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By Loren Kopff
Sport Editor | Follow X
July 16, 2026
GFTravel softball players across the nation have waited all summer long for this time to arrive and for the remainder of month, the stakes will be the highest they have ever been as the Premier Girls Softball National Championships and The Alliance Fastpitch Championship Series take centerstage. For the area, nearly 20 players will be making one last attempt to bring home a championship or make one final memory before heading off to college or in preparation for their next season in high school.
The PGF National Championships, now in its 16th season, begins its road to the championship games on Friday with the coaches dinner and bracket draw, followed by pool play games on Saturday and Sunday, then bracket games from Monday throughout the week leading up to the championship games. The Platinum Division championship games from the 18-Under and 16-Under age groups will be on July 24 and the Premier Division final games on July 25 along with the PGF High School (Futures) All-American Game and PGF High School (Senior) All-American Game to follow.
Simultaneously, the sixth installment of The Alliance Fastpitch Championship Series will be held at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana and Championship Park in Kokomo, Indiana. The festivities begin on Saturday with the arrival of the teams and a media day event with games kicking off Monday and going all week long.
Each age group of the AFCS will be broken off into three tiers once the initial games have been completed, and from that, eight teams from each tier will play in the championship bracket.
Here is a look at the area players and their teams, some of their statistics, who they will be playing before the double elimination playoff games begin and where. For the PGF National Championships, the pool play games will be held at Bill Barber Park in Irvine (BBP), Fountain Valley Sports Park (FVSP), Great Park of Irvine (GP), Harvard Park in Irvine (HP) and Huntington Beach Sports Complex (HBSC).
18-Under Premier Division (18 pools, 72 teams, 22 states represented)
(La Habra) Athletics Mercado-Chavolla
Alyssa Hurst (Norwalk High)
17-4-1 since June 6
Pool P games @ HBSC Field 6
Saturday @ 6:30 p.m. vs. (Mesa) Arizona Storm-Mendez
Saturday @ 8:15 p.m. vs. (Roseville, CA) USA Premier National-Zepeda
Sunday @ 12:00 p.m. vs. (Seattle) WA Ladyhawks-Simpson
The team had a seven-game winning streak snapped and now enters the tournament winners in nine of its last 12 games. Hurst, who is a pitcher for Norwalk has played in only 11 games, none in the circle and is batting .476 with 10 hits, six runs batted in, and four runs scored.
(Yorba Linda) BSC Bengals-Briggs
Kayleigh Allen (Gahr High/University of Kansas commit), Peyton Kingery (Valley Christian High/University of North Texas)
12-9 since June 6
Pool I games @ HBSC Field 4
Saturday @ 3:00 p.m. vs. (Chicago) Beverly Bandits Trackwell/Meredith
Saturday @ 6:30 p.m. vs. (Humble) Texas Riptide
Sunday @ 2:00 p.m. vs. (Woodland) California Grapettes Gold
Allen is 9th on the team amongst players with at least 13 games played with a .308 batting average in 21 games, and the last with an average north of .300. She has 12 hits, four of which have gone for doubles and two more for home runs, 13 runs scored and nine runs driven in.
Two spots behind her in the batting statistics is Kingery, who has played in 17 games, has a .250 average with eight hits, three going for two-baggers and two more for home runs. She has seven RBI and scored five runs.
(Mission Viejo) California Cruisers Gold-Sievers
3-14-1 since June 6
Mylah Burrowes (Gahr)
Pool R games @ HBSC Field 8
Saturday @ 3:00 p.m. vs. Las Vegas Blast
Saturday @ 4:45 p.m. vs. (Tracy, CA) AASA Mortimer
Sunday @ 12:00 p.m. vs. (Rumson) NJ Intensity KOD/BOD
Burrows heads into the PGF National Championships as the team’s third leading hitter with a .471 average in 18 games but leads the Cruisers with a .591 on base percentage and an OPS of 1.591. Of her 16 hits, five have left the yard and she leads the team in that category. She has driven in a team-leading 14 runs, scored 11 runs and has drawn eight walks.
