TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- If a particularly brave soul could have made good money betting on the Chicago Bandits to even reach the National Pro Fastpitch championship series, as their coach suggested of a team that had a losing record in the regular season, imagine the fortune available in predicting the identity of the pitcher who would make them back-to-back champions.Not Monica Abbott, the pitcher who led the Bandits to a title a year ago and then departed.Not Jennie Finch, the retired ace whose name adorns the street outside the teams stadium.Not even a pitcher who was on the teams roster, or any NPF roster, when the season began.But for a night, Angel Bunner was the only pitcher who mattered.For six innings, Bunner kept the best lineup in the sport at bay and got the better of far her more recognizable counterpart in the pitching circle, Keilani Ricketts. Released by the Pennsylvania Rebellion before the start of the 2015 season and still out of work as this season began, Bunner had as much to do with a 2-1 win over the USSSA Pride in a winner-take-all finale as any player on the field Tuesday.Without a player who waited so long to make it back to the league, the Bandits wouldnt be back-to-back champions.Its a dream, so of course I would imagine it, Bunner said of her journey to a confetti-strewn field and a trophy. But making it a reality was a lot different.Bunner worked six innings, the longest stint of any pitcher on either team in the best-of-three championship series. She allowed eight hits but just a solitary run.Most Valuable Player honors deservedly went to Bandits outfielder Brittany Cervantes, the veteran cornerstone who followed Taylor Edwards with the second of back-to-back home runs in the top of the third inning this night and hit .500 in the postseason. But a day after the Bandits talked about using all available arms to try to get through seven innings against the regular-season champions, they kept giving the ball back to Bunner. Inning after inning after inning.We talked last night, and we said once through the order and then maybe a couple of lefties, Bandits coach Mike Steuerwald said of the Bunner plan. We had six of our seven pitchers hot pretty much from the fourth inning on. It was talking to Bunner and talking to [catcher Edwards]. Part of it is the relationship weve built even in her short time here. Ive learned to trust her. Shes learned to trust me. And if she cant go another batter, come talk to me.It sounded as if the very first batter Bunner faced had hit a ball bound for the seats beyond the outfield fence, but that blast from Megan Wiggins in the bottom of the first inning tailed into a routine fly out on a stifling night when, Edwards and Cervantes aside, the ball didnt carry. There was more of that each time the Pride batted, fly balls to the warning track and line drives ripped right at fielders.Bunner didnt dominate. She persevered.Shes pitched well against us pretty much the whole year, since she joined the Bandits, said the Prides Kelly Kretschman, who provided her teams only run with a fifth-inning home run. I dont think we were surprised by anything. She kind of just goes at you, and Here it is; hit it.But she did a great job against ScrapYard, and she did a good job tonight, too.The story of Chicagos season was destined to be about pitching, no matter how unlikely it was that Bunner would emerge the protagonist in the end. The Bandits lost more than Abbott after last seasons title. Longtime standouts Amber Patton and Tammy Williams retired, but it was the best pitcher in the sport leaving for a million dollar contract with the expansion ScrapYard Dawgs that seemed likely to define her former teams season for better or for worse.After a decent start to the season, the Bandits stumbled to eight losses in nine games as June came to a close, the last five losses by a 51-3 margin. It was at that point that they reached out to Bunner, nearly two calendar years removed from her most recent NPF innings.Signing her was probably a big key to turning our season around, Steuerwald said. Obviously losing Monica [after] last year is a big dent to your pitching staff. And we werent playing good softball at the time, so we needed to do something. She was someone weve discussed in the past bringing in and just wasnt a fit in previous seasons with teams we had at that point.We had the thought that shes been out for a year, shes probably ready to go. Maybe not physically as much, but she wants to get after it again. We needed a bit of that on this team.Now 26 years old, Bunner was living at home in Florida with her parents while waiting for another start. She never made the mental transition to a post-softball life. She wanted to keep playing. She reached out to teams, and Steuerwald said players in the league reached out on her behalf.It was hard, Bunner said. I mean, I love the sport. And Im dedicated to a team, and I want a team to be dedicated to me. So it was really hard when I got released. But if thats what they felt was best, then thats what they needed to do.The call finally came.In her first game back, Bunner gave up hits to the first three batters she faced against the Akron Racers. She gave up eight hits in less than three innings. But with some help from the pitchers who followed her, the Bandits still won that game. She finished the regular season with just one win but had one of the best ERAs on the team.So when it came to the decision of who to start Tuesday night, the choice was the same as it had been two days earlier in an elimination game against Abbott and the Dawgs.Im not going to lie, Im not normally nervous, but I was extra nervous, Bunner said of Tuesday. I had a group of pitchers standing behind me, and the first thing they said to me when we got here was No matter what happens, we