The Burnaby Oakeys 96 fastpitch team got some preseason practice at a 16-and-under girls' fastpitch tournament in Las Vegas earlier this month.
The Oakeys, one of three teams from B.C. to make the trip in the division, were the last Canadian team standing following a third-place finish out of 24 teams at the competition.
The Burnaby club team finished as the top seed in round-robin play with two shutouts against the Spokane Diamonds and Las Vegas Onipaa. Their only loss was a close fought 2-1 loss to the Idaho Crossfire.
Sunday's playoff games included a 6-5 win in an international tie-breaker over the Idaho Sliders and a 3-1 win against one of the other B.C. teams - reigning provincial champions Delta Heat 96.
The win matched the Oakeys up against the home-team favourite Las Vegas Rage. Burnaby lost 5-3 after falling behind by four runs in the third inning. The coaching staff were very impressed with what they saw and are excited for the upcoming season, which includes several more tournaments through out Canada and the U.S., with an ultimate goal of reaching the nationals, which are being held in Brampton Ont. Aug 8 to 13.
The Oakeys are lead by coaching staff Sherman Quon, Sean Wong, Brittnay Meyers, Cassidy Lee and Quentin Newman.
he roster of 14 girls includes, Arielle Charuk, Annabel Irwin, Carmen Wong, Cristina Soares, Emma Tuson,Kaela Ponte, Katie Reyes, Katie Sears, Katrin Hatch, Kristan Rodrigues, Madison Newman, Megan Olsen, Shannon Quon and Stefanie Polderman.
