It’s one thing to become a national champion.
It’s another to be an undefeated national champion.
“Ain’t nobody could touch us,” center fielder Kasidi Pickering said.
It was true. Nobody could touch Hotshots Premier – Nelson, as they marched themselves to a perfect week at PGF Nationals on the way to the 16U Premier National Championship, walking off Tennessee Mojo – Fisher, 3-2, on Saturday afternoon at Deanna Manning Stadium.
“This group and the adversity they’ve faced to even be here and then to finish it off with a national title – this one’s special,” Hotshots head coach Nathan Nelson said.
That adversity included multiple broken arms – that of left-handed pitcher Madison Azua and outfield/infielder Maddox McKee (in bracket play, no less) – and the uncertainty of how things would look coming after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We didn’t know what to expect,” Nelson added.
Nelson and the rest of his Hotshots team didn’t know what to expect coming into the week, either, since right-hander Ava Brown was dealing with a partial tear in her MCL.
“She called Wednesday before we left and she said, ‘Coach, I can go,’” Nelson said. “We got her cleared, got the MRI report back and that started the positive run that we’ve had.”
Brown came in and pitched the back four innings against Mojo – Fisher on Thursday night in a 3-1 win at the end of winner’s bracket play, and she was absolutely instrumental in the Hotshots run to a national championship on Saturday.
“I knew what was on the line and knew that I was never going to forgive myself if I was let to back down mentally,” Brown said. “I knew I had to power through those things because my team needed me. I feel like as big of a role as I play, even if I was 70 percent, 70 percent was better than nothing.”
She worked around two-out base knocks in the first and second to work a scoreless duel with South Carolina commit Kierston Deal through the first four innings.
Eerily familiar to Thursday night’s Bracket B final at Fountain Valley Sports Park, where Hotshots and Mojo were scoreless through seven and needed an ITB to create any separation.
“Yeah, I started to get that feeling in my gut that we were going to go another eight innings in a 0-0 ballgame,” Nelson said.
Good thing Brown left the yard to lead off the home fifth on a 2-2 count to make it a 1-0 game.
“When the ball left Ava’s bat, I felt we had an edge,” Nelson continued.
The slim edge lasted no more than a half inning.
Sylvia Burroughs led off the top sixth with a single for Mojo – Fisher, then KK Mathis sent a bomb to deep center field, two at-bats later, turning a one-run Mojo deficit into a one-run Mojo lead.
“Fell behind to a very good hitter in the Mathis kid,” said Nelson. “We knew that was coming. Can’t fall behind to these hitters like that, they’re too good.
Brown got Jayden Gailey to strike out, then Reese Hunter to pop out to end the inning, minimizing the damage to two, which kept the door open.
All Pickering needed was to reach on an error with one away in the sixth, getting to second on the same play.
Victoria Valdez, a Texas Tech commit, needed just one pitch – a changing changeup from Deal – to double to left center, scoring Pickering. The game was tied again, this time at two, and the Hotshots squad had crafted a vital response to Mathis’ homer.
“She’s our team, man,” Pickering said. “If she’s on, we’re on.”
Brown worked around a leadoff error and struck out Brionna Condon to give her side a chance to end it in seven.
That’s what they did. Brown reached on an error made by Condon at short, then Allie Thompson hit into a fielder’s choice, which Mojo could only get one out of. Kennedy Powell smacked a ground ball to first and reached on an error, then Isa Torres walked to load the bases.
It was down to Pickering, who stepped in at 0-for-3 to that point.
She needed one pitch to bloop over the second baseman’s head, sending Thompson home and sending the Hotshots into a frenzy as 16U Premier National Champions.
“We had two outs and the bases loaded, that was our shot,” Pickering said. “I just went up there swinging and prayed it went our way. It was dropping all the way.”
“Clutch. She’s got ice in her veins,” said Nelson of the walk-off hero. “She’s one of the top recruited players 2023s in the country for a reason. Kid has ice in her veins. And she does all the right things right, off the field, on the field, she’s a leader.”
Brown, partially torn MCL and all, struck out eight and worked around four hits, two earned runs and a walk on 101 pitches, 71 of them strikes.
“She gave us a chance,” Nelson said of Brown. “Ava’s heart is tremendous. To take that phone call on Wednesday and hear, ‘Hey, I got this, I’m going to put the team on my back’ is special. She was probably 70 percent today, if 70 percent all week. And to have her run out there and gut that out and have the performance she did…that’s a champion.”
Another incredible performance from a group of champions this past week from a team that continued to impress and seemingly put together those types of consistent, remarkable efforts day after day at PGF Nationals.
“After Game 1, we fell behind late in the game, 4-3, and I heard one of them say, ‘we’re not losing, refuse to lose.’ Whenever I heard that, I knew it would be a great week for us.
“They live with the motto of ‘I can, I will, I must,’ and I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Nelson added.”
— Will Turner, Extra Inning Softball
