Gainesville Gold 12U Team page
The Gainesville Gold is a travelling fastpitch softball team from Gainesville Florida! We have been competing in NSA, ASA and ISA tournaments since the teams creation in 1996. This group of 12's got together in the fall of 1998, and found that they were beginning to form something special...going 10-3, and taking first place and second place twice in the three tourneys they participated in!
This summer has been equally impressive, with the Gold going 24-11! We won three tournaments, and took second in two others! We saw awesome compitition at State and Nationals, taking 9th and 7th respectively! We continued to grow as players and as a team, and had a fantastic time along the way! We end the season knowing that we are all champions...and our softball future is GOLDEN!
Come and revisit our season....see how each game went for us and check out our final statistics! Come back often, we will start our Fall season really soon!
Go Gold!
Summer 1999 Roster
#2.....Angie Verbeelen
Angie is a remarkable person...not to mention a remarkable player! She is our ace pitcher, one of our best hitters, and our team leader! She does it all! Her blazing fastballs will allow us to compete with (and hopefully beat!) any team around! And what a sweetie too!
Age: 12
Nickname: Little Bit, Short Circuit
Position: Pitcher, Short Stop
Birthday: May, 1986
Favorite Softball Moment: Every day is a new favorite
moment!
#5.....Amanda Reed
Amanda has matured a great deal since joining the Gold last fall. She has turned into one of our most consistent infielders and power hitters! She will see a lot of playing time this season...and will break the hearts of many opposing pitchers with long drives over outfielders! She is the best defensive first basemen I've ever coached!
Age: 12
Nickname: Mandy, Scoop, O-KAY!
Position: First Base, Outfield
Birthday: October 20,1986
Favorite Softball Moment: Blasting a 2 RBI triple against
the Cyclones!
#7.....Melissa Kretzman
Melissa is one of the newcomers to our Gold family. She gives our line-up another power hitter and looks to be our star catcher of the future! She has the talent to fight her way into our starting nine, even though she just turned 11! She's amazing!
Age: 11
Nickname: Lis
Position: Third, Pitcher, Catcher
Birthday: January 20, 1988
Favorite Softball Moment: Winning City Championship on the
mound!
#9.....Brittany Maroney
Brittany came to us from California...so you know she was born to play softball! She is maturing into another great player for the Gold! She has a great glove in the infield and outfield...and a rocket of an arm!
Age: 11
Nickname: Shortney
Position: Outfield, Third, Second
Birthday: November 30, 1987
Favorite Softball Moment: Winning a Championship with
an RBI triple!
#10.....Briana Lovell
Boy did we luck out when Briana joined the Gold family! We thought we would really miss Sara when she moved up to the 14's, but Bri fell into our laps and has taken over right where Sara left off...and then some! She can play anywhere on the field, and punishes every ball she hits!
Age: 13
Nickname: Bri, Big Bad Bri
Position: Catcher, Pitcher, Second, Short
Birthday: March 4, 1986
Favorite Softball Moment: Blasting a huge home run
in a championship game against the Cyclones!
#11.....Brooke Richardson
Brooke is a tireless worker who has improved a great deal since joining the team! She is developing into one of our best first basemen! And with her work ethic, its only a matter of time before she starts hitting the ball out of the park!
Age: 11
Nickname: Basher
Position: First Base
Birthday: October 7, 1987
Favorite Softball Moment: Winning her first tournament
when she was 10!
#12.....Amy Silverman
Amy is simply a wonderful player and person! She is our emotional leader, giving us the motivation and maturity we need to compete at this level of competition. She is also dynamite for us on the mound...throwing strike after strike with absolutely beautiful form!
Age: 12
Nickname: Melissa, SIL-VER-MAAAN
Position: Pitcher, Third, Outfield
Birthday: May 22, 1986
Favorite Softball Moment: Her very first game
pitching!
#17.....Ashley Lee
Ashley just keeps getting more and more impressive! She is a force as our lead-off hitter and can play anywhere on the field defensively! When she steals a base and slides in head first she shows everyone watching how this game is supposed to be played! She is incredible!
Age: 12
Nickname: Ash, Roadrunner, Goofy
Position: Center, Catcher, Second
Birthday: January 23, 1987
Favorite Softball Moment: Making an impossible
over-the-shoulder catch to save a big game against the Shockers!
#18.....Valentina Ariojas
She may not say much, but we cant say enough about Yo-Yo and her softball future! She is one of our strongest outfielders and power hitters...and she is still learning how to play the game! She will be awesome for us!
Age:
Nickname: Yo-Yo
Position: Outfield
Birthday:
Favorite Softball Moment:
#21.....Lindsey Monaghan
Lindsey was supposed to play with us in the Fall, but broke her arm cheerleading! She has now given up the pom-poms and is concentrating on a real sport! She can do just about anything we ask...fielding, hitting, even pitching! She is a young player with a lot of promise!
