 The Rising Stars Showcase was held October 23-25, 2009 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. This premiere showcase attracts over 300 softball teams along with several hundred college coaches.
The Pittsburgh Power-Rising Stars team consisted of the following players:
Alicia Aughton - Moon Area High School
Lauren Davies - Seneca Valley High School
Alyssa DiMaria - Seneca Valley High School
Tara Konopka - Peters Township High School
Morgan Matetic - Peters Township High School
Morgan Meadows - Peters Township High School
Ashley Parello - Peters Township High School
Morgan Russo - North Catholic High School
Lauren Sauerwein - Mt. Alvernia High School
Rebecca Taylor - Latrobe High School
Prior to the showcase, all players started practice in early to mid-September and met every Sunday evening along with one day during the week at the Power Building to work on both offensive and defensive skills in preparation for the event.
October 23, 2009 - Morning (8am-12pm) Recruitment Camp
Prior to the start of any showcase games, several Power players attended the Rising Stars Recruitment Camp. The camp attracts over several hundred college coaches throughout the country. The camp provides the players an opportunity to showcase their individual skills in front of several hundred college recruiters.
October 23, 2009 - (12pm) Team Broward Orange (Power-9 Team Broward-0)
The Pittsburgh Power-Rising Stars Team took on its first opponent from Florida (Team Broward-Orange). Team Power exploded with 13 hits, along with no errors for the game and blanked Team Broward 9-0 for the teams first win. Alyssa DiMaria, Alicia Aughton, Morgan Matetic and Erin Mullen each had 2 hits a piece for the game. Morgan Meadows, Morgan Russo, Lauren Sauerwein, Ashley Parello and Lauren Davies each had a hit a piece. Tara Konopka, Morgan Meadows and Rebecca Taylor were responsible for the pitching duties and gave up 0 runs and only 2 hits for the 9-0 win.
October 23, 2009 - (1:45pm) - Miami Stingrays (Power-7 - Miami Stingrays-2)
The Pittsburgh Power-Rising Stars Team took on its second opponent from Miami, Florida, the Miami Stingrays. Team Power scored 7 runs on 7 hits and limited the Stingrays to 2 runs on 2 hits for their second win of the day. Rebecca Taylor and Morgan Meadows had 2 hits a piece for the game and Ashley Parello, Lauren Davies and Lauren Sauerwein each had 1 hit. Additionally, Alyssa DiMaria and Erin Mullen scored 3 of the 7 runs for team Power. Morgan Matetic provided 2 stolen bases for the game. Defensively, the team played flawlessly with no errors. Alicia Aughton and Morgan Matetic providing 3 putouts each. Tara Konopka pitched 2 scoreless innings with 0 hits, 0 walks and 3 strikeouts.
October 23, 2009 (8pm) Maximum Exposure Games
Players who are currently juniors or seniors in high school were provided the opportunity to play in a Maximum Exposure game on Friday evening. The Maximum Exposure Games were played at the Main complex and players had an opportunity to play in front of several hundred college coaches. Power players who took advantage of this opportunity and played in the games were Alyssa DiMaria, Lauren Davies, Morgan Meadows and Ashley Parello. All players played extremely well and enjoyed every minute of the experience.
October 24, 2009 (9:40am) Team Florida (Power-1 Team Florida 0)
The first game on day 2 provided very few runs and hits for both teams. Team Power scored 1 run on 2 hits. Morgan Matetic and Alyssa DiMaria provided the only hits with 1 a piece for Team Power. The only run of the game came when Alyssa DiMaria stole home to seal the win. Defensively, Team Power played solid giving up only one error. Morgan Meadows and Tara Konopka provided 4 putouts each with Lauren Sauerwein and Morgan Russo with 2 each. Lauren Davies, Ashley Parello and Erin Mullen provided solid defense for Team Power. Alicia Aughton and Rebecca Taylor pitched 4 scoreless innings for the 1-0 win.
October 24, 2009 (11:20am) Brevard Stealers (Brevard Stealers-7 Team Power 4)
Team Power was pursuing its fourth straight win of the showcase when paired with another Florida team, the Brevard Stealers. Hits again were at a premium. Team Power produced 4 hits and the Brevard Team provided 6 for the game. Team Power came out strong in the first inning providing 4 runs on 2 hits to go up 4-0 on the Stealers. The game was 4-0 until the last inning when the team from Florida scored 7 runs on 4 hits and 5 errors. Alicia Aughton, Alyssa DiMaria, Erin Mullen and Tara Konopka provided a hit a piece for Team Power. Morgan Matetic, Lauren Davies, Erin Mullen and Alyssa DiMaria each scored accounting for the 4 Power runs. Morgan Meadows and Tara Konopka pitched 3 scoreless innings giving up only 2 hits, 0 walks with 3 strikeouts. Morgan Russo, Rebecca Taylor, Ashley Parello and Lauren Sauerwein provided solid defense for Team Power combining on 8 assists.
October 25, 2009 (8:00 am) Virginia Legends (Legends-9 Team Power 2)
The last game of the showcase had Team Power paired up with the Legends from the state of Virginia. Team Power produced 2 runs on 4 hits for the game. Alyssa DiMaria, Morgan Matetic, Lauren Davies and Lauren Sauerwein produced a hit a piece for Team Power. Morgan Matetic and Alyssa DiMaria scored the only two runs for Team Power. Team Power scored a run in the top of the first inning however in the bottom half, Team Legends scored 5 runs on 2 hits and 3 errors. Morgan Meadows provided 5 putouts, along with 3 by Alicia Aughton. Ashley Parello, Rebecca Taylor, Erin Mullen, Morgan Russo and Tara Konopka provided solid defense for Team Power.
The Rising Stars Showcase was a great experience for all players and coaches. The showcase is one of the best for college exposure and extreme competition. |
