The Hollister Heat 16U B team finished runner-up at the Beat the
Heat Tournament in Salinas last week after it compiled a 4-1 record
and advanced to the championship game
SALINAS
The Hollister Heat 16U B team finished runner-up at the Beat the Heat Tournament in Salinas last week after it compiled a 4-1 record and advanced to the championship game.
“The girls played really hard and they played really tough,” Hollister coach Dave Dominguez said.
And they started the tournament with a bang. Knotted at 4-all in its opener against the Monterey Mad Dogs, Hollister’s Marissa Adame connected on a two-run, walk-off homer in the bottom of the seventh to seal a 6-4 victory.
Hollister then defeated the Central Valley Freeze 8-2 and the Mize Diamonds 7-4 to finish pool play and garner the tournament’s No. 1 seed going into bracketed play.
“They didn’t give up anything,” Dominguez said.
After receiving a first-round bye, the Heat battled with the Mize Diamonds once again, this time in the semifinal round. But knotted at 4-all in the last inning, the Heat put two runners in scoring position for Adame, and the Diamonds decided to pitch around the Hollister slugger as a result.
On a 3-0 count, however, the Diamonds’ ensuing pitch resulted in a pass ball and Olivia Diaz scored the winning run from third base, setting up the championship final against the Monterey Mad Dogs.
“It was close all the way to the last inning,” Dominguez said of the championship, “and they opened it up.”
The two teams went back and forth until it was 5-5 when Monterey plated four runs in the sixth inning en route to a 9-5 win.
Savaunah Ruvalcaba and Alex King kept opponents at bay for much of the tournament, Dominguez said.
“They pitched really well and played really well in the tournament,” the coach added. “They’re playing some terrific ball.”
Hollister will play again this weekend at a tournament in Merced.
