A dominating title!!

LONGVIEW, TEXAS -- There is winning a title and then there is WINNING a title!
After completely dominating all teams offensively leading up to the FASA Class C World Series title game, the Ville Platte Pride used their overshadowed, yet premier pitching and defense to take down Team Xplosion, 4-3, in the championship tilt Sunday afternoon to bring home a well-deserved World Series trophy.
The win over Xplosion was a cumulative effort that has been in the making since the majority of the Pride team members have been able to put on a uniform and compete on the softball diamond.
“We have been after a title and a world series championship for a long time,” stated Pride head coach Dr. Brandon Fontenot. “We have put a lot of work in and these girls were focused all weekend. For the most part, this group of girls have played together since they were five-years old. They have put in a lot of work to get to this point. I am just so proud of each an everyone of them. They have represented themselves and Ville Platte with the utmost class.”
The tournament, which was supposed to begin on Thursday, was moved to Saturday and Sunday. That meant that Ville Platte was going to have to play five games on the first day of competition; three pool games and two bracket games.
The worry for the coaching staff of the Pride and the players, the heat.
“Once we knew the schedule of the tournament, we (the coaching staff) knew the weather conditions were going to be a factor,” said Fontenot. “We had already played in a tournament in which the heat affected our play. But, the players were warriors all weekend and did not let the heat get in the way of what they wanted to accomplish.”
That last statement rang true throughout the tournament. From the first game on, the Ville Platte squad projected a ‘show up to play or get out of the way’ approach to each and every opponent they faced.
Pool Play
The first pool game demonstrated that approach and more. In that contest, the Pride threw the first, second and third punches as they rolled to a 13-0 win over the same Xplosion team they would face in the championship.
Ville Platte exhibited no let down in the second pool game. Expanding their explosive offense, the Pride collected six hits over three innings of play to down the Fillies 9-0.
The third and final pool game turned out to be anti-climatic. With the bracket already set, the last pool game did not really count for anything but practice.
So, with that in mind, Ville Platte used it as a way to get some extra work in for their pitching staff. After a shortened two inning contest, the Pride found themselves at a 2-1 disadvantage to the Bayou Blitz.
Saturday Bracket Play
Not long after pool play ended, Ville Platte was thrust straight into bracket play. The first bracket contest of the tournament proved the Pride’s mission was still in place, as they steam rolled the Hallsville All-Stars 14-0.
In that game, Ville Platte picked up two runs in their first at bat and then turned on the offensive water spigot by plating 12 runs in the second inning. Defensively, the Pride did not have to do any heavy lifting, as the pitching staff struck out six of nine batters faced in the two inning contest.
A quick turnaround found Ville Platte up against the Dream Team. With title dreams of their own on their mind, the Pride blasted past their second bracket game opponent in a 15-3 win.
Unlike the opening bracket contest, this game began on a tight note, as both teams were able to pick up three runs in the first inning of play. From that point on, it was all Ville Platte as they batted the line-up in their next two at bats, scoring five runs in the second and seven runs in the third to close out the victory.
Following Saturday’s play, Fontenot talked about his team’s performance up to that point and what needed to happen the next day.
“We had our ups and downs out there today and because we were ahead in games, we sometimes lost our focus,” commented Fontenot. “All in all we had great play all day. It is tough to play five games in a day. We had a great last inning in this game (against Dream Team). We need to come out with that same approach tomorrow.”
Ville Platte did just that.
With the possibility of taking the title after only two more wins, the Pride responded like a team ready to authoritatively and firmly grasp a prize dangling on the edge of their fingertips.
Sunday Bracket Play
Sunday’s first step in fulfilling the mission they had come to complete, take down a Bayou Blitz team that posed one of the biggest threats to their title hopes. Unfazed by the challenge that lie ahead, the Pride once again proved they were worthy of the World Series title by notching a commanding 9-2 win over the Blitz.
Ville Platte jumped out to a dominating 9-1 lead after one inning of play and never looked back. The Bayou Blitz plated an insignificant run in the third inning, but it was not nearly enough to slow down the Pride train.
Championship Game
That win brought Ville Platte to the brink of a championship. The last step, a win over Xplosion in the championship game. A win would give the Pride the title they desired; a loss meant another game for the whole sack of marbles.
Unwilling to allow Xplosion take away their dream, Ville Platte moved out to a 2-1 lead after the first inning of play. The Pride extended their lead in the second inning by collecting two more runs.
However, the scrappy Xplosion squad did not go away easily. With the game slipping away, the Xplosion grinded out two more runs in the third inning to bring the Ville Platte advantage to one.
If the fans thought the game wasn’t tense enough, the top of the fourth proved them wrong.
With time expired, the Xplosion began a rally that threatened the hopes of Ville Platte taking the title home in one game. Following a fly ball out, the sixth batter in the Xplosion line-up walked and reached third on an ensuing double.
How would the Pride respond as the tying and go ahead runs sat in scoring position? With an amazing display of game savvy, that’s how.
With two strikes on the next Xplosion batter, Ville Platte pitcher Ella Ortego got the hitter to swing and miss on the fourth pitch of the at bat.
The ball bounced in the dirt, allowing the runner to try and reach first base safely because of the dropped ball on a third strike rule. Without any hesitation, Pride catcher Eliza LaHaye threw the ball down to first baseman Jena Veillon, getting the runner at first base.
Veillon, seeing the runner at third base break for the plate instinctively relayed the ball back to Lahaye, who dropped down and tagged the runner before she could reach the plate. And with that crazy double play, the game was over and Ville Platte had the title they had come for.
“The response from the community in helping us get to this World Series was tremendous,” stated Fontenot. “The parents have been amazing though this process as well. The assistant coaches, David and Sunny Lahaye, have been apart of this team and its journey since the very beginning. Without them this would definitely not have been possible. They’re knowledge and work ethic are a huge part of the success of this team.”
Watching this team play, there is no doubt the chances of another title are pretty high.