Deerfield Warriors 16U Travel Softball Wins Slammers Splash Tournament

Submitted to Patch

The Deerfield Youth Softball Association Deerfield Warriors 16U travel softball team took first place recently at the 2015 Slammers Splash tournament that included pool play games against the Chicago Fireworks, Crystal Lake Comets and Lake County Crossfire.

Solid play in the first three games secured Deerfield the #4 seed heading into elimination play on Sunday. Deerfield opened elimination play against the Fireworks, holding them to only one run in the last inning. Led by strong offense, every Warrior earned at least one hit in this game. Special recognition goes to Ally Mart (2 for 3), Elizabeth Johnson (2 for 3, triple), Jamie Jones (triple) and Carling Miller (triple) that helped the Warriors win 6-1.

Next Deerfield took on the #1 seeded Park Ridge Pistols. The Warriors exploded in the 2nd inning for 11 runs and never looked back. Strong offense included Grace Sluzynski starting the 2nd inning rally and going 3 for 4, Sophie Yasger was 3 for 3, while Elizabeth Johnson, Ally Mart and Sophia Holt all were 2 for 4. Deerfield won 13-7.

In the finals, Deerfield beat the Crystal Lake Comets 9-6. Solid defense and lots of offense earned the win. Deerfield had runners on base in every inning scoring in the 3rd, 4th and 5th before exploding for five runs in the sixth. Many extra base hits were earned in the game. Julia Harlan ripped a triple; Sophia Holt had a homerun, and doubles were earned by Jamie Jones, Elizabeth Johnson and Grace Sluzynski.

Sluzynski also went 4 for 4 in the championship.

Also noteworthy were the battery of Carling Miller (pitcher) and Jayne Seldin (catcher). They did not let the heat and humidity affect them, playing every inning of all 3 games on Sunday, doing their jobs to help the team earn the 1st place Championship win.

The Warriors 16U roster includes Julia Harlan, Sophia Holt, Jamie Jones, Elizabeth Johnson, Hannah Lane, Ally Mart, Carling Miller, Abby Schaeffer, Jayne Seldin, Grace Sluzynski, Dori Tsakiris, and Sophie Yasger. The team is coached by recent DHS graduate Emelia Karkazis, Sue Hebson, Susan Johnson, Bill Johnson and Paul Yasger.