Patty Gasso hated the mask so much she decided to offer her as an 8th grader. What is more crazy is that she lives in TX and stays in SoCal during the summer to play and practice with the team. I heard there are a few other out of state players that do the same thing. I assume that is at the advice of her future college coach.
I didn't give Firecrackers much of a shot at PGF after their 5th place finishes in CO (TCS Super 48) and NY (TC/USA Nats). They've usually won the TCS's CO event and made top 3 in TC/USA Nats.
Vestal's former team, TX Bombers, thoroughly relished beating FC in the Super 48 and winning it all. They took 3rd at USSSA ES and 13th at JO Cup.
I was surprised that both 16u and 18u Bombers didn't do better at the JO Cup. Actually most Tx teams didn't do very well with the exception of the Dawgs with a 5th place finish.