all got your back. So going into the game, I just used that mentality that if I got into trouble, I knew there was another pitcher coming in behind me.Except that none of them did, not until rookie Shelby Turnier entered in the seventh -- Bunner the first to give her a high-five as she took the field. So good throughout the postseason, Turnier retired the Pride in order in the seventh for her second save in as many days.The game ended with Kretschman on deck, the one batter who got to Bunner all night, waiting for another chance in the stadium that didnt even exist when she first arrived at Alabama as a college freshman two decades ago. There was no one better equipped to put into perspective the most recent installment of the best rivalry that not enough people in sports know about. Players from both sides made the same comparison, the Pride as the New York Yankees and the Bandits as the Boston Red Sox from the height of that rivalry a decade ago. Its what we do, finding a more familiar comparison point to explain womens sports.But the truth is this rivalry stands on its own. The mutual respect and mutual dislike of perfect foils.I would have liked to be on some other ends of wins, but youve got to enjoy [it], Kretschman said. I think this is probably the most fun championship Ive played in my entire time being in this league. Because it wasnt about whos pitching on their team and whos pitching on [our] team. It was about two great teams going at it and what best team was going to win it. Not who was pitching. I think thats a huge difference in whats gone on in the league in the past.It was a game in which a pitcher entered anonymous and earned her headlines.Which in its own way summed up how a group of 23 players earned a championship together. Wholesale Air Max 270 Australia . He was followed closely by David Clarkson, donning red, seconds later. Clarksons actions one night earlier, leaping off the bench in defence of Kessel during a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres, will cost him the first 10 games of the regular season. Cheap Air Max 270 For Sale . Carey Price didnt, but he still came out on top against one of his rivals for the No. 1 job at the Sochi Games. The Anahim Lake, B.C., native was stellar in making 39 saves in his home province and Lars Eller got credit for a bizarre short-handed winner as the Canadiens defeated the Canucks 4-1. http://www.wholesaleairmax270australia.com/ . -- Anaheim Ducks captain and leading scorer Ryan Getzlaf has been scratched from Sunday nights game against the Vancouver Canucks because of an upper-body injury. Cheap Air Max 270 Australia . Denis Coderre, the former federal MP who was elected mayor on Nov. 3, has drawn the ire of some Montreal Canadiens. During last nights game he tweeted: "Hello? Can we get a one-way ticket to (minor-league) Hamilton for David Desharnais please. Cheap Air Max 270 Wholesale . The recently retired Stern was elected Friday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined with the class of 2014 on Aug. The 12 members of the College Football Playoff selection committee -- especially the five former coaches in the room -- know just how difficult it is to win on the road.Which is why its oh-so-important for any team looking for a spot in the top four to add a statement road win to its playoff resume.(Hey, undefeateds. Now would be a good time.)Its the final Saturday before the first CFP rankings are revealed on Nov. 1, and seven of the nine remaining unbeaten FBS teams are on the road.No. 1 Alabama and No. 20 Western Michigan are off, but Boise State, West Virginia, Michigan, Washington, Baylor, Nebraska and Clemson all have road trips on Saturday. According to ESPNs Football Power Index (FPI), theres a 97 percent chance that at least one of those undefeated teams will lose Saturday, with Nebraska the most likely to go down.Heres a look at whats at stake for the Power 5 unbeatens, ranked in order of who has the most to lose:No. 8 Baylor at Texas (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC)Because of a nonconference schedule that ranks 127 out of 128 FBS teams, Baylor most likely has to finish the season undefeated to get serious consideration as a top-four team. Its only two road wins have been against teams that have a combined 2-12 record (Rice, Iowa State). Baylor has the smallest margin of error among the remaining undefeated teams, and it has nothing to do with off-field transgressions and everything to do with a schedule that features just two ranked opponents. Baylor certainly cant afford to slip up against an unranked Texas team that has lost four of its past five games.Why it could be tricky: Baylor has played the easiest schedule of any Power 5 team so far, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Texas has lost its past two games by a total of eight points, including a five-point loss to Oklahoma.No. 10 West Virginia at Oklahoma State (noon ET)The Mountaineers have legitimized their playoff chances by playing stingy defense in back-to-back games against Texas Tech and TCU. The Mountaineers are back in The Associated Press top 10 for the first time since 2012, but WVU doesnt have any road games on its schedule against currently ranked teams. That puts more pressure on the Mountaineers to leave no doubt theyre the better team in Stillwater. The most ideal situation for the Big 12 would be for both WVU and Baylor to be undefeated heading into their Dec. 3 game in Morgantown.Why it could be tricky: According to ESPNs FPI, the Mountaineers have a 44 percent chance to win Saturday; its the toughest remaining game on their schedule and the only one they arent favored to win (including their home matchup against Baylor to end the regular season). The Cowboys are 4-1 at home this season with just nine turnovers while averaging 41.1 points per