Wallace Marine Park USSSA LIVE USSSA Baseball Fastpitch World

SPRING
2009
Wallace
Marine
Park
...an Old Friend Revisited
2009 Conference
USSSA
Dates Announced
USSSA
LIVE
A True Family Affair
USSSA
Baseball
Announces Global Sports Baseball
Fastpitch World Series
& Columbus,
IN
Prove to be
a Great Combination
Budweiser, the King of Beers, invites your team to play
in Texas’ King of Softball Tournaments, the Budweiser
Softball Festival in Bryan /College Station on
May 2 and 3
Brought to you by Jack Hilliard Distributing,
Bryan/College Station
24 years of continuous sponsorship of the
Budweiser Softball Festival
To enter your team, contact
Greg Huchingson at (979) 575-5669
UNITED STATES SPECIALTY
SPORTS ASSOCIATION
Message from Headquarters
The 2009 season has begun and it
brings with it a level of uncertainty
that is continuing to place a great
strain on all Americans and many
people around the globe. Each of
us has been affected directly, or
indirectly, by the slowing economy.
Times are difficult and the
enormous amount of strain on families is evident, both in
adults and in their children. This type of stress and strain
has reached a level not seen in decades.
Fortunately, there is good news to be found in such
trying times. Athletics and competition through sports
is an excellent way to inject a healthy activity into all
of our increasingly busy lives. The world we live in is
growing increasingly fast-paced, stressful, and filled with
responsibility.
Because of this, everyone needs some time to relax and
enjoy themselves through sports and recreation. Sports
recreation activities are among the healthiest activities
that we have available to us. Participation in sports have
been long ago proven as a great way to get exercise and
relieve the tremendous amount of stress and pressure
that has become such a integral part of our day to day
lives.
4 USSSA TODAY
Team sports activities such as softball, baseball, basketball,
soccer, golf and volleyball are just several options
available to each of us through the USSSA. Indeed, over
3.5 million participants are currently taking advantage of
the many programs provided by the organization.
USSSA SLUGFest 2009 will provide an opportunity for
USSSA Teams, Players, Fans to interact with equipment
manufacturers during USSSA World Series and National
Championship events. Manufacturers will provide the
latest in equipment technology and provide demo
opportunities. High profile players and athletes will
conduct instructional clinics on-site. USSSA Live will
provide live video streaming and interviews with
manufacturer’s representatives during the event.
Professional athletes, college coaches and Olympic
athletes will be invited and encouraged to participate.
Also new for USSSA in 2009 will be USSSA Live, formerly
Softball Kingdom. Read about the Kirby family and their
love for our game of softball in this issue of USSSA Today.
Have a great 2009 Season,
Don DeDonatis
CEO of USSSA
CONTENTS
M A G A Z I N E
6028 Rayburn Dr. • Fort Worth,TX 76133
(817) 475-8152 • stafford@usssa.com
Executive Director, CEO USSSA
Don DeDonatis
Publisher, USSSA Today
Stafford Connor
Communications Director, USSSA
Tom O’Hara
41 Wallace Marine Park... an Old Friend Revisted
Design / Printing
REEDESIGN
Lebco Graphics
Contributing Writers
Greg Huchingson
Robert Boudreaux
Scott Kuhnen
Mike Macenko
Dale Weiser
Mark Terpening
Bob Wilkerson
Dawson Blanck
Tonya Perkins
Stacy Fish
Photographers
Roy Dean
Michael McNutt
USSSA Today is published quarterly.
Publishing offices are located at 6028
Rayburn Dr., Fort Worth, TX 76133.
One year subscription is $25; two year
is $40. Reproduction or use of the
contents in whole or in part without
prior written permission of the publisher
is prohibited. USSSA Today welcomes
unsolicited articles or photographs,
but must be accompanied with a selfaddressed, stamped envelope for return
of unsolicited material.
