The 2026 Alliance Fastpitch Championship Series 14U division brought three Florida teams to Westfield and Kokomo, Indiana, from July 24-31, and Tampa Mustangs Ohana 14U put together the strongest run of the group.
Ohana finished 6-2 and reached the Super Regional Final, leading the Florida contingent in both finish and overall week-long performance. Tampa Mustangs Szabo went 4-4, while Rock Gold Diab-Manetta finished 2-4.
For Ohana, the week had a little bit of everything: big offensive games, tight pitching moments, a few loud individual stat lines, and enough depth to keep playing into the later rounds. In a national event, that is usually the difference. One good arm or one hot bat might get you through a day. Ohana had more than that.
Across the eight box scores provided, Tampa Mustangs Ohana scored 57 runs and collected 72 hits, hitting .329 as a team. That is a strong offensive week, especially considering the lineup struck out just 27 times in 219 at-bats. They were not just waiting around for mistakes. They put the ball in play, created traffic, and made opponents work for clean innings.
Grace McDaniel led the offense, going 12-for-22 for a .545 batting average, with 11 runs scored and eight RBIs. That is the kind of tournament line that does not need much decoration. She got on, she scored, and she drove in runs. Pretty simple. Pretty annoying if you were in the other dugout.
Lynlee Klinger also delivered a strong week, finishing 11-for-28 with 10 runs scored and no strikeouts. At the top of a lineup, that matters. Klinger gave Ohana consistent contact and steady base traffic, which helped set up the run-producing bats behind her.
Dallas Esperas was one of the most valuable two-way pieces of the week. At the plate, she went 9-for-24 with eight RBIs, two walks, and no strikeouts. In the circle, she logged 23.2 innings, giving Ohana another major workload arm during a long tournament.
Alivia Giddens matched Esperas with nine hits and eight RBIs, giving the Mustangs another reliable source of production. Charlotte Espich also drove in eight runs, while Briana Thomason made the most of her chances, going 6-for-13 with four walks.
The offense had balance, but the circle was the backbone of the run.
Izabella Choquette carried the largest pitching load and gave Ohana a real anchor. She threw 27.2 innings, allowing 17 hits, six earned runs, and striking out 43. That included a seven-inning shutout with 10 strikeouts, plus a start in a four-inning combined no-hitter.
That is not just eating innings. That is controlling them.
Choquette’s ability to miss bats gave Ohana stability throughout the event. Esperas added 23.2 innings, and Sophia Wiggs contributed 2.2 innings, giving the staff enough coverage to manage the week.
As a staff, Ohana threw 54.0 innings, allowing 52 hits, 31 runs, 22 earned runs, and striking out 54. The strikeout total stands out, but so does the overall workload. At AFCS, pitching depth is not a luxury. It is survival gear.
The Mustangs did have two losses, and the week was not perfect. But a 6-2 finish and a trip to the Super Regional Final at a national championship event is a strong showing by any fair read.
Tampa Mustangs Szabo also gave Florida a solid week, finishing 4-4. That is a respectable run through a difficult field, especially in an event where the format keeps testing teams beyond the opening games.
Rock Gold Diab-Manetta went 2-4, a tougher finish, but still part of Florida’s 14U representation on a national stage.
The headline, though, belongs to Ohana.
They hit. They pitched. They had multiple players carry real weight. They showed enough lineup depth to keep pressure on opponents and enough pitching to stay in the fight through a long week.
For a 14U group at AFCS, that is a strong statement.
And for Tampa Mustangs Ohana, it was a week that should travel well beyond Indiana.