game.No. 4 Washington at No. 17 Utah (3:30 p.m. ET)An undefeated Pac-12 champ would likely finish in the top four, but with a loss, Washington falls into a debate it might not win. The Huskies could afford to lose at Utah and still win the North as long as they win out, but even if they go on to win the conference title, they could be measured against another one-loss conference champ for the fourth spot, such as Ohio State or Michigan.Why it could be tricky: Washington hasnt faced a defense this good yet. The Utes have recorded an FBS-high 22 takeaways this season and are tied for the FBS lead with 14 interceptions. Huskies quarterback Jake Browning hasnt faced a Power 5 defense that has forced more than seven turnovers.No. 2 Michigan at Michigan State (noon ET, ESPN)If then-No. 2 Ohio State could lose at Penn State, anything is possible -- especially between these two programs. Its also the same scenario, though, as it was for the Buckeyes. If Michigan loses, it can still win out and win the East. It seems that no matter what happens each week, everything still revolves around the Nov. 26 game in Columbus. The Wolverines could really use a respectable road win, though, considering their lone trip outside of the state so far was the 78-0 drubbing at Rutgers.Why it could be tricky: Michigan State is desperate. Who better to take it out on? Sparty is trying to avoid being winless in its first five conference games for the first time since 1983.No. 7 Nebraska at No. 11 Wisconsin (7 p.m. ET, ESPN)This is a must-win for Wisconsin, or its out of the West race. With aa win, the Badgers would still need Nebraska to lose again in order to win the West with a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Huskers.dddddddddddd Its not a far-fetched scenario, considering Nebraska goes to Ohio State next week. So while Nebraska can technically afford to lose this game and still lead the West, it certainly doesnt want to head to Columbus in a must-win situation. Nebraska has lost nine straight against top-10 teams in true road games since beating No. 2 Washington in 1997.Why it could be tricky: Wisconsin has been tested, Nebraska has not. Nebraska has played the fourth-easiest schedule among Power 5 teams, according to FPI, but will now face a defense that ranks among the top five in the FBS in five different categories, including red-zone touchdown percentage and third-down conversion percentage.No. 3 Clemson at No. 12 Florida State (8 p.m. ET, ABC)The Tigers can afford to lose this game only because they would still be leading the Atlantic Division and its the toughest remaining game on their schedule. If Clemson joins the one-loss club, though, it would be compared with the likes of Ohio State, Texas A&M and even Louisville. Dont forget -- Clemson hasnt won the ACC championship game yet. The committee has only the head-to-head results and the comparison of common opponents to go on right now. Whos to say the committee wont rank the Aggies or Buckeyes ahead of Clemson if the Tigers lose? Getting leapfrogged by Louisville is less probable because of the head-to-head result, but nothing is a guarantee.Why it could be tricky: Turnovers. Clemson turned the ball over four times -- including a pick-six from Deshaun Watson -- two weeks ago in its win against NC State. The Tigers turned it over five times in their home win against Louisville, including three interceptions and a fumble. Probably not a good idea to continue the trend against a team that is 11-1 in its last 12 games in Tallahassee.SuperlativesPlayer in the spotlight: Utah RB Joe Williams?--?Williams has rushed for 511 yards and five touchdowns in the two games since he came back from retirement.?Against UCLA last week, he rushed for a school-record 332 yards, the most in FBS since Samaje Perines 427-yard, FBS-record performance in 2014. Washington has allowed just 2.7 plays of 20 or more yards per game this season, the third-fewest in the FBS behind Michigan and South Carolina.Matchup to watch: Clemson defense vs. FSU RB Dalvin Cook?--?Cook leads all Power 5 players with 1,256 yards from scrimmage this season, and he has rushed for 100 yards in each of the past four games. Cook ran for 194 yards against the Tigers last season, the second-most theyve allowed to any opposing rusher with Brent Venables as defensive coordinator (Todd Gurley had 198 in 2014). The Tigers trailed FSU at halftime 10-6 but held Cook to 37 rushing yards in the second half and came back for a 23-13 win.Upset watch: Nebraska at Wisconsin -- Cornhuskers QB?Tommy Armstrong Jr. will get his toughest test to date, as Wisconsins defense is holding opponents to just 25 percent on third downs, and touchdowns on just 37 percent of its red zone trips.Can-miss game: New Mexico State at No. 9 Texas A&M -- New Mexico State is 0-13 all time against AP top-10 teams and has lost each game by at least 31 points (44.2 average margin of defeat in those games).Dont forget about: The SEC East -- Florida and Tennessee are in a fight to the finish: The Gators will win the division if they win out, and the Vols will win it if they win out and Florida loses again. Tennessee heads to South Carolina this week, while Florida takes on Georgia in Jacksonville.Under-the-radar game: No. 22 Navy at South Florida (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2 Friday) -- The Midshipmen are still undefeated in the West Division of the American Athletic Conference, and the Bulls are trying to rebound from a surprising road loss at Temple.Must-win game: No. 13 Boise State at Wyoming -- The undefeated Broncos are leading the Group of 5 race for a New Years Six Bowl, but Wyoming is still undefeated in the Mountain Division of the Mountain West Conference. A loss wouldnt eliminate Boise State entirely, but it would certainly open the door for Western Michigan or Navy. ' ' '