Sophomore Dani Randall drove a pitch over the right field fence for a grand slam in the top of the seventh to give Humboldt State plenty of insurance runs in its 6-2 win over Dominguez Hills to win the West Region championship on Saturday.
The Lumberjacks (52-12) advance to the NCAA Softball National Championships to be held May 23-27 in Salem, Virg., and will play Texas Woman's University on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. (PST).
It will be Humboldt's sixth trip to the national championships. The team has won the national title twice (1999 and 2008).
“I was talking to a couple of our players in the top of the seventh, telling them that 2-1 was making me nervous, and we needed to score more runs,” Randall said. “When I hit the grand slam, I was doing what I said we needed to do. (Stephanie) Jimenez came in and all she did was pitch me outside, outside. I just stepped through, and it happened. I saw Chrissy (Stalf) at second look at it and throw her hand up, and I was, like, 'Thank God it went over.' “
“It went over all right,” said HSU head coach Frank Cheek. “We keep hitting the ball over the fence. That's the easiest way to do it.” Randall's slam was her 13th home run of the season, and the team's 10th grand slam.
Way to Go, Dani!!

Skills video have been an important part of the recruiting process for years, giving college coaches one more way to study players. When you find the right company to provide these services, you just know it and that is the case for the San Jose Sting and Fastpitchmedia.
Randy Villazon, Owner of Fastpitchmedia has been in the sports arena for over 15 years, utilizing his video experience from the sports entertainment industry to hone his skills-video talent specifically for the travel softball and baseball worlds. Randy produces high quality skills videos, with a variety of options available to suit your needs and budget.
We at the San Jose Sting are excited to be working with a seasoned professional, who meshes well with our organization's goals.
Welcome Randy Villazon and Fastpitchmedia, we look forward to our work together!
Fastpitchmedia's website link is: www.fastpitchmedia.com

Here are the San Jose Sting players who have been recognized so far, with more to come.....(names of players appear in alphabetical order)

Cat Callaway (18G) - 1st Team All League - WCAL
Ashley Chestnut (18G) - 2nd Team All League - WCAL
Lauren Cymrot (18G) - 1st Team All League - WCAL
Rebecca Gisslow (16U) - Honorable Mention - WCAL
Corena Gregorio (16U) - 2nd Team All League - WCAL
Madeleine Kim (16U) - 2nd Team All League - WCAL
Nina Mandracchia (18G) - 1st team All League - WCAL
Kiersten Nordin (18G) - 1st Team All League - WCAL
Megan Nordin (16U) - Honorable Mention - WCAL
Desiree Severance (16U) - Pitcher of the Year - WCAL

As we all know, your academics are critically important in the recruiting process, especially if you have targeted tough academic colleges. Rebecca Gisslow (16U) was recently selected as 1 of 4 students into this elite program. The De Paul Scholar Program is a rigorous four-year academic and enrichment program informed by the charisms of St. John Baptist de La Salle and St. Vincent de Paul. De Paul Scholars achieve grades which place them in the top 10 percent of their class and demonstrate leadership daily in the classroom.
The De Paul Scholar curriculum includes summer workshops and enrichment courses; dedicated sections of ninth grade English and Social Studies; access to a wide array of Honors and Advanced Placement courses; and a culminating, college-level discussion course, Senior Seminar.

Students chosen for the De Paul Scholar Program are expected to:

• Achieve a 3.5 GPA every semester or a year-end cumulative GPA that places them in the top 10 percent of their class
• Maintain the highest standards of behavior as prescribed by the school and affirmed by the dean of students
• Actively pursue cocurricular and service opportunities
• Participate in summer workshops and enrichment activities
• Enroll in Academic Explorations
• Be models of learned men and women for the entire SHC community

Congratulations Becca on this wonderful achievement!

WALNUT CREEK – Humboldt State's Dani Randall has been named the Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division II National Player of the Week for the week of Apr. 15-21, it was announced Wednesday.

The sophomore outfielder began her award winning week on Monday when she was named the Worth/California Collegiate Athletic Association Softball Player of the Week.

Randall, who has a nine-game hitting streak, compiled an average of .667 and a 1.667 slugging percentage after hitting 8-for-12 with three homeruns, a triple and a double. She added five runs and 12 RBI to her overall offensive performance.

In 15 total plate appearances, she walked three times for an overall on-base percentage of .750 on the weekend.

The San Jose native was outstanding in the series opening 11-3 victory, after connecting for a game high of three hits, all three of which were for homeruns, and six RBI.

Rebecca Faulkner (18G) has been a force to be reckoned with on the mound and at the plate! Lefty pitchers are rare gems and Becca is definitely one of the best ones. Whether it be dominating at high school or for the San Jose Sting, Becca garnered lots of attention during last season's summer travel season. In fact, in a game at PGF Nationals against the a tough Mizuno team, Oklahoma Head Coach Patty Gasso was overheard telling Louisville to take a look at this talented lefty pitcher!
With a lot of options in front of her, Rebecca did her unofficial visits and fell in love with UC Riverside! From the openness of the campus, the weather and the coaching staff, Rebecca felt totally comfortable and excited for her future at UC Riverside.
Knowing that she wanted to major in psychology, which UC Riverside is well known for helped seal the deal!
Rebecca's most memorable moments from her recruiting experience are:
- Sending out her first email to a college coach and receving a response
- Seeing college scouts at her games
- That moment when she just knew UC Riverside was her FIT

Congratulations Becca!

