Event Spotlight: Championship Trophies–and 9 Bids to Nationals–are Awarded at HFL West Fall Championships

The Heart of America Fall Fastpitch League (HFL)’s West Fall Championships concluded on Sunday in College Station, Texas with nine bids awarded to The Alliance Fastpitch National Championships (AFCS) next summer for the Top 3 finishers in each of the 18U, 16U and 14U age divisions.

The 2021 title events will be held next summer in Oklahoma City for the 18U and 16U teams, in Clearwater, Florida for 14U and in Southern California for divisions 12U and 10U and now we know who will be representing the HFL:

18U

1. Aces Fastpitch
2. Gametime Stars
3. Iowa premier

16U

1. Iowa Premier
2. Tulsa Elite – Lacina
3. Aces Fastpitch

14U

1. OK Athletics
2. Iowa Premier
3. EPIC National 2024

The HFL Championships were the first in The Alliance Fastpitch league to lock in teams for nationals.

It was a particularly sweet weekend for Greg Dickel and his Iowa Premier organization as teams from his program took “Gold,” “Silver” and Bronze,” with a 1^st place finish in 16U, 2^nd place in 14U and 3^rd in 18U. Most importantly, each of those teams punched its ticket to play for a national title.

“Three Tier 1 bids locked up for 2021 and can mold our schedule for next year. We’re really eager to get them back in front of coaches and this gives us flexibility to do so.”

As rewarding as the weekend ended, it was disappointing after Saturday for Dickel and his older teams, both of which lost to Aces Fastpitch, including a 1-0 heart-breaker in the 16U game. It didn’t help that two of his elite 18’s, senior infielders Ella McVey (signee with Michigan) and Margaret Tobias (Kentucky), weren’t at the event because they were competing for their high school basketball team.

The 16U team, however, failed to give up and behind the strong pitching arm of Teagan Kavan, one of the top 2023 prospects in the nation, won four games Sunday—three by identical scores of 5-1—including a revenge game win over Aces Fastpitch in the semis and a championship victory over Tulsa Elite 2023.

Quick tip of the hat to Bryan Lucina’s Tulsa Elite team, which is a first-year 16U team loaded with depth in power hitting and pitching. Look for the Tulsa Elite, which would likely win most 15U tournaments right now, to be a force for years to come.

In the semi’s, Andrea Jaskowiak pitched 2.2 innings for Iowa Premier against Aces Fastpitch allowing just four hits and one run and was aided by Kagan tossing the final 4.1 innings. Playing on Texas A&M’s impressive Davis Diamond Stadium, the Premier offense was led by leadoff hitter Alivia Bark, who knocked in two runs and cleanup hitter Cassie Johnson who went 2-for-3 with a walk and run scored.

In the championship game, a 5-1 win, the contest was scoreless until the top of the 5^th when Iowa Premier exploded for four runs to effectively put the game out of reach. Johnson continued her torrid hitting, going 4-for-4 with an RBI and run scored. Kavan was nearly untouchable in the circle, giving up just two hits—one of those a home run to Tulsa Elite’s leadoff hitter, September Flanagan—and a walk over seven innings with eight strikeouts.

On the weekend, Johnson had two grand slams and hit a three-run triple in the championship.

“Really proud of the 16U team,” Dickel said. “It was a tough loss to the Aces—a back and forth series the whole year, we’re up 3 and 2!—but Teagan pitched really well in the loss and those games are usually intense and often one-run games. We had a good talk after the game and buttoned up some mistakes we had made. The team knew we had to make a run and we knew we’d have four 7-inning games and every pitcher pitched on Sunday and contributed to our success.”

At the 18U level, the name of the game was dominant pitching as Ryan Taylor’s team won all four of its games over the weekend by a total score of 18-to-2.

Mac Morgan, the 2021 pitcher headed to Arizona State, continues to show why she’s considered one of the best in the country as she hit in the high 60’s all weekend long and kept hitters off balance with a tough changeup. She threw 16.2 innings in the HFL Championship weekend and didn’t allow an earned run.

Said one opposing coach, “If Morgan has her changeup working and hitting for strikes, she’s deadly.”

But it wasn’t just one arm that dominated: Tatum Clopton, a 2021 hurler signed with Oklahoma State, was equally impressive pitching 11 innings with 18 K’s and no earned runs.

“Our group came out and competed very well this weekend,” said Coach Taylor. The pitching was lights out all weekend and, offensively, the hitters had excellent plans at the plate. We moved runners and had an effective ball-in-play approach; you could tell they just kept putting pressure on pitchers and the defense to make plays.”

The Aces put four on the board in the first inning and another in the bottom of the 2^nd to put the game out of reach. Kinsey Fiedler, the dynamic 2021 shortstop signed with Washington, went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and Macy Miles went 1-for-3 with a big double and two RBIs.

What perhaps was most impressive about the Aces this weekend was that nine players were missing including several because of COVID precautions. Those players were replaced by Aces talents from other teams who really “stepped in and stepped up their game,” according to Taylor.

At the 14U level, the Oklahoma Athletics – Madden/Clemmer team flexed its offensive muscles, winning the finale over Iowa Premier 10-2 with 12 hits.

Some feel the 14U team could be the top team in the organization and showed that it will be a force at the age division.

Brian Madden, head of the organization noted: “This Athletics’ group is a team 100 percent, they compliment each other very well. It is a team full of studs as eight players hit over .400 and one over 500. Ava Sliger and Hannah Wells led big-time in the circle and were a dominant force! Karsen Griggs hit two bombs in the final to lead the way. This team has a very bright future to make a run at The Alliance National Championship.

“We were excited about the HFL Championship experience for the kids in the tournament,” added Dickel, the Assistant Commissioner of HFL. “Overall, it was a very successful weekend and a good event to build momentum heading into the winter and into 2021.”

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Here are the results of the final day of action at the HFL West Fall Championships

SUNDAY RESULTS

18U

 16U

14U