points

ROSEMONT, Illinois – Pitcher Odicci Alexander’s first week as an Athletes Unlimited Softball captain couldn’t have gone any better and she used a simple formula to earn all three of her wins – get solid pitching and score four runs in each game.

The formula worked perfectly in Sunday afternoon’s clash with Team Romero as the squad completed a perfect week with a 4-1 victory to begin the final doubleheader of Week Three at Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

Corner infielder Danielle Gibson led the Team Alexander offense by going 2-for-3 with a double, a home run and three runs batted in, earning MVP 1 honors to finish the evening with 238 leaderboard points.

Outfielder Bubba Nickles, who collected 198 leaderboard points in the victory, claimed MVP 2 distinction after scoring two runs in addition to hitting a solo home run in the top of the fifth inning.

Alexander, meanwhile, secured MVP 3 commendations after throwing 2.0 innings of scoreless relief with one strikeout while allowing one hit. Pitcher Alyssa Denham upped her record to 3-1 after allowing one unearned run on four hits over 4.0 innings with two strikeouts.

Rookie Kathryn Sandercock registered her third save of the season after allowing one hit and recording a strikeout in the seventh inning.

Corner infielder Sydney Romero paced Team Romero in the loss with two hits, including a double, while Rachel Garcia drove in the team’s lone run with a fielder’s choice in the first inning. Garcia also threw 3.1 innings in relief and registered six strikeouts.

Aleshia Ocasio (1-3) suffered the loss after giving up two runs on two hits over 2.2 innings with one strikeout and a walk.

How It Happened: After Garcia drove in a run with a fielder’s choice in the first inning, Team Alexander responded with four unanswered runs over the final five innings to claim the victory. Gibson doubled in two runs during the third inning before Nickles’ solo blast to left field upped the lead to 3-1. Gibson added a solo home run in the top of the seventh inning for the final margin.

Leaderboard Impact: Gibson rose eight spots in the league standings after her 238-point performance, moving her into third place with 1,020 points. Alexander, meanwhile, holds first place with 1,356 points while Nickles follows in second place with 1,168 leaderboard points.

Game Notes:

• Team Alexander and Team Romero combined to score five runs in Sunday’s opener, lifting the league’s season total to 115 runs through 17 games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every run scored during the season as part of its ‘Aspiration Round the Bases’ initiative.
• Team Alexander outscored its opponents by a 12-4 margin in the three-game sweep, including a 4-0 blanking against Team Davidson on Saturday.
• The teams were a combined 9-for-25 in advancement opportunities, but were only 3-for-24 with runners on base.
• Four of Team Romero’s six hits came with two outs while Team Alexander was 2-for-9 in two-out situations.
• Sandercock matched the Athletes Unlimited Softball single-season record by recording her third save of the campaign, equaling the three saves by Garcia during the 2022 campaign … Her three saves also tie Garcia for the most career saves in Championship Season history.
• Sydney Romero notched her first multi-hit game of the season … She had tallied just four hits in her first eight appearances.
• Gibson, meanwhile, has six hits in her last three games after accumulating five hits in her first six outings.

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Athletes Unlimited Softball Post-Game Notes/Game Recap – Game 18

Game #18: Team Davidson 3, Team Faraimo 1 | August 13, 2023 | Parkway Bank Sports Complex (Rosemont, Ill.)

Game #18: Team Davidson 3, Team Faraimo 1 | August 13, 2023 | Parkway Bank Sports Complex (Rosemont, Ill.)

Team Davidson Starters: Aubrey Leach (2B), Megan Wiggins (CF), Mia Davidson (C), Nadia Taylor (DP), Anissa Urtez (SS), Sam Fischer (3B), Erika Piancastelli (RF), Andrea Filler (1B), Jazmyn Jackson (LF), Peyton St. George (P)

Team Faraimo Starters: Victoria Hayward (LF), Kelsey Stewart-Hunter (DP), Haylie McCleney (CF), Dejah Mulipola (C), Tori Vidales (1B), Delanie Wisz (3B), Abby Ramirez (2B), Caroline Jacobsen (RF), Sis Bates (SS), Megan Faraimo (P)

Winning Pitcher: Mariah Mazon (4-0)
Losing Pitcher: Megan Faraimo (3-1)
Save: n/a
Time of Game: 2:07
Game MVPs: 

• #1 – Mariah Mazon (Team Mazon), +60 points
• #2 – Anissa Urtez (Team Mazon), +40 points
• #3 – Megan Wiggins (Team Mazon), +20 points

ROSEMONT, Illinois – Close games have been normal for fans to see during the first three weeks of the Athletes Unlimited Softball Championship Season and Sunday’s Week Three finale between Team Davidson and Team Faraimo was no exception.

Team Davidson used three extra-base hits and a stellar pitching performance from Mariah Mazon to complete the weekly schedule with a 3-1 victory over Team Faraimo at Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

The win allowed Team Davidson to close the week with a 2-1 record, while Team Faraimo failed to secure a win in its three games.

Mazon, who improved to a perfect 4-0 in the circle, garnered MVP 1 recognition after throwing 5.1 innings of scoreless relief. She scattered just two hits and induced 10 fly ball outs to finish with a game-high 234 leaderboard points.

Middle infielder Anissa Urtez and outfielder Megan Wiggins earned MVP 2 and MVP 3 honors, respectively, after both players hit a home run in the victory. Urtez brought in the eventual game-winning run with a solo shot to left center in the fourth inning, while Wiggins got the scoring started with a solo blast down the right field line in the top of the first inning.

Urtez tallied 190 leaderboard points in the victory, while Wiggins followed with 178 points.

Rookie outfielder Caroline Jacobsen drove in the lone run for Team Faraimo in the loss with a double to left center in the second inning. Middle infielder Abby Ramirez notched a pair of hits and scored the team’s only run.

Rookie pitcher Megan Faraimo (3-1) suffered her first loss of the campaign after allowing three runs on six hits over 6.0 innings with three strikeouts.

How It Happened: With the score even at 1-1, Team Davidson used a solo home run by Urtez in the fourth inning and an RBI triple from corner infielder Sam Fischer to build a 3-1 lead it did not relinquish. It was all Mazon needed as she retired 16 of the 18 hitters she faced to earn the victory.

Leaderboard Impact: The win allowed Davidson to remain a captain for the second straight week, while Urtez rose two spots into third place and will join Davidson, pitcher Odicci Alexander and outfielder Bubba Nickles as a captain for the penultimate week of the season.

Game Notes:

• Team Davidson and Team Faraimo combined to score four runs in Sunday’s Week Three finale, moving the league’s season scoring total to 119 runs through 18 games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every run scored as part of its ‘Aspiration Round the Bases’ initiative.
• Team Davidson turned a pair of double plays in the contest.
• The teams were a combined 4-for-22 with runners on base and 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
• Team Davidson and Team Faraimo also fashioned a combined 5-for-22 effort in advancement opportunities.
• Mazon registered 200 or more leaderboard points for the first time in her Championship Season career, while Urtez reached the 150-point plateau for the 14th time in her career … Urtez is tied with pitcherAleshia Ocasiofor the most career 150-point performances in Championship Season history.

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Updated Athletes Unlimited Softball Top 10 Leaderboard (through August 13, 2023)

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