       Adriana was focused on some key components in her college search. She was looking for colleges that were close to home, so that her family could watch her play. The coaching staff was also a key factor, as well as, she really wanted a big city environment. She had looked at SF State, as her older sister Marisa has enjoyed success both academically and athletically; but Adriana was ready to make her own mark.
Intending to major in Criminal Justice, San Jose State was the perfect fit on all fronts for Adriana.
Adriana's three most memorables from the recruiting experience have been:

 - finding out Coach Turner was interested

- the campus tour

- the Spartan softball camp

Congratulations Adriana, we are very proud of you!

In play this past weekend at the Mary Nutter Classic in Cathedral City, senior centerfielder Sarah Hassman hit an infield single, beating out the throw to first. She then stole second to register her 87th career stolen base, passing former Cardinal Jessica Mendoza (Stanford'02/Olympic gold and silver medalist/Team USA) to become Stanford's career leader. Sarah now sits alone atop the career stolen base list for Stanford softball, a feat attained in less than 4 years! Congratulations Sarah on an amazing accomplishment!

Our accomplishments are listed in the stories below as well, but it is always great to be recognized by others for the amazing season the San Jose Sting had Summer 2012! From www.goldfastpitch.com/polls, the final rankings are as follows (go to the link to view the complete lists for each age group):
18G                                     16U                                   14U
4. San Jose Sting               10. San Jose Sting            7. San Jose Sting

Well done, San Jose Sting!!

Claire knew from the beginning of the recruiting process that she wanted to study and play for an Ivy League school. Her top choices read like a who's who of some of the best universities in the country - Princeton, Yale, Brown, Amherst, Dartmouth, UPenn and Pomona to name a few. And the above colleges, plus Claremont McKenna and UCSD had Claire on their radar as well. With a longer recruiting process for the Ivies, Claire knew she would have to be patient and keep focused.
Princeton became her #1 school due to a variety of factors, per Claire - "Head Coach Sweeney is amazing and was a pitcher/utility player in college just like me. She's coming in to make this program a big contender for an Ivy championship and I'm really excited to be a part of that. In addition, Princeton is very undergraduate focused which means smaller classes and closer relationships with your professors. I also have alot of relatives on the East Coast, so it'll be nice to be closer to them."
Some of Claire's memorable moments from the recruiting process were: "my last visit to Princeton and meeting Coach Sweeney for the first time, I fell in love with the school and everything about it. Calling Coach Sweeney and accepting the offer!"
Claire plans to study economics at Princeton.
Congratulations Claire, Mike and Barbara!

Living in a tight knit community can have it's advantages, especially when it comes to celebrating great accomplishments. Click on the links below to watch some of Sting's own as they are celebrated by the local media!

It's a rare accomplishment to have players stay with the same organization for their entire travel ball career, but Amanda Llerena did just that for the class of 2012! Congratulations Amanda on a great high school and travel career - we wish you all the best as you take your game to Sonoma State!!!

Qualifying for the top tournament of the season, in the US, is no easy feat! Having 3 of your 6 teams finish in top fashion, is even sweeter! Facing talent from all over the country, all Sting teams in attendance knew these were going to be the most competitive teams they may have faced all season and it would be a real task to stay in the winners bracket for as long as possible. With plenty of college coaches in attendance, and I mean plenty, all of the San Jose Sting teams played their hearts out! In the end, that hard work and "never say quit" attitude paid off:

San Jose Sting 18G - Woods - 3rd place (forcing the "what if" game and losing to the eventual 18HS winner)
San Jose Sting 16U-Smith - 7th place (losing to the eventual 16U winner)
San Jose Sting 14U-Ibarra - 3rd place (forcing the "what if" game and losing to the eventual 14U winner)

Congratulations to all our San Jose Sting teams for qualifying to attend Nationals and PGF and for making this 2012 Summer season so very memorable!!!

Playing at Western Nationals in Sacramento, it was great to be close to home and do so well! Both the 12U and 10U Sting teams battled heat and tough competition to both finish strong for 2012.

12U - 9th place finish
10U - 4th place finish

Job well done!!

