Tucson (KVOA) – Marana Softball scored a stunning victory in the Junior World Series opener in Kirkland, Washington.

They beat Mexico 15-4 in the sixth inning in the first pool match.

Marana were trailing 3-2 after the first, but things quickly changed in the second. On her 15th birthday, pitcher Aubrianna Gray gave herself and her team a solo home run. With this, the game was tied at 3 points, and Marana’s bat was on fire. Brooke Beck lofted to center late in the inning. The ball rolled and returned to the wall, making it a 2-run double. Marana now leads 6-3.

The Pima County team smashed the one-run lead into the bottom of the sixth, leading 15-4.

In addition to the home run, Gray pitched a complete game. Additionally, she had excellent defense. Isabella Brooks-Rogel finished the game with an impressive catch.

“I threw strikes, but the defense supported me,” Gray said. “Our bats were in good shape.

Marana Softball is the pride of Southern Arizona. We were the first team from Marana to reach the World Series, and that’s what we always believed this team could do.

Head coach Sam Mills held a special meeting in the dugout before the West tournament began. He handed each player a postcard from Washington State, home of the Junior World Series.

“I made him write a letter to himself as if he had won the district championship,” he said. “I said, ‘I want you to put this up in your bedroom or your bathroom, where you see it every morning. Touch it. Tell me you’re going to Kirkland.'”

This postcard was a physical reminder of what his team can achieve. Marana lived up to that belief in five straight West Qualifier games, advancing to the World Series.

Now find the post office.

“I’m going to put it in the mail so I can pick it up when I get back to Arizona,” Mills said.

“I think it was a huge accomplishment to represent our region in the regional tournament,” said pitcher Cadence Beck. “Now we represent the entire western region. Our name is West. It’s kind of special.”

Marana walked proudly into Saturday’s opening ceremony and met teams from all over the world.

“Florida players are so sweet and Czech Republic players are really cool,” said Maria Mills.

On Sunday, the Marana players will be in action. Thanks to solid hitting and…the Skittles, they beat Mexico 15-4.

“My coach at Marana High School would hand out skittles whenever we got to base,” Beck said. “Our first base coach saw that and thought, ‘Oh, we have to do that.'”

“That’s the motivation,” Gray said. “If you get to first base, you’ll get candy.”

It’s working obviously. It also helps that they’ve been playing together for years.

“We all know each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” Beck said. “We know where to help when someone is feeling down, or how to cheer them up.”

Excitement is building for Marana’s game against Milford, Connecticut outside the East. It airs tomorrow at 2pm on ESPN+.