Age: 11
Nickname: Widdle Winnsey, Big Dog
Position: Outfield, Second, Pitcher
Birthday: October 4, 1987
Favorite Softball Moment: Too many to
say!
#30.....Hillary Wolf
Hillary is a member of the Gold 10 and Unders who plays with us whenever she can squeeze it in! She is turning into the worlds greatest catcher! She blocks balls in the dirt better than anyone her age, and she can play with this 12U team for three more years!
Age: 10
Nickname: Hill
Position: Catcher, Outfield
Birthday: March 30, 1988
Favorite Softball Moment: When she threw
out her first runner trying to steal second base!
#33.....Brittany Handy
Brittany is another player who has really blossomed in the Gold organization! She has become an excellent softball player! She has raised her batting average over 200 points since the end of the Fall season! She has a very bright softball future!
Age: 11
Nickname: Brit
Position: Second, Outfield
Birthday: June 17, 1987
Favorite Softball Moment: Hitting 3 Home Runs in ONE GAME!!!
Fall 1998 Results
(10-3)
Palatka Invitational..........Second Place
Gold Qualifier..........Second Place
Ormond Beach Invitational..........First Place
Summer 1999 Results
(24-11)
Gainesville Gold ISA Qualifier
First Place
Gainesville Gold.................8
Jax Players.........................0
Angie and Amy combined for a one hitter in our first game of 1999! Ashley was 3 for 4, Amanda was 3 for 4, Briana was 2 for 4, and Melissa and Hillary both were perfect at 2 for 2! It was a good way to start the season!
Gainesville Gold.............14
The Rockets...................1
Amy and Briana shared the mound, giving up only two hits and striking out 9 in four innings! Angie reached safely in all of her plate appearances and scored three runs, Brittany Handy had a line drive double, and almost every one came around to score in a game where we coasted to a win!
Gainesville Gold..................6
Jax Players.........................1
The Gold won their first tourney of the season with ease, going undefeated and out scoring the competition 28 to 1! Angie got the win on the mound, giving up only one hit in five innings. Ashley, Briana, Angie, Brittany Handy and Valentina all got hits in the win!
High Springs Shootout
First Place
Gainesville Gold................11
North Fla Sliders..............0
Amy and Lindsey combined for a one hit shutout, pitching to the minimum as the only baserunner was thrown out trying to steal by Briana! Ashley, Angie and Valentina all went 2 for 3, with Angie and Valentina each smoking long doubles to left!
Gainesville Gold............6
Florida Tsunamis........7
The Tsunamis seemed to be the team for the Gold to beat to win the tourney, so with a 6 to 2 lead in the second the coaches pulled Angie...they didn't want the Tsunamis batters to get to used to facing their ace! The Tsunamis bats then came alive, scoring the next 5 runs and giving the Gold their first loss of the season!
Gainesville Gold..........5
Daytona Cyclones.....3
The Gold got back on the winning track, beating a great hitting Cyclones team in the last game of seeding! Angie picked up another win, and Ashley and Briana each scored a pair of runs in the victory!
Gainesville Gold..........9
North Fla Sliders........3
The Gold beat the Sliders for the third time in a row in a semi-final match up! Amy got the win, striking out over half of the batters she faced! Melissa, Amy, Briana and Angie each had a pair of hits in the win!
Gainesville Gold.........12
Daytona Cyclones......9
The Gold outlasted the Cyclones in a slugfest of a championship game! Seven of the Gold players came around to score, as we had 14 hits in seven innings! Angie, Valentina and Briana lead the charge with three hits a piece, with Briana getting the hit of the tournament...a towering home run in the fourth!
Palatka Smoke-Out
Third Place
Gainesville Gold............14
Flagler Fury.................2
The Fury was over matched in a one sided three inning affair! Amy got another win, with Melissa pitching her first inning of the summer for the save. Amanda and Melissa were each 2 for 3, and Amy hit an RBI triple in the third!
Gainesville Gold..........9
Jax Thunderbolts........4
Another win for the Gold, but the coaches weren't happy with the sluggish defense leading to three unearned runs. Angie picked up the win, and Ashley and Melissa each had a pair of hits in the victory!
Gainesville Gold.............21
High Springs Thrillers.......2
The only "Thrilling" thing on the field this night was the way the Gold was hitting! Briana got her first win for the team, striking out four in two innings! She also went 4 for 4 with 4 RBI's! Brittany Maroney, Lindsey, Amy, Brittany Handy, Melissa, Amanda, Angie and Ashley all joined in the hit parade!
