Club Spotlight: Firecrackers Select – McKinney Started Off as an Experiment… But in Its First Event Won TCS 4th of July 16U Silver in Tennessee!

Some club teams have been around for decades while a few have just recently been assembled; the story behind the Ben McKinney’s Firecrackers Select is a unique one in that his squad based in Clemmons, North Carolina started off as an “experiment” and, in its very first event together, finished as champions.

At the start of 2020, McKinney, the Director for Firecrackers Carolinas, wanted to create a “Select” team to provide an opportunity for talented young players to get more exposure and to play at a higher level. He brought in players both inside and outside of his organization.

The original plan was to practice together in the spring in preparation for several big summer events. The proposed schedule included events in Colorado, Alabama and Florida, but the best laid plans often go awry.

With the sudden emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring, scheduled tournaments were canceled, a few players dropped off and the girls were unable to practice together.

One of the event changes saw Triple Crown Sports make the decision to switch to regional events and one of their three early July tournaments, the TCS Tennessee 4th of July, would be the first event of the summer for the Firecrackers Select – McKinney team.

Along with Head Coach Kevin LaRousa and Assistant Coach Steve Bowman, a small, but determined, group of 10 “select” ballplayers (and relative strangers!) headed to Chattanooga to give it a go.

On July 5, 2020—just five days and 11 games after arriving in Chattanooga—the Firecrackers Select – McKinney 16U team held the championship banner at the TCS 4th of July.

Pool play for the Firecrackers started Wednesday, July 1 with a nice 2-1 win over a strong Batbusters team from Chicago and, by the end of Thursday, the team had compiled a 1-0-1 record after a tie against Indiana Magic Gold thanks to a solo home run by Alexis “Lexi” Hastings, a 2021 outfielder, who would hit .367 for the event with nine steals, and five solid innings of pitching by Brooke Bowling, who would finish the week with 27 K’s and limit the opposition to a .225 batting average.

The next game was a 3-1 win against a powerful Minnesota Bombers team behind the arm of lefty Kierston “KD” Deal, a 2022 grad who had an excellent week with 76 K’s, a miniscule ERA of 0.804 and an opponent’s batting average of just .139. In the win over the Bombers, she went six innings and allowed only one earned run and one walk while striking out 10.

Two days into the Sparkler, after a strong start, the Firecrackers Select suddenly began to struggle and later Friday into early Saturday dropped three games in a row, to Fury Platinum, Select Fastpitch and a ranked EC Bullets-Scarborough team to put them in the Silver bracket.

“Miscommunication and the lack of playing together were key factors that exposed this group,” reflected Coach LaRousa.

The 16U Silver Bracket play started Saturday night, July 4^th, and this is where the fireworks started and the journey to the championship began as the team came together, regrouped and made the necessary adjustments to go on a title run kicked off by one amazing performance.

Deal took the mound and did what every pitcher dreams of: 21 batters up, 21 outs and a perfect game highlighted by her striking out 12 batters.

Catcher Kylie LaRousa, a 2021 commit to Appalachian State, commented: “It was one of my favorites games to catch, the coaches allowed me to call the entire game.” but it didn’t come without a few tense moments.

As strong as Deal was on the mound, the first bracket win ended in dramatic fashion as 2021 outfielder Kendall Bowman laid out to make a great diving catch to seal the perfect game.

Deal said, “It was a great experience and I had so much confidence in my defense.”

This first victory set the stage for an amazing Sunday for the 10 unified players. Championship Day started early at 8 am with a match up against another strong East Cobb Bullets team and three innings into the game, the Firecrackers saw themselves in a 3-1 deficit.

In the top of the 4^th, 2021 infielder Ashley Bean hit a double followed by a single from 2024 catcher Jayden Hutchison. With runners in scoring position, Kendall Bowman bunted in Bean from 3^rd and the momentum shifted leading to back-to-back doubles by Kylie LaRousa and 2020 infielder Gracie Parker. The offensive outburst was the difference in the team’s 5-3 victory.

The quarterfinals game started at noon and by this time the temperature had climbed to 92 degrees. Thanks to multiple-hit performances by 2021 infielder Paige Strickland, who finished the event with a team best batting average of .423, and 2023 outfielder Laura Bean, FC McKinney won 3-2 against Original KC.

At the start of the semi-final game, the coaches’ pitching strategy became more challenging. Despite having two top pitchers in KD Deal and Brooke Bowling, the heat became and factor and the coaches realized they would need both hurlers to get the win.

“In order to maximize their efforts, I needed each girl to pitch and rotate,” said Coach LaRousa.

Deal took the mound initially, Bowling threw in relief, then gave the ball back to Deal to wrap up a tough 2-0 victory against Top Gun Academy- Berryman.

That put the 10-player Firecracker Select team into the Championship game and by the 4 pm game time, it was the hottest part of the day. Catcher Kylie LaRousa, behind the plate the entire day, told coaches she had one more left.

“The girls were exhausted but they could taste a championship only seven innings away,” Coach McKinney remembered.

The final game, against a strong Illinois Force team, became a pitching duel and a defensive battle. Great plays by Ashley Bean and Gracie Parker held the Force to only one run while the Select offense was led by key hits from Paige Strickland, Lexi Hastings, Gracie Parker and Kylie LaRousa to lock in the 2-1 victory.

For the Firecrackers players, who barely knew each other upon their arrival in Tennessee, the championship run entailed all pulling together in a team effort.

“It was exciting to see a team like this, who has never played together, pull this off,” remarked Coach Steve Bowman. “It was very special.”

Added Coach LaRousa: “Every game was close, but this team battled and fought and everyone contributed throughout the week. There’s nothing more exciting than to see every player work together towards a common goal.”

From the players’ perspective, the championship was one they’ll never forget.

“This was a very eye-opening experience to see this level of competition and to learn from this event,” said Gracie Parker. “Getting to develop new friendships and seeing this team come together like we’ve played together for years was great.”

Brooke Bowling added, “The level of competition was great and, being exposed to teams so talented from top to bottom with their entire line-ups being strong, as a pitcher it helped me grow.”

Ben McKinney had a vision and he could only dream before traveling to Tennessee that everything would come together as it did.

“The best take away from the weekend was we had several top-level programs watch our games on Athletes Go Live and all our players got great exposure. It’s great to win— however, it’s more important to help young players get prepared for and exposed to the next level.”

Closing the chapter on a memorable first event of the summer—the team will next take the fields at ProSwings Invitational Power 30 in Longwood, Florida from August 7-9—the coach and team builder couldn’t have been more happy.

“What a week and what a special group of young ladies!” concluded Coach McKinney.