46The Hottest New Amateur Baseball
Program in the Country
… Global Sports Baseball
52 Fast Pitch World Series and
Columbus, IN prove to be
great combination
6 Naegele among 10 new members of USSSA Hall of Fame
14 Midwest /Southern Summit So. Padre Island, TX
16 Danny Malone Retires from National Assistant UIC
18 The Search for a Safer (and Better!) Game
22 Dave Neale / Softball Legend
25 ‘BIG CAT’ On The Prowl For Anaconda Sports
30Conference USSSA To Make Two Stops In Texas During 2009 Season
33 Texas Softball Community Mourns Death Of Dago Mendoza
34 Big League Dreams - League City, TX Hosts Winter World Championships
39 Wood Law Gets Past Vivid To Win C Bracket at USSSA Winter World II in
Mansfield
47 USSSA Baseball - Gopher State Baseball League
50USSSA Great Lakes
51 2008 USSSA Maryland State Championships
56 Holiday Magic Charity Challenge
USSSA TODAY
5
Naegele among 10 new members
of USSSA Hall of Fame
ORLANDO – Executive Vice
President Kevin Naegele was
one of 10 new inductees to
the United States Specialty
Sports
Association
Hall
of Fame in a ceremony
that highlighted the 41st
Annual National Meeting
& Convention, held at the
Omni Orlando Resort at
Championsgate on Nov.
16-22, 2008.
Naegele entered the Hall
of Fame in the Executive
category. A huge contingent of supporters from his
home state of New Mexico
were on hand for the induction of the man they refer
to affectionately as “The
Governor.” Naegele gave
a moving speech detailing
his rise through the ranks of
USSSA, but said his only real
goal in life was to be a “Hall
of Fame Dad.”
Others who entered the
prestigious Hall of Fame
along with Naegele were
Eugene F. Williams, Jr. and
Lou Calvisi, in the Manager
category; Marie Pesch, in
the Female Player category;
Jason Kendrick, Todd Martin
and Rick Weiterman, in
the Male Player category;
William B. Hensley III, in the
Executive category; Travis
Resmondo, in the Sponsor
category; and Dick Calvo, in
the Special category.
Executive Vice President Kevin
Naegele receives his Hall of Fame
Plaque from CEO/Executive
Director, Don DeDonatis. Naegele
was also awarded the E.A. Ramsey/
CEO award.
6 USSSA TODAY
2008 Hall of Fame inductees - front row (l to r) Lou Calvisi, Marie Pesch, Rick Weiterman, Eugene Williams, Jr.; top row (l to r) Travis Resmondo, Jason Kendrick,
Todd Martin, Kevin Naegele. Awarded posthumously, William Hensley III.
Kendrick and Martin are still active players. Kendrick
played for the 2008 Major Division world champion Dan
Smith team, while Martin played for runnerup Resmondo.
Kendrick and Martin have been teammates many times
during their careers. Weiterman started playing Big Time
Softball at age 16 and was a part of 35 national championship teams over the years. Pesch, nicknamed “Princess of
Pop,” was one of the most powerful female sluggers of
all-time. Williams has managed the very successful Pace/
TPS teams from New York, while Calvisi guided teams in his
home state of Michigan.
Several other awards were handed out during the convention. Director of the Year Awards were presented to:
Jon Brandt of Connecticut (slow-pitch); Eddie Small of
Virginia (fast-pitch); Scotty Baker of Mississippi (baseball);
Todd Miller of Iowa (basketball); and Jon Parry of Kansas
(soccer). Official of the Year Awards went to John Dye of
Columbia, Maryland (fast-pitch) and Larry Lofton of New
Albany, Indiana (slow-pitch). The Dwight Hall Sparkplug
of the Year Awards went to: Steve Graham of Elk Grove,
Tom Turley, Olathe, KS, receives the CEO/Executive Director Award from
DeDonatis.
8 USSSA TODAY
Rick Brockwell (right) from Dinwiddie, VA, was the
Dwight Hall Sparkplug of the Year recipient for baseball. Presenting the award is Joey Odom.
John DeMagistris (right), North Chili, NY, receives
the Dwight Hall Sparkplug of the Year from Robert
Boudreaux for Slowpitch - Eastern U.S.
Sam Ellis (left) of Michigan, receives the Dwight Hall
Sparkplug of the Year from Gordon Glennie for fastpitch.
California (slow-pitch West); John
DeMagistris of North Chili, NY (slowpitch East); Rick Brockwell of Dinwiddie,
Virginia (baseball); Sam Ellis of Michigan
(fast-pitch); and Mike Foss of Wesley
Chapel, Florida (basketball). Complex
of the Year Awards were presented
to Snowden Grove Park in Southaven,
Mississippi and Softball World in Euless,
Texas.
