Bubba Nickles-Camarena and the Bandits of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League have developed a fun new home run celebration. And they’re getting a lot of practice with it.
Nickles-Camarena became the first player in the brand-new AUSL to hit multiple homers this season, smacking her second of the year in the Bandits’ 8-0 rout of the Talons on Tuesday at The Stadium at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Ill.
ATHLETES UNLIMITED SOFTBALL LEAGUE
The former UCLA star punctuated her first-inning solo blast to center field by pretending to wield a lasso as she pulled into a waiting crowd of teammates at home plate. For a team called the Bandits, it was a fitting gesture.
A career .357 hitter for UCLA (2017-21) who went on to help Team USA win a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Nickles-Camarena is no stranger to Athletes Unlimited. She was named the 2024 AUX Champion in a close finish, beating out former Oklahoma standout Jocelyn Alo on the event’s unique points leaderboard.
Nickles-Camarena was drafted by the Bandits with the 14th pick in the inaugural AUSL draft in January, a pick that looks great through the first three games. Before her solo shot on Tuesday, she smacked a two-run dinger when the Bandits and Talons met on Sunday.
The Talons won that game 6-3, but the Bandits came back with a vengeance two days later. After Nickles-Camarena’s homer in the first inning, Delanie Wisz (another former UCLA Bruin) tripled home a run in the second and scored on a two-run blast by ex-Florida catcher Jordan Roberts.
With pitchers Odicci Alexander, Emiley Kennedy and Lexi Kilfoyl keeping the Talons off the board, the Bandits made some more AUSL history. They became the first team to win on the run rule, holding a lead of eight or more runs after five innings. So even though they were up big with the bases loaded and nobody out in the fifth, the Bandits -- playing as the home team -- “walked off” for the win on an RBI single up the middle by Sydney McKinney.
The win improved the Bandits’ record to 2-1, tied at the top of the four-team league with the Volts. Those two clubs will square off for three games from Thursday to Saturday at McMurry Park in Sulphur, La., while the Talons (1-2) and Blaze (1-2) will play from Friday to Sunday at Jim Frost Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Thursday’s opener between the Bandits and Volts will be broadcast at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2, while you can watch Friday’s game between the Talons and Blaze at 6:30 p.m. ET on MLB.com, MLB.TV and in the MLB App.