(Long Beach) USA Athletics Gold-Rogers
20-7-1 since June 6
Isabella Gonzalez (Gahr/University of Nevada, Reno)
Pool M games @ HSBC Field 3
Saturday @ 6:30 p.m. vs. (Vacaville, CA) Sorcerer-Walling/Kyne
Saturday @ 8:15 p.m. vs. (Dallas) Titans-Buettner
Sunday @ 12:00 p.m. vs. (Fort Myers, FL) Rock Gold-Manetta Premier
The USA Athletics Gold which finished in a tie for 9th place last year in the Premier Division of the PGF National Championships is managed by former Gahr head coach Mike Rogers. The team saw their 10-game winning streak snapped by the (Anaheim) Orange County Batbusters-Stith on June 5 at the Louisville Slugger IDT in Longmont, CO. Gonzalez, who has started 12 games, leads the pitching staff in nearly every category, including innings pitch (40.2), earned runs allowed (12) and strikeouts (20) while sporting a 2.67 earned run average.
18-Under Platinum Division (20 pools, 80 teams, 15 states represented)
(Carson) Firecrackers-Chavez/Moreno
Leah Magana (Gahr)
Pool N games @ GP Field 5
Saturday @ 4:55 p.m. vs. (Covina) Wolfpack Fastpitch-Moreno
Saturday @ 8:40 p.m. vs. (Folsom, CA) Foothill Gold-Moore
Sunday @ 2:15 p.m. vs. (Fullerton) Athletics Mercado-Slater
(Downey) Nemesis Elite
11-12-1 since May 30
Maryah McElroy (Gahr)
Pool C games @ GP Field 2
Saturday @ 8:00 a.m. vs. (Surprise) Arizona Storm-Walding
Saturday @ 11:35 a.m. vs. (Irvine) Southern California Sting-UNO
Sunday @ 10:00 a.m. vs, (Murrietta) Athletics Mercado-Marinakis/Schimmel
The Nemesis recently went 2-1-1 in Pool A last week in the Champions Cup Elite Showcase in Irvine, then dropped a 9-4 contest to the (Livermore, CA) Batbusters-Ching in the first single elimination playoff game last Saturday. McElroy, who was hitless in two at-bats against the Batbusters, had a pair of hits in three pool play games with four runs batted in. One of those hits was a two-out, two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning against the (Whittier) USA Athletics-Garcia to make it the final score of 6-2.
(Buena Park) USA Athletics-RML
25-11 since June 6
Choyce Chambers (V.C./Sacramento State University), Aubrielle Ramirez (V.C.) and Rachel Zhang (V.C.)
Pool J games @ GP Field 1
Saturday @ 6:35 p.m. vs. (San Mateo) Eagles Fastpitch-Deke
Saturday @ 8:20 p.m. vs. (Santa Ana) Firecrackers-Pantages/Martinez
Sunday @ 12:00 p.m. vs. (Florence, SC) Carolina Elite National-Drotar
It was a good showing in the Champions Cup Elite Showcase in Irvine for the V.C. trio and the USA Athletics. After going 3-1 and finishing in second place in Pool G, the team defeated the (Fontana) Arsenal Eklund 14-5 last Saturday morning in the first playoff game. That was followed by four straight wins this past Sunday as the team captured the championship of the 18-U division. The USA Athletics outscored the opposition 33-8 in the playoffs with Zhang going six for 13 and two runs scored while Chambers was seven of 18, nine RBI, seven runs scored, two doubles and two home runs. She had a monster game against the Arsenal, going four for four, driving in seven runs including hitting a grand slam in the top of the second inning and scoring four runs. Ramirez went three for nine in the playoffs and has scored three runs.
For the summer, Zhang is batting .474, good for second among players with at least 24 games played while Chambers is fourth (.418) and Ramirez seventh (.390).
