Roadrunners sprint to second place in tourney

Napa's 10-under softball squad brings home hardware

The Napa Roadrunners, a 10-under softball team, took second place in the Dixon/Davis/Vacaville Tournament on Aug. 4-5.

Napa opened with a 6-6 tie against the Petaluma Steal Breeze in an early-morning game Saturday in Dixon as pitcher Sissy Krause notched two strikeouts.

At the plate, Tilly Blakesly had an RBI; Krause had two RBIs, including a double and a walk; Bailee Murphy posted a single, double and RBI; Jenny Guffy smacked a double; and Rebecca Morris, Carli Collins, Gianna Ricci and Audrey Simich all recorded walks.

In the second game, Napa blanked the Auburn Storm 9-0 as pitcher Devon Gelista posted four strikeouts.

Pinch runner Avery Flock scored for the Roadrunners, while Krause managed a single, double and a walk; Murphy had a triple and an RBI; Collins and Cheyenne Whitney singled; Simich doubled; and Morris, Ricci and Blakesly each got a walk.

Napa then posted a 9-5 win over the Valley Magic as Krause fanned seven batters.

Morris, recorded a double play at shortstop, as she caught a pop-up and threw out the Auburn runner returning to first base.

Krause hit a pair of doubles and added two RBIs; Murphy had a single and a triple; Guffy doubled, singled and drove in a run; Simich posted a single and a walk; and Gelista, Whitney and Collins each drew a walk.

Moving on to Sunday in Davis, the Roadrunners opened with a tight 9-6 decision over the San Jose Quicksilver as Krause delivered 13 strikeouts.

Krause (walk, single), Murphy (two singles), Morris (double, walk), Guffy (double, two singles), Collins (two singles), Ricci (single), Blakesly (single) and Whitney (walk) led the way at the plate for Napa.

The game was tied 6-6 after five innings, setting up an international rules scenario for the sixth — each team was allowed to start the inning with a runner on second base.

After a scoreless sixth, the visiting Roadrunners put up three runs in the top of the seventh.

Murphy started out at second base, Morris walked, and Guffy hit a single to plate Murphy. Whitney then hit a ball to center field to score two more runs.

Krause struck out all three Quiksilver batters in the bottom of the frame for the win.

The victory put Napa in the championship game against the Petaluma Steel Breeze.

Petaluma won the title 15-5 as Napa took home the second-place trophy.

Krause struck out three batters, while Simich finished the sixth inning at pitcher.

At the plate, Napa was led by Taylor Peterson (single), Krause (single), Murphy (three singles, RBI), Morris (double, single), Guffy (walk), Collins (walk), Ricci (walk) and Whitney (single, double, RBI).

The Roadrunners were coached by Don Krause, Theresa Krause, Dennis Murphy and Kevin Whitney.

This year’s Napa Roadrunners were Sissy Krause (pitcher), Bailee Murphy, (third base), Rebecca Morris (shortstop), Jenny Guffy (catcher), Carli Collins (first base), Gianna Ricci (second base), Audrey Simich (center field, left field), Taylor Peterson (center field), Tilly Blakesly (right field, first base), Devon Gelista (center field, pitcher), Cheyenne Whitney (right field) and Avery Flock (right field).

Track and Field

• Napa Track Club competes at Junior Olympic National Championship 

The Junior Olympic National Track and Field Championships were held recently in Walnut, California.

To earn a spot, athletes must first place in the top eight at their USATF association meet, then place in the top three at their regional meet.

There are 16 regional meets across the country, so there are as many as 48 of the top athletes in the country in each event and age group competing at this national championship meet.

Napa’s Susan Jackson earned the fifth-place medal in the young women’s high jump after clearing 5-7.

Although Jackson stands 6-foot-1, her height was average in this event as many of the competitors topped 6-foot-3.

Track and field legend Carl Lewis, the athlete of the millennium, was on hand and presented Jackson and her fellow high jumpers with their medals on the Junior Olympics podium.

The greatest track and field athlete of the 20th century stood with the greatest female high jumper the city of Napa has ever seen.

It was a fitting end to the Napa Track Club career of Jackson, who turned 18 during the recent Junior Olympics.

Ashley Augustus, a seventh-grade student at Harvest Middle School, also medaled, placing fifth in the midget girls division’s 1500-meter racewalk.

This outstanding performance ended a great first Napa Track Club season for Augustus. The beginning of her race looked more like a rugby scrum with more than 30 athletes pushing and pulling for position, but Augustus proved to be tough as well as talented as she kept her focus throughout the race and finished strongly.

Napa’s Kevin Cardey, a junior at Justin-Siena, placed 16th in the high jump.

He promises to be an outstanding athlete for Justin-Siena and possesses a strong work ethic as well as multi-event skills. Cardey recently won a national championship in the intermediate boys long jump at the Youth Outdoor National Championship in Lisle, Illinois.

Lauren Cardey, a freshman at Justin-Siena High School, also had a command performance with a high jump of 4-9. She placed 16th in the youth girls division.

Primarily a sprinter, Cardey picked up the high jump as an extra event two years ago and has quickly advanced to national level in her age group.

It is a great tribute to the Napa Track Club high jump coach, Tony Giovannoni, that three club athletes who earned a spot to compete in the Junior Olympics were trained under his tutelage.

Steve Cardey and Dave Augustus also coach, and Paul Jackson has been the head coach of the club for the past six years.

Napa Valley Register Copyright © 2009