Nikki Pica is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism graduate student assigned to cover Mountain Pointe for AZPreps365.com

PHOENIX— Bats caught fire for the Thunder Thursday as Desert Vista softball defeated rival Mountain Pointe 14-0 in five innings of play. The win, the Thunder's ninth in the past 10 games, pushes its record to 13-2 and 7-0 in conference play, holding onto the No.1 seed. 

In the bottom of the first, the Thunder took an early lead, 4-0, after a three-run home run from Breanna Larney. But it didn’t stop there. Desert Vista showed why it's ranked No. 1 in 6A after a six-run third inning before tacking on another for a final score of 14-0.

The explosive offense is just one of the weapons Desert Vista had in its back pocket. University of Alabama commit Jocelyn Briski gave up one hit and struck out 10 in four innings of work. Her driving force is more than etching a mark in her win column.

“Last season, my mom had breast cancer and so I'm still playing for her,” Briski said. “She's almost at her one-year anniversary of being cancer-free.”

Head coach Chris Crowl believes the leadership from Briski has played a huge role in his team’s chemistry and overall success. 

“We knew we had something special (with Briski),” Crowl said. “Her biggest attribute is her work ethic. She’s doing the extra work. Most practice days, she's taking the younger pitchers and she's doing some extra running. She's taken that next step. And it's really made a difference for her, and we can see that she wants the ball anytime we can. She's (selfless).”

The Pride struggled to produce any offense against Briski, but head coach Jess Portillo has goals for her team that go beyond the diamond. “I think it's kind of showing them that we still believe in them,” Portillo said. “That has been our biggest thing this last season (to make) sure that they know that, regardless of what happens, they're still our girls. We're still proud of them.”

Since joining the program this season, Portillo had hopes to rebuild the culture from within, promoting a better and more enjoyable winning environment.
 
“I really feel like the team has meshed well together and we're growing,” Portillo said. “We’re trying to build it for these girls. I have two seniors on my team. So, I have a young team. So, we're just trying to prepare it for the next three years.”

The Pride’s athletic director, Aaron Frana, named Portillo head coach with hopes of transforming the athletics program. Portillo focuses on pushing a positive atmosphere for her girls. 

“I and one of our other assistant coaches will reach out to the girls over the summer and go watch them play,” Portillo said. “(We) just cheer them on during their club season. It's just kind of amazing to see that they're okay with us as coaches. And we're okay with them as not only athletes, but actual people.”

Though the Pride and the Thunder may have two different examples of their progress as programs, both teams have found comfort and strength in a team-first mentality environment. 

Mountain Pointe will host Desert Ridge on Tuesday at 3:45 p.m., and Desert Vista travels to Gilbert to take on Highland with hopes of staying on top next Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.