Gainesville Gold........1
Team Jax..............3
It was Team Jax's lucky day, as all of the breaks seemed to go their way in the semi-final game. The managed three runs on one hit (and one should-have-been-foul-ball-triple) and took advantage of cold Gold bats for the win. Although the team is 10-2, and has out scored opponents 133-35, a lot of improvement still needs to be done for this team to do well at State!
Ormond Beach Memorial Day Tourney
Second Place
Gainesville Gold..................8
Dot Richardson's Angels....2
It was a good thing Dot wasn't here to watch her angels get the devil beat out of them! It wasn't really as close as the score indicated, as Angie picked up another win and went 2 for 3 with a double and two runs scored. Brittany Handy also swung an impressive bat, going 2 for 3 with a triple and 2 RBI's!
Gainesville Gold..............12
Brevard Thunder.............1
The thunder didn't roar all to much as the Gold took it to them 12 to 1! Amy got the W, giving up one hit in three innings. Ashley, Angie, Briana and Amy all recorded two hits, with Brittany Handy smacking her second triple in as many games!
Gainesville Gold..........16
Lady Rebels...............0
The Rebels were greatly over matched, as the Gold pounded out 14 hits in just three innings this last game of seeding. Angie was one batter short of pitching the ultimate perfect game. She struck out every batter she faced...except one, who drew a walk! Lindsey had her best game at the plate, going a perfect 2 for 2 with 2 RS and 3 RBI's!
Gainesville Gold................20
Dot Richardson's Angels....2
The Angels weren't very happy when they heard that they had to play the Gold again! The Gold dominated...getting 16 hits, including Homers by Ashley, Briana and Angie!!! Ashley was a perfect 5 for 5 on the day, scoring five runs and batting in four!
Gainesville Gold..........10
Daytona Cyclones.......6
We faces our old friends the Cyclones again in the semi-finals, with the Gold again being victorious! Amy got the win on the mound, with Angie shutting the door when the Cyclones tried to mount a come back! Angie also swung a good stick, going 2 for 2 with 2 runs scored. Brittany Handy, Ashley, Amy and Lindsey also picked up hits in the win!
Gainesville Gold............1
Port Orange Blazers......9
The Blazers took the field and they were all 5 foot 10 and weighed 150! But the Gold wasn't scared, as they jumped out to an early 1-0 lead! A really close 2 to 1 ball game turned into a romp as costly errors led to 7 Blazer runs in the 5th inning. We weren't too happy getting our second place trophy, now we come to tournaments to win it all!
Gainesville Gold NSA Qualifier
First Place
Gainesville Gold............3
Gainesville Gators........5
It's always a war between these two local teams! Idiotic umpires spotted the Gators a big lead, and the Gold come back fell a little short as round one went to the "bad guys" 5-3. Angie pitched a good game in the losing effort, but cold bats were our downfall as we couldn't adjust to a pitcher throwing 51mph! But...we will meet again!
Gainesville Gold.........1
Wild Thangs..........0
The pitching continued to be impressive at this tournament, as Amy won an old fashioned pitchers duel 1-0! Amy pitched perfect ball....almost.....walking one while tossing a no hitter! Brittany Handy slapped a double in the second inning, batting in Melissa for the only run the Gold would need!
Gainesville Gold........7
Gainesville Gators.....6
What a game! These two teams don't like each other much, and meeting in the semi's added even more tension! The Gold appeared to be the superior team, jumping out to a 2-0 lead thanks to an RBI double by Brittany Handy! But, here we go again, questionable umpire calls opened the door for the Gators and they cashed in...scoring 4 runs in the third! But we were not to be denied this time! Ashley, Brittany Maroney and Angie all reached base to start off the Gold fifth inning, and once again the big hit came from Brittany Handy....another HUGE RBI to tie the game at 4! But the Gators bounced right back, scoring in the sixth to take a 5-4 lead....so the Gold would need at least one in the final inning! Ashley led off the inning beating out a bunt, stole second, and was sacrificed to third by Brittany Maroney! The Gator pitcher felt the pressure, as she threw a wild pitch to allow us to steal the tying run! On to extra innings! Bri started on second because of the Texas tye-breaker. Melissa laid down a great bunt, sacrificing Bri to third. Then, guess who, Brittany Handy stroked another RBI single....and after being sacrificed to third by Valentina....proceeded to steal home! Angie closed the book on the Gators in the bottom of the inning, finishing up her 8 inning marathon in style! What a game!
Gainesville Gold..........8
Wild Thangs..............4
The final was a little anti-climatic, as the two best teams had already met the game before. The Gold jumped out early 8-0, highlighted by a 2 RBI single from Brooke in the second. Valentina had RBI singles in her first two at bats, and Angie, Melissa, Brittany Handy, and Amanda added base hits of their own! It was a fun tournament that hopefully prepared us for the coming week....State!
ISA-A State Championships
9th Place
Gainesville Gold..............0