12u Bombers display wide-ranging skill set in win

There was little doubt from the start.

The 12U Texas Bombers-LS pieced together a complete game Friday night and earned a convincing 9-0 win over the Colorado Psyclones 12U Valor at Barnes Complex in Loveland at the Sparkler Juniors softball event.

The Bombers received lights-out pitching to go along with air-tight defense and a number of timely hits. With all facets of the game working in sync, the outcome was unquestionably favorable for the team from Texas.

“Our biggest focus was that we stayed fundamentally sound defensively,” coach Joe Torres said. “We’re swinging the bat well and seeing the right pitches and getting good at-bats. Obviously, our pitching did a fantastic job.”

The Bombers wasted little time in getting the ball rolling. Starting pitcher Arabella Garcia sailed through the first two innings without giving up a run.

After a scoreless first inning, the offense came alive in the second, plating four runs in the inning to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Madison Azua knocked in Victoria Altamirano on a single to jumpstart the inning.

Next, the Bombers loaded the bases with two consecutive well-placed bunt singles before Isabella Torres hit a chopper over the second basemen to score two more. Alysandra Calixto concluded the scoring in the second with a perfect sacrifice fly to left.

The Psyclones threatened in the top of the third inning, loading the bases with two outs after two straight walks. But Garcia got a huge strikeout to escape the danger and preserve the shutout. Azua added another RBI knock in the bottom half of the third to extend the Bomber lead to 5-0.

“Everything was going well,” Garcia said of the game. “It really helped the whole team is having fun. We’re all hyped up and we came into this game confident.”

Following another scoreless inning in the fourth –this time from pitcher Alexis Nava – the Bombers came through with runners on base yet again in their half of the fourth. Calixto added another RBI on a double before Dylan Lewis brought her around with a hit of her own.

The game was soon called due to the time limit after the Bombers scored two more runs to take a 9-0 lead.

It seemed like the Bombers were getting contributions from up-and-down the lineup. Everyone was reaching base and executing what needed to be done.

“It’s exciting to see,” Torres said. “We work hard on situational hitting so it’s exciting to see them execute those plays. It was good pieces of hitting. Today was a good day.”

The win advances the Bombers to the next round of the 12U Championship A bracket of the Colorado Sparkler Junior tournament. They will play another game Saturday at 2 p.m., with a potential championship game looming later in the evening. They’ve had a great tournament thus far, running the table at 4-0 in pool play and have now won their first two bracket games.

There’s still games to play and work left to be done. But confidence and excitement for what’s next are certainly high.

“I think it really gives a lot of confidence,” Garcia said. “We’re all pumped up for tomorrow so we’re just going to go in there strong.”