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CLEAR Temp: 51 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Monday, August 5, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Cyberchef E The People Golf Job Network Headbone Zone Wellness Connection Movie Times Newspaper in Education Oregon CarZone Outdoor Journal Personals Prime Times Real Estate Tempo A & E TV Times W3 Magazine CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Destinations Automotive Communities Employment Entertainment Publications Real Estate Recreation Shopping Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Jobs @ Mail Tribune Email Story to a Friend July 27, 2002 South Medford third baseman Jackie Chaplin is a star in the field and at the plate for the Blue Aces this summer. She leads the team with a .441 batting average. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Blue Aces trump odds Young South Medford team heads to U-18 national tournament in Spokane, Wash. By DON HUNT Mail Tribune If the South Medford Blue Aces don’t look old enough to play in an 18-and-under national softball tournament, that’s because most of them aren’t even old enough to obtain their driver’s licenses. But the collection of mostly 15-year-olds will head to Spokane, Wash., on Monday for the American Softball Association National U-18 B Tournament brimming with confidence. After all, they’re coming off a Northwest Regional championship in Lacey, Wash., last week and the team is nearly identical to the one that finished ninth at the U-16 national tournament one year ago. "These girls won’t be intimidated, I can tell you that," veteran Blue Aces coach Doc Chaplin says. "They’ve been in a lot of big tournaments in the past and they expect to win games." Two other local girls softball teams have also qualified for national tournaments. The North Medford Black Tornado is headed to the U-16 A Nationals July 29-Aug. 29 in Sioux Falls, S.D., while the Central Point Comets are headed to the U-14 Western Nationals Aug. 5-11 at Sante Fe, N.M. The core of the Blue Aces is a group of sophomores-to-be at South Medford High that has been playing softball under Chaplin for the past eight or nine years. Included in the group is Doc’s daughter, Jackie, a third baseman who is batting .441 in the Blue Aces’ eight playoff games. She also has two home runs, a pair of triples, four doubles and 15 RBIs over that span. Jackie Chaplin started playing the game when she was 5 while accompanying her older sister, Angie, to the ballpark. "I’ve put my share of hours into the game," Jackie Chaplin says. "It’s given me and Dad something in common and it’s just something I’ve really enjoyed doing." The younger Chaplin has spent hundreds of hours in the off-season taking batting practice and fielding ground balls from her father. "He has this game called "fast hands" where he takes a bucket of balls and just starts throwing them at me from close range," Jackie says. "I’m sure I’ve gotten a few bruises from it but it’s really helped my reactions in the field." Jackie Chaplin earned second-team all-conference honors as a freshman at South Medford last spring and has ratcheted up her play another notch this summer. She leads the Blue Aces in hitting from her leadoff spot with a .441 average and has been a human vacuum cleaner in the field, routinely sucking up ground balls and throwing batters out. "She’s a power hitter, a clutch hitter and she plays an incredible third base," Blue Aces assistant coach Dennis Byrne says. "She takes away the short game from the other team." But Jackie Chaplin isn’t a one-person team. The rest of the infield — catcher Alex Jordahl, first baseman Erica Corns, second baseman Jonni Byrne and shortstop Katie Kaufman — has played nearly flawless defense while Corns (.429) and Kaufman (.382) have wielded hot bats in the postseason. But if there’s an MVP on the Blue Aces it’s probably pitcher Darci Byrne, the one true U18 player on the team. "Darci is the reason we’re playing at the U18 level," Doc Chaplin says. "She’s had offers to play on out-of-town teams but she’s been loyal to these younger girls. "With her leadership out there on the mound, we feel like we can compete with anyone." Byrne threw a shutout against Montana-based Bitteroots in the Northwest Regional championship game. Prior to the regional tourney, the Blue Aces picked up Ashland pitcher Megan Beugli to back up Byrne. Beugli responded with a couple of clutch outings, including a 4-1 victory over Bitteroots in the regional semifinal game. "All this team lacked was a second strong pitcher and Megan gives us that," Doc Chaplin says. "Plus, she swings the bat very well." The Blue Aces will likely be the youngest team at the national tournament, and they’ll be one of the few teams whose roster is comprised almost exclusively of players from one school. But the circumstances were similar last year when the Blue Aces won six of eight games and took ninth place out of 40 teams at the U-16 tournament. NORTH MEDFORD BLACK TORNADO — Not surprisingly, some of the same players who helped North Medford to the Class 4A state high school championship last spring are leading the charge on this team, namely shortstop Darcy Cordell, third baseman Corey Whitaker and outfielder Deni Rowley. All three played prominent roles when the Tornado finished runner-up at the U-16 Northwest Regional A Tournament last weekend in Spokane, Wash. Pitchers Kendra Strahm, Mallorie Hoover and Janelle Cristofaro give the Tornado unusually strong depth on the mound. CENTRAL POINT COMETS — The U-14 squad finished third at the state tournament in mid-July but claimed a berth to the Western Nationals when the two teams that finished ahead of them — Scappoose and Tualatin — elected not to attend. The Comets won their first five games at the state tourney before suffering one-run losses to Scappoose and Tualatin. Kelsey Heider, Andrea Bacon and 12-year-old Breyanna Reed, the team’s youngest player, form a solid pitching corps. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy web master feedback A D V E R T I S E R S