Rage team advances to tourney title game

      Spread across five age brackets, 77 fast-pitch softball teams entered the recent 1998 Las Vegas Gamblers Southwest Showdown.
      And of the 23 local entrants -- nearly 30 percent of the field -- it seemed only fitting one of them should find glory.
      But on this weekend, it wouldn't be the nationally ranked 18-and-under Vegas Stars who would shine.
      Nor would it be the 18-and-under Las Vegas Rage, which knocked off the Stars in an out-of-town tournament two weeks before, or the 16-and-under Blast which handled the Stars the weekend before that.
      Instead, it was a scrappy, determined 12-and-under Rage team that represented Southern Nevada as the only local squad to advance to a championship game.
      "We've tried to approach (the fall season) incremental and the kids have done a wonderful job in responding," said team manager Gordon Richards.
      After going 1-2 in pool play, and earning the No. 3 seed, the Rage fought through bracket play before succumbing to the Norcal (Calif.) Fillys in the championship, 8-2, to finish the tournament with a 4-3 record.
      Despite the loss, and the tears that overwhelmed a majority of the players, the new-look Rage continued to improve by notching its second, top-three finish in four tournaments.
      Earlier this month, the Rage took third in a Phoenix-based tourney.
      "None of them really had the experience and we've just taken it step-by-step," said Richards, whose squad first played together in a September tourney in Anaheim, Calif. "They've committed themselves at this level."
      Members of the team are Henderson residents Danielle Martinez, Stefanie Rizzi, Brittany DeSantis, Shara Webb, Krystal Harmon, Alyssa Grant, Sara Thomas, Santana Thiede, Meaghan Haley; Southeast residents Alyssa Cady and Emily Edmondson; and, Northwest resident Summer Golia-Pritchet.
      For the tournament, the Rage was led offensively by Golia-Pritchet, who hit .450 (9-for-20), Cady (.416, 5-for-12), Webb (.389, 7-for-18) and Harmon (.380, 8-for-21).
      Cady also led the Rage from the mound, earning a pair of shutout victories behind a one-hitter, and no-hitter in the semifinals, and striking out 14 along the way. DeSantis was impressive in a one-hit loss, in which she struck out five.
      "We've gotten better and better as the fall season goes on," said Rizzi, who also earned two wins behind a 2.15 ERA. "We've been a lot more enthusiastic and we've begun to hit the ball a lot better."
      Said Cady: "We've been pumped up more, and we've really come together as a team."
      The Rage hit .280 (49-for-175) for the tournament, while its opponents struggled to a .162 (24-for-148) batting average.
      "Gordon has done a fine job and everyone has noticed the improvement," said Bill Waddilove, president of the Las Vegas Rage organization. "He has really brought the team around and I'm real proud of the girls."
      Other local teams competing in the 12-team, 10-and-under bracket included the Rage-Maroon (2-2), the Gamblers-White (1-3), the Gamblers-Red (1-3), the Rage-Blue (0-3) and the Venom (0-4).
      In the 14-and-under bracket, two local clubs appeared headed on a collision course for the finals before falling one round short.
      The Blast and Voltage hit roadblocks in the semifinals, losing to the Invasion and eventual-champion American Pastime, respectively.
      For the tournament, the Voltage (3-2) had a team batting average of .352, while scoring 40 runs in five games. Pacing the Voltage throughout the weekend was Megan McPherson, who smacked a two-run homer in round one of bracket play and tossed a three-hitter in the quarterfinals.
      The Blast (5-1) outscored its opponents 17-1 to go undefeated (3-0) in pool play and 18-2 heading into its semifinal clash with the Invasion. The Blast was paced offensively by Amy Gleicher and defensively by pitchers Teresa Leidlich and Shannon Crisp.
      Other local teams in the 19-team, 14-and-under bracket were the Impact (3-1-1), the Gamblers-Red (2-2), the Rage (1-3), the Diamonds (1-3), the Venom (1-4) and Legacy (0-3).
      The Rage (0-3) was the only local entry in the five-team, 10-and-under bracket, which Nemesis from Downey, Calif. captured from the Fontana (Calif.) All-Stars.
      In the 26-team, 16-and-under bracket, local entrants were the Blast (2-2), Blast-Blue (1-3), the Gamblers-White (0-3-1) and the Rage (0-4).
      The Aftershocks (Alta Loma, Calif.) topped the Southern Cal Rebels to win the bracket.
      In the 15-team, 18-and-under bracket, the Aftershocks won the title with a victory over the Cal Lobos Gold from Irvine, Calif.
      Local teams entered were the Rage (3-1), the Stars (2-2-1), the Gamblers-White (1-3), the Gamblers-Red (1-4) and the Venom (0-4).