The Lady Magic answered with nine runs in the final two innings, including a pair of three-run home runs by Cheyenne Cordes, as the Sacramento, Calif., team beat the Chaos 13-5 to capture the ASA/USA Girls' 16-and-under Class 'A' Fast Pitch National Championships at Jack C. Fisher Park.

With her team trailing 5-4 in the 6th inning of the ASA/USA Girls' 16U Class "A" Fast Pitch National championship game, Lady Magic shortstop Cheyenne Cordes connects for a three-run homer Sunday at Jack Fisher Park. Cordes had another three-run blast in the seventh inning and the lady Magic of Sacramento, CA, went on to beat the St. Louis Chaos, 13-5, for the title. Photo by Gary Emord-Netzley, M-I.

"We've been down before, and these girls know how to battle back," Lady Magic coach Jim Carda said. "This is such a complete team offensively that being down one run is nothing.

"They stayed composed and didn't get shook."

Cordes got around early on pitches and hit long foul balls in the sixth inning, then corrected her timing and blasted a three-run shot to deep center for a 7-5 lead. Even though she will just be a high school sophomore this fall, she's already verbally

committed to the University of California.

In fact, Lindsey Ziegenhirt, who also whacked two home runs, is likewise committed to Cal, as are Jolene and Danielle Henderson. Another Lady Magic player, Ally Carda, is committed is UCLA.

"Cheyenne and Lindsey are big-time players and they're going to be on the big stage soon enough," Jim Carda said.

The Lady Magic scored six runs in the seventh, capped by Cordes' second three-run shot, quieting the Chaos' fans, who were energized when their team tied the game at 3 in the third and took a 5-4 lead in the fifth.

The teams previously met on Saturday with Ziegenhirt hitting two homers in a 6-0 victory. The Lady Magic went 8-0 in the tournament, but lost a game in pool play.

"This year, pool play didn't mean anything," the coach said. "The brackets were already set up. You weren't seeded according to pool play, so that edge wasn't there."

The Lady Magic turned it on in tournament play, though.

"Six of these girls have played together since they were 10, and they played third in nationals in 12-and-under," Jim Carda said. "They were ninth in 14s last year, and when we added Lindsey and Jolene, we thought we could win it all, but it took a lot of hard work."

The Lady Magic finished its season 54-3-2.