Louisiana hot sauce is perfectly mild when compared to the Athletes Unlimited Softball League Bandits.
The Bandits put some extra sizzle into Sulphur, Louisiana, this past weekend with a dominant three-game sweep of the Volts to improve their first-place record to 5-1.
Over the three games, the Bandits scored six runs in each of their victories, outscoring the Volts 18-6.
“I think right now we’re firing on all cylinders,” said head coach Stacey Nuveman Deniz, whose team opened the season by taking two of three from the Talons in Rosemont, Illinois. “The offense is producing. The pitchers, no matter who it is, whatever the situation, they’re just coming through. Good vibes, for lack of a better term. The vibes are good.”
Here is how those good vibrations happened for the Bandits:
Now that’s entertainment
When a sellout crowd comes out, you have to put on a show.
That’s just what the Volts and Bandits did in Game 1. They even provided a little bonus softball during a nine-inning nailbiter, won 6-5 by the Bandits in nine innings.
This game had it all: home runs, baserunners circling the bases after a dropped third strike and a pair of gutsy pitching performances.
“It was electric,” said Bandits shortstop Skylar Wallace, who took a couple for the team by being hit by two pitches. “You had all these little girls hooting and hollering. At the first inning, I was a little bit nervous because all these eyes are on you. But we settled in. It was just really cool to see people show up for softball. It’s been way overdue. For people to invest into us and what we have to offer has been so amazing to see.”
The Bandits looked like they were going to coast after taking a 3-0 lead in the second inning on a leadoff home run by Delanie Wisz and an RBI single by Wallace.
But the Volts shocked Bandits starting pitcher Lexi Kilfoyl with four runs in the third, one coming on a leadoff homer by McKenzie Clark and three more coming on Tiare Jennings’ homer.
The Bandits tied it in the fourth on Jordan Roberts’ second homer of the season. Nuveman Deniz replaced Kilfoyl with Odicci Alexander, who went toe to toe with Volts reliever Rachel Garcia for the next five innings.
The Volts went ahead in the top of the seventh, when Amanda Lorenz scored from first base on a dropped third strike and throwing error by Roberts, who redeemed herself in the bottom of the inning. Wisz singled with two outs and advanced on a wild pitch before Roberts singled her home to send the game to extra innings.
The game took a dramatic turn in the top of the ninth, when Bandits center fielder Morgan Zerkle fired home to nab Miranda Stoddard, who was attempting to score on a flyball.
“That was big time,” Nuveman Deniz said. “In a game like that, you know that she’s going. There’s no stops signs at third base in that situation. She’s a veteran. She’s been in those moments. She threw a strike. Perfect. Online. It was beautiful. Really huge play.”
Wisz won it in the bottom of the inning with a single up the middle to score Devyn Netz
“Get a groundball through the infield,” Wisz said. “That’s honestly all I was trying to do.”
From there, the celebration was on.
“It was a good game of softball,” Nuveman Deniz said. “I think both teams came out. That’s the top two teams right now in the league, which is kind of fun. Quality athletes across the board on both teams, both sides. Big plays on both sides, big moments. Yeah, we’ll take it. We’ll take the win every day. But it’s fun to do it in that fashion.”
Quick strike and who, what relief
The Bandits threatened to have the run rule invoked for a second time this season during a 6-1 victory on Friday.
An RBI triple by Erin Coffel in the first inning gave the Bandits a 1-0 lead before they sent nine players to the plate in a four-run second. No. 9 hitter Sydney McKinney capped the inning with a two-run single. She added a solo homer in the fourth inning as she enjoyed a 3-for-3 night.
“It felt really good,” she said of the homer. “All of my teammates were like, ‘You need to slow down, you’re sprinting.’ But I was like, ‘That was my first AU home run. It usually doesn’t go over (the fence). So I usually have to sprint.’”
Rookie Emiley Kennedy started in the circle and worked 3.2 innings, giving up five hits and one run. Once again, the Bandits got shutdown relief work, this time from Netz, who finished with 3.1 innings of one-hit shutout ball.
Early and often
The Bandits wasted no time finishing off their sweep, scoring four runs in the first inning and chasing the Volts’ starting pitcher Garcia.
Coffel, Bubba Nickles-Camarena and Netz each contributed RBI singles, and starting pitcher Sarah Willis added a sacrifice fly. Zerkle highlighted the two-run second inning with her second home run of the season, a drive to right-center. Her first homer was an inside-the-park job on June 8 in Rosemont.
Willis, making her first appearance in the circle this season, pitched four innings of four-hit ball. Lefty Taylor McQuillin came out of the bullpen to pitch three hitless innings for her second save.
“When you face somebody for an at-bat or two, depending on the hitter, Sarah’s best pitch is her changeup,” Nuveman Deniz said.” She does a really good job of mixing speeds. So she slows you down a little bit. And then Taylor comes in with gas and gets on your hands. They have a heavy righty lineup. She gets in on their hands.
“It’s a hard adjustment to make as a hitter. It was a good combination, really was a nice complement to each other. Taylor’s got good stuff and good velo, but it makes it feel faster when you’ve just been kind of getting lulled a little bit and you’ve had to see all these changeups. Now it’s like hard coming at you. It was a fun combo to watch. She was dialed. She was as good as I’ve seen her, I thought.”
The Bandits travel to Wichita for a rematch against the Talons in a two-game series, Tuesday and Wednesday.
Bruce Miles has covered sports in the Chicago area for 46 years, including baseball, hockey, football and Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball. He covered the Chicago Cubs in their historic run to the World Series title in 2016. He has written stories for Athletes Unlimited since 2020.
Follow Bruce on Bluesky @brucemiles2112.bsky.social and on X @brucemiles2112
