Hamilton star off to nationals

Hamilton High pitching sensation Emily Stokes will join the North Valley Rapids 18-under squad at the Amateur Softball Association of America nationals.

The team qualified for the tournament for the third straight year, and will travel to Hemet on Saturday to take on the best summer teams in the country.

This summer, the Rapids placed second at the NorCal State Championship in Sunnyvale, and at three 18U Gold showcases, the Rapids had a combined record of 14-5-1 in Stockton, Las Vegas and Huntington Beach.

Stokes is the one the team's top pitchers, while the rest of the team hails mostly from schools in Tehama and shasta counties.

The Rapids have had the opportunity to play against some of the best teams from Arizona, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Nevada and California. Establishing a team to compete with other states and larger population groups in California has been difficult, especially when most elite teams have all seniors or juniors, while the Rapids range from freshmen up to seniors.

The Rapids may be small in numbers, but play with big hearts and have become very competitive in the elite "Gold" showcases. Colleges have noticed the teamwork, according to Rapids manager Tito Cervantes.

This year's goal is to finish in the top five in the nation.

"I believe the Rapids have the right talent and chemistry to make it happen," Cervantes said.

In the past two Nationals, the Rapids finished in the top 20 in the nation.

While this year's squad only has two seniors that will be attending school and playing softball at the college level, the 2011 team could be even stronger as a young class of ballplayers progresses toward the college level of play.

The team formally practices once or twice a week, but the biggest part of the development is the personal training that the athletes do on their own, Cervantes said.

"Players will work out individually five times a week, not including normal practices and games," Cervantes said. "Players not only are dedicated in training, but the team grade-point average is 3.9, while half the team is averaging over 4.0. Players understand the concept of being a student-athlete."

The Nationals take place from Saturday to Aug. 8.