The Kansas Renegades softball team, with the help of two Derby High School athletes Haley Heincker and Ashton Martin, finished their summer strong.

After winning a State Championship in late June, they traveled to Kansas City and finished in third place at the Regional Championships in 18u class A division on June 11 through June 13.

“We lost to the team that won it and the team that finished 2nd so the girls had nothing to be ashamed of, they just hit the wall a little bit late in the tournament,” head coach Kurt Heincker said.

The following weekend,  July 19, they attended the Blue Spring, Mo.,  one day shoot-out. Some of the best teams in the Kansas City area attend this tournament and the Renegades finished third again.

 “Their were six teams from Kansas City, one team from St. Louis and us,” Heincker said. “The team that beat us ( KC Originals) is a great team and we just could not get our bats going against them.”

The third place game was much like the tournament title (a shoot-out). The Blue Springs team had the tying run on third and the winning run on second when the Renegades recorded the final out in the 9 to 8 win.

“That was a crazy game; we were winning 7 to 2 at one point,” Heincker said.

The Renegades finished their summer schedule at the Easton Elite Showcase in Dallas, Texas on July 24 through July 28. The tournament featured 200 teams from all over the United States and Canada. The ladies participated in a player’s camp the day before the team tournament started. It was a chance for all the ladies to showcase their skills against a very high level of competition.

“I think they learn that there is not much difference between Kansas and the rest of the country,” Heincker said. “They represented our part of the country well I thought.”

 The team finished with a record of 3 wins and 2 loses while in Texas.

“Haley and Ashton were a huge part of our success this summer,” Coach said.

Heincker lead the team in almost all offensive categories while playing a solid second base and also played the outfield late in the summer due to injuries.

“Haley can hit, period.,” coach Heincker said. “She is a threat when she steps in the batters box”

Martin was a mainstay at first base for the Renegades all summer and came up with some big hits at key times including the game winning hit in the third place game at the shoot-out in Blue Springs.

“Ashton saved our infielders more than once this summer at first base; she is a very smart player,” Heincker said.

Although the local Derby girls contributed a lot to get their team this far it is obvious that they were not the only reason for success.

“We have a bunch of great kids in this organization that love to play softball; they work hard all year around,” Coach said.

All six of the seniors-to-be on this Kansas Renegades team have been contacted by college coaches and will be making visits this fall to different colleges for softball.

“That hard work is paying off,” Heincker said.