If there were any jitters heading into the NAFA World Series of Softball Nationals last week, the Carson Valley Hot Shots 10U team sure didn't show it.
The Hot Shots rumbled to a pair of big wins to open the tournament on their way to an impressive showing at the Oregon tournament, which drew more than 200 teams from around the country.
Carson Valley went 4-2 overall at the tournament, outscoring their opponents 63-26.
In the end, though, the heat (conditions were consistently in the 95-degree range) and fatigue (the team was faced with playing games at 8 p.m. and then 8 a.m. the following morning) caught up with the Hot Shots as they exited the tournament with a pair of one-run losses.
"We're talking about 10-year-old kids," Hot Shots coach Ed Doughty said. "They just started to wear out. The time spent travelling, and then the scheduling of the games, it took its toll on them.
"There were a couple of days there where the kids only got six or seven hours of sleep. They played hard, though, and won some games convincingly. The two games we lost were very close. We played hard but we just came up short.
The Hot Shots opened the tournament with an 11-4 win over the Newburg, Ore., Tigers and followed with a 15-4 win over the Vancouver, Canada, VooDoo Dolls.
In the third round, Carson Valley defeated Eugene, Ore., 12-3.
They beat Vancouver again, this time 19-5, before losing to the Tigard, Ore., Blast 7-6. That set up a 6-5 loss to Newburg.
"The kids just worked so hard," Doughty said. "It broke my heart. We just talked about not letting that last game be the thing they remember about this season.
"They did so many great things, they won the state title and they qualified for the World Series. They can't focus on how it ended. It was just a great experience to coach these girls.
"We didn't have superstars. We just had a group of girls that picked each other up all the time. When one girls was down, another would pick her up. At each tournament, each game, a different kid would step up. They had a lot of camaraderie. Everyone had a role and everyone knew what to do. It was a really nice season to be a part of."
The Hot Shots met up with two other Northern Nevada teams the night prior to the opening of the
tournament to watch the Reno Aces minor league baseball team take on the Portland Beavers in Portland.
"It was really a fun time," Doughty said.
Team members included Kylie Swan, Taryn Allmett, Haley Doughty, MacKenzie Brixie, Lauren Lemburg, Faith Connelly, Casey Peck, Jordyn Pinochi, Skylar Berglund, Madi Peters and Mackenzie Peters.
Doughty was joined on the coaching staff by Shell Lemburg, Tracy Connelly and Pat Peters.
"We just really want to the thank the people who sponsored our team and helped out at the bake sales and car wash," Doughty said. "There was a very large group of people in our community that helped us out in order to get to the world series."
Doughty will host a series of offseason conditioning and development sessions for girls between the ages of 7 and 10 at Line Drive U in Johnson Lane this fall.
"I just want the opportunities to be there for any kid wanting to get better and learn the fundamentals of the game," Doughty said. "It doesn't matter if they want to play for the Hot Shots or just prepare for the league, if they want to work and get better, this will be a good opportunity for them."
The clinics will start in September. For more information, contact Doughty at 450-1136 or e-mail at eddawg@charter.net.