    Class of 2015

•  Adriana Ibarra - San Jose State, verbal commitment

    Class of 2014

• Chelsea Convissar- Cal Poly, verbal commitment
• Rebecca Faulkner - UC Riverside, verbal commitment
• Franchesca "Frankie" Perales- University San Diego, verbal commitment
• Emily Raspo- Ole Miss, verbal commitment
• Allison "Allie" Walljasper - LSU, verbal commitment

    Class of 2013

• Annie Aldrete- University of Tennessee
• Dana Bouquet- University of Notre Dame
• Catherine "Cat" Callaway- Harvard
• Maddy Casto - CSU Monterey Bay
• Ashley Chestnut- UC San Diego
• Kristen Clark- UCSB
• Courtney Cuzick- UPenn
• RaeAnn Garza- Holy Names University
• Claire Klausner- Princeton
• Kaylana Mah - Simpson University
• Shawna McDonough- Cal Poly SLO
• Mia Monopoli - San Jose State
• Kiersten Nordin- Cal Poly SLO
• Breana Reyes- CSU San Marcos
•  Andrea Reynolds- UC Davis
• Megan Sabbatini- University San Diego
• Lauryn "Lo" Saunders - UC Davis
• Courtney Tyler- Cal Poly SLO
• Hannah Yeager- NC State
• Taylor Yzaguirre- Colorado State University

   Class of 2012

• Vanessa Alvarez - UC Berkeley
• Chiara Biagini - Santa Clara University
• Kayla Bose - Princeton
• Keiki Carlos- University of Hawaii-Manoa
• Jessica Chaulklin - Weber State
• Gretchen Diekman- UC Davis
• Tasi Docktor- University of Toledo
• Casey Lester- LaSalle University
• Maureen "Mo" Duddy - Marist College
• Amanda Llerena- Sonoma State
• Alex Pingree- UCSB
• Ariana Wassmer- Cal State Northridge 
   
   

Class of 2011

• Kendra Campbell - UC Davis
• Alyssa Chauklin- Colgate University
• Hayley Davis - Ole Miss
• Megan Hansen - Sonoma State University
• Katie Hoffman - Academy of Art University
• Sylvia Llamas - Drexel University
• Sarah Lira - St. Mary's
• Gracie Marshall- Tufts University
• Lexi Medina - University of Mary
• Dani Randall - Humboldt State University
• Jessica Vest - University of Oklahoma 

Please go to our College Choices page to read more about the latest Sting players to reach their college dream!

From an athlete's perspective, the recruiting process can sometimes be a roller coaster of emotions and you can't wait until the "ride" is over! When you are being recruited by Ivy League colleges, that wait seems like forever as you typically don't finalize until the beginning of your senior year! For Cat Callaway, her wait was a little longer than most but well worth it. Her recruiting journey began a few years back, when she started to identify the type of college experience she wanted to have, with a list of East Coast schools. Attending a Harvard camp her junior year moved them to the top of the list of schools she was interested in and who were watching her; this list included (UPenn, Dartmouth, Amherst, Princeton, Williams, Macalester and Middlebury).
What made Harvard the top choice for Cat was the incredible academic reputation Harvard had, as well as, a very competitive softball program, the great location of a college town feel of Cambridge, with Boston right there for that city experience. Additionally, being able to spend time with the team at camp was awesome because the players were smart, funny and very proud to go to Harvard.
For Cat, some memorable moments from the recruiting experience included having the Harvard coach request her academic information on the last day of the Colorado tourney, getting the call from the Harvard coach letting her know she wanted her on the squad and being able to say YES! and finish her recruiting process!!
Cat is looking to major in neuroscience or psychology at Harvard.
Congratulations Cat, Carrie and Dave!

Allie Walljasper has been on a lot of colleges’ wish lists the past three years, stellar softball programs such as LSU, UCLA, Cal, Washington, Oklahoma State, and Arizona State have been following her play for San Jose Sting-Perales. Whether it be when she helped bring home the 2010 14U- ASA/USA National Championship, along with MVP honors or at the numerous On Deck softball camps and clinics she attended as well, Allie has been on the short list for a whole host of schools.

When Ashley steps up to the plate, the outfield is usually backing up. Known as a power hitter (she went yard twice in Vegas, in the same game last season), her ability to smash the ball was definitely a big factor in the attention she received from colleges. With interest from numerous colleges, including several Pac-12 schools, Ashley was starting to narrow her list, when a chance encounter at the 2011 Gold Nationals happened. The Head Coach and Assistant Coach from UC San Diego watched the San Jose Sting play and inquired about Ashley. As luck and the softball gods would have it, she delivered a crushing double in the game, bringing about excited looks from the UC San Diego coaches and some extensive note-taking about Ashley. After several visits, e-mails, phone calls and camps, Ashley just knew that UC San Diego was the right fit for her! With excellent academics, defending NCAA Division 2 champions and a great location, Ashley let Head Coach Gerckens know that "I would be honored to join the UCSD Triton softball squad!"
Congratulations Ashley, on following your heart!
And thank you to Vern, Regina and Josh for your unwavering support in helping Ashley reach that next level in her softball career!

Please forward any articles/box scores or player recaps (for all levels within the Sting Softball Organization) to the following e-mail address for website consideration:

4hoffmans@comcast.net

Thank you.

The San Jose Sting is an independently operated California Corporation and is committed to being a superior girl's fastpitch softball organization.