16-Under Premier Division (20 pools, 80 teams, 21 states represented)
(Riverside) BSC Bengals-Briggs 16R
18-10-1 since June 6
Juliana Rivera (La Mirada High)
Pool E games @ FVSP Field 6
Saturday @ 9:45 a.m. vs. Birmingham Thunderbolts Premier-Alford/Rocky
Saturday @ 1:15 p.m. vs. (Sacramento) Lady Magic-Munoz
Sunday @ 10:00 a.m. vs. (Sanford, FL) Unity-Amsler/Johnson
Rivera has had a streaky summer where she hit the team’s first home run in the first game on June 6, then went into a one for 16 slump over the next seven games. However, over the final 10 games of June, Rivera got her groove back and went on an 11 for 20 tear with nine runs, nine RBI and three homes, all in consecutive games. But in the 10 games played this month, Rivera is five for 19 with six runs, four RBI and one home run.
(Corona) The Vault Fastpitch-Howard
Elizabeth Biado (La Mirada)
Pool L games @ FVSP Field 7
Saturday @ 3:00 p.m. vs. (Princeton, TX) Hotshots National-Naudin
Saturday @ 6:30 p.m. vs. (Garden Grove, CA) Wildcats-Laukat
Sunday @ 2:00 p.m. vs. (Shawnee, KS) Select Fastpitch-Byrn/Jones
16-Under Platinum Division (23 pools, 92 teams, 23 states represented)
(Whittier) Firecrackers-Brashear/Ojinaga
13-9-1 since June 6
Noelle Martinez (Cerritos High)
Pool E games @ HP Field 4
Saturday @ 4:55 p.m. vs. (Lake Forest) So. Cal. Athletics O.C. Premier-Lastrapes
Saturday @ 8:30 p.m. vs. (Boulder) Colorado Stars-Glaza
Sunday @ 2:15 p.m. vs. (Sacramento) California Breeze-Daniel
Martinez brings her .459 average into the PGF National Championships where she has recorded at least a hit in seven straight games and in 18 of the 23 games played. Martinez has driven in 13, scored 12 times and has a pair of doubles and triples while leaving the yard once.
(Placentia) Firecrackers Premier RTY
13-20-1 since June 6
Rylee Jackson (Gahr) and Skyy Saucedo (Gahr)
Pool J games @ HP Field 7
Saturday @ 3:00 p.m. vs. (Honolulu, HI) Na Wahine
Saturday @ 6:35 p.m. vs. (San Marcos, CA) Breakers Lab-Jarred
Sunday @ 2:00 p.m. vs. (Beaverton, OR) NW Vandals-Larson
It hasn’t been a strong summer for wins and losses, but Saucedo is batting .258 in 29 games played with seven runs scored and one RBI while Jackson has played in 26 contests, has driven in two runs, scored twice and hit a home run. The two have also combined to get on base 13 times by way of walks.
The Alliance Fastpitch Championship Series
18-Under (91 teams, 29 states represented)
Reese Hilliard (La Mirada/Stanford University commit) and Riley Hilliard (La Mirada/University of Oklahoma commit)
(Anaheim) Batbusters-Stith
The talented sisters from La Mirada are on the seventh-ranked team nationally in The Alliance Fastpitch, winners of 12 straight games who are in Pool Region 1 where they will face either the (San Diego) Power Surge-Carden/Hull or the (Herculaneum) Missouri Bombers-Gold on Monday at 6:00 p.m. (3:00 PDT).
Alison Ortega (La Mirada/Duke University commit)
(Laguna Hills) Firecrackers Select-Rico/Brashear
6-7-1 since June 22
Ortega made news last Saturday when she announced that she had backed out of her previous commitment to Harvard University and chose Duke University where she will begin her next chapter a year from now. The standout pitcher and her Firecrackers Select travel team will be in the Super Division of The Alliance Fastpitch Championship Series where they will face either the (Flower Mound, TX) Glory Adkins Gold or the (Oklahoma City) Oklahoma Exclusive National-Hughes at 1:30 p.m. on Monday (10:30 a.m. PDT).
Ortega leads her travel team with 42 innings pitched, seven starts, 45 strikeouts and has an earned run average of 3.83.
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