Deer Valley outfielder Adriana Gutierrez traveled a tad over 50 miles to finish up her prep softball career on Wednesday night (June 5). She figured having a good time playing in the Arizona Softball Coaches Association all-star game would be worth the long ride.

Gutierrez came away with more than that as her three-run double in the first inning kick-started the Division I Blue team to a 14-4 triumph over the D-I Red squad at Higley High School in Gilbert.

"I didn't know they had something like this," Gutierrez said after being awarded her game MVP momento. "This is so nice."

The game figured to begin as a pitching-dominated affair with Corona del Sol's McKenna Isenberg starting for the Red and Mesa Mountain View's Val Kaff toiling for the Blue. Kaff surrended two hits and a run in the first with the run driven in by Basha's Kylie Shull on a ringing double. Kaff struck out the side in the first.

D-I Blue answered in a big way. They tallied eight times on six hits against Isenberg, who was nearly untouchable the last month of the high school season. In fact, the last game of Isenberg's Corona career she fanned 24 in a 12-inning, 2-1 loss to Perry in the opening round of the D-I state tournament. A couple of the hits were of the infield variety, but not Gutierrez's. She ripped a liner to the gap in left center to highlight the unexpected uprising.

"It was a fastball out over the plate," the left-handed hitting Gutierrez said, who is enrolled at GCU, but may head for Alcorn State. She is still undecided.

Kaff pitched the first three innings and ended up the winning pitcher. The Michigan State-bound strikeout machine fanned the side to get out of a bases-loaded jam in the second and added one final strikeout-of-the side in the third sandwiched around a solo homer by Corona del Sol's Brianna Schrimpf. Schrimpf collected two hits for the game, adding an RBI single in the sixth.

"I went out there very relaxed," Kaff said. "It was fun playing with a lot of girls I've never been teammates with before."

Chandler's Kalli Ohton and Desert Vista's Danielle Block finished up the pitching chores for the Blue going two innings each. They each gave up one run -- both unearned  -- and combined with Kaff to strike out 14.

The Blue team outhit the Red, 13-7. Desert Ridge's Alyssa Sanchez had two hits and scored three times for the Blue and Deer Valley's Rebecca Burkland also contributed two hits. Red team Cienega speedster Allison Hervey, who batted leadoff, joined Schrimpf with two hits.

In between the D-II and D-I all-star games, a home run derby was held with nine players from D-II and D-I squads competing. Perry's Jillian Leslie was the winner, edging out Shadow Ridge's Kylie Strand two homers to one. In the opening round of the derby, Leslie was the top qualifier putting on a show with nine homers.