USA Softball International Cup in Irvine still has a hometown feel

As a member of the Mater Dei team, Maddison Flores played at the softball complex at Irvine’s Bill Barber Memorial Park numerous times in her high school career.

Flores, who graduated from Mater Dei in 2017 and now plays middle infield for Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, returned to field at Barber Park on Monday, but this experience was a bit different.

Flores was wearing the uniform of Puerto Rico, one of the international teams that are showcasing their talent all week during the inaugural USA Softball International Cup.

Czech Republic dies a team cheer before they take on Japan during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
China’s Wang Lan (30) delivers a pitch against Puerto Rico during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
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Japan and the Czech Republic gather not he baselines for the U.S. National Anthem before the game during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico’s Maddison Flores (55) greets Chinese players after they defeated China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. Flores, from Cypress, went to Mater Dei High School – she qualified to play because she has a grandparent from Puerto Rico. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
China’s Liu Yining (14) greets members of the Puerto Rican team after China lost to Puerto Rico during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico’s Korina Rosario (88) congratulates Quianna Diaz-Patterson (16) after she scored against China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Keila Quinones cheers on Puerto Rico as they take on China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico celebrates after scoring against China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Carlos Quinones, a former minor league baseball player, watches Puerto Rico take on China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico’s Giselle Juarez (40) delivers a pitch against China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico’s Quianna Diaz-Patterson (16) slides in the second base safely against China’s Li Huan (33) during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Czech Republic’s Tereza Kubicov‡ (53) bobbles the ball as Japan’s Nozomi Nagasaki (1) slides in to second base while Veronika Klimplov‡ (23) backs her up during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Marlene Velasquez, left, Viviana Sanchez, Reyleen Velasquez and Vivian Barlow watch Japan take on Czech Republic during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. The girls play softball in San Bernardino. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Marlene Velasquez, left, Viviana Sanchez, Reyleen Velasquez and Vivian Barlow watch Japan take on Czech Republic during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. The girls play softball in San Bernardino. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico celebrates after defeating China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Puerto Rico’s Galis Lozada (2) warns up before their game against China during the USA Softball International Cup in Irvine, CA, on Monday, July 9, 2018. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Hosted in Irvine for the first time, the tournament features the national teams of the United States, Japan, China, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Peru, Venezuela, Columbia and the Czech Republic.

Games are taking place throughout the day, daily through Sunday, July 15.

“I’ve never had an experience like this before,” said Flores, whose older sister Morganne, star catcher for the University of Washington and a Mater Dei graduate, also plays for Puerto Rico. “It’s so cool being here. Different team, but the same home field. It’s awesome. I love it.”

The Cypress sisters are eligible to play for Puerto Rico because their father’s mother is from the island.

“This is a very familiar venue for us,” said Marc Flores, Maddison’s father. “But to see her in a Puerto Rican uniform, international ball, playing China … Oh my God.”

Several players representing other national teams in the tournament also grew up in Southern California. And there are several locals playing for USA as well.

Pitcher Cheyanne Tarango of Anaheim Hills has been playing for the Mexican national team for three season, after playing high school softball at Canyon High and college ball at the University of Tennessee.

Tarango has also played at Barber Park numerous times.

“It’s more of a comfort situation,” said Tarango, who graduated from Anaheim’s Canyon in 2011. “We’re here. We are relaxed. We’re familiar with our surroundings and (can) be with our families and just play softball.”

The tournament also drew younger softball players who wanted to watch some of the best players in the world up close.

The Idaho Dirt Dogs, an under-17 travel team playing in Irvine for a different tournament, turned out to watch Puerto Rico take on China.

“It’s crazy,” said Summer Makinster, a member of the Dirt Bags. “The pitching is so much faster. It’s crazy how they are thinking and the mental aspect of it. … They are so much farther ahead of the people who are our age.”

The USA Softball International Cup is taking the place of the World Cup of Softball, which usually is played in Oklahoma. But with renovations taking place at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex there, USA Softball opted to stage the tournament in Irvine.

“These are the best players in the world,” said tournament director Kristi Allen, the USA Softball of Southern California commissioner. “When we start the Olympics in 2020, these are the kids who are going to be those Olympians for softball.”

If you go

When: Games are going on through Sunday, July 15

Where: Bill Barber Park, off Harvard Avenue near Barranca Parkway in Irvine

Cost: Tickets are good for all the games in one day; general Admission is $15 and stadium seating is $25, purchase at the website

Information: usasoftballinternationalcup.com

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