The Ceres Sizzle 8-and-under travel softball team exacted revenge on its way to finishing in first place at the Newman Tournament this past month.

"The girls were so excited," head coach Nicole Ferrel said. "It really meant a lot to beat the team that knocked them out the week before."

Ceres outlasted Atwater 19-14 in the championship game on June 25.

Atwater edged Ceres 15-11 in the finals of the Riverbank Tournament on June 18.

"Atwater has a really good team," Ferrel said. "They set the bar to where we needed to be playing. They made us step up."

The Sizzle won all six of their games at the Newman Tournament.

Ceres beat Patterson (13-5) and the Modesto Fusion (15-3) on June 25, and Hilmar (18-7), Newman (16-1) and Riverbank (14-11) on June 24.

The Sizzle totaled 95 runs.
"We hit a lot better this weekend," Ferrel said. "The whole lineup was solid. Everybody did their part."

Ceres has amassed a 10-1 overall record this summer.

The Sizzle went 4-1 while taking second at the Riverbank Tournament.

"Trophies are great," head coach Ferrel said. "But our main goal is to get them better. All of these girls except for two have never played travel ball before. They're starting to pay attention more. Their focus has changed. We've put in a lot of work at practice."