John Pond (right), Sutton, MA, receives Assistant
Executive Director Award from Danny Brown.
Conrad Foss (right), Wesley Chapel, FL, accepts
Assistant Executive Award from Jim Swint.
Assistant Executive Director Awards
were given to John Pond of Sutton,
Massachusetts and Conrad Foss of Wesley
Chapel, Florida. The Distinguished
Service Award went to the City of
Columbus, Indiana. The 2008 Award
of Merit was presented to the City of
Hobbs, New Mexico and to Combat
Baseball Company of Kent, Washington.
Finally, the E.A. Ramsey/CEO Awards
were presented to Tom Turley from
Olathe, Kansas and Kevin Naegele from
Hobbs, New Mexico.
At the Disney Magical
Evening, Josh Dill, Sports
Sales Manager for VisitLubbock CVB, proposes to
Meghan Hare. By the way the
answer was “yes” and they
will be married November of
this year.
10 USSSA TODAY
The Hall of Fame Ceremony & Awards
Gala highlighted a week of activities at
the luxurious resort in central Florida.
Attendees began arriving Sunday, Nov.
16, and committee meetings began
bright and early the next day. A presentation on “Inside the New USSSA”
served as a State-of-the-Association
address and highlighted the direction
the group will be headed in the future.
Two new projects were unveiled at the
What did 2 of the top 3 teams
in the 2008 USSSA mens major
world series and the top 2 teams
in the USSSA major coed worlds
have in common? COMBAT.
JM
JOHNNY MCCRAW
13.5” Barrel
CONGRATULATIONS TO
DAN SMITH/MENOSSE/BENFIELD/TEAM COMBAT – 2008 USSSA MENS MAJOR WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS
COMBAT USA/PYTCH BLAKK/ELITE – 3RD PLACE 2008 USSSA MENS MAJOR WORLD SERIES
TO OUR 8 MENS MAJOR ALL WORLD TEAM MEMBERS THAT SWUNG COMBAT
JOHNNY MCCRAW 2008 MENS MAJOR WORLD SERIES MVP
TEAM COMBAT SOUTH – 2008 USSSA MAJOR COED CHAMPIONS
TEAM COMBAT MIXED – 2008 USSSA MAJOR COED 2ND PLACE – 2007 MAJOR COED CHAMPIONS USSSA & ASA
LOOK FOR THE DAN SMITH TEAM
EDITION BAT IN STORES NOW
combatsportsgroup.com
1.866.COMBATS
2008 Directors of the Year
Eddie Small, VA - Fastpitch
Scotty Baker, MS - Baseball
Jon Brandt, CT - Slowpitch
session -- USSSA Live, which will provide live game day video assembly was held Friday, as members voted on playing rule and
streaming on the Internet; and USSSA Today, which will serve as constitutional amendment changes.
the official news magazine of USSSA.
Official sponsors of the 2008 National Meeting were the
More committee meetings and a general assembly were held Amarillo Convention & Visitors Council, Best Western Lakeside,
Tuesday and later that evening the entire group attended City of Aurora, Columbus Area Visitors Center, Hillerich &
an Orlando Magic NBA basketball game at Amway Arena in Bradsby, K&K Insurance Group, Inc., Kingsport CVB, Lexington
downtown Orlando. Wednesday was a short day, as meetings County Recreation, Louisiana Association of CVB’s, Mystic Dunes
stopped at noon so members could compete in the USSSA Golf Resort & Golf Club, Overland Park CVB, Panama City Beach CVB,
Tournament at Championsgate National Golf Course. Disney Polk County Sports Marketing, Visit Lubbock, and Wicmico
characters came to life Wednesday night at the USSSA/Disney County CVB.
Magical Evening in the ballroom and that was followed by a
spectacular fireworks presentation. The highlight of Thursday The 2009 USSSA National Meeting will be held Nov. 15-21 at the
was the Exhibitors Show, where vendors and manufacturers Pechanga Resort in Temecular, California near San Diego.
displayed their wares to the attendees. The final general
12 USSSA TODAY
Midwest /Southern Summit
South Padre Island, TX
Skip Keller(left), formerly of Brownsville and now Corinth, catch up on old times
with Austin’s Ben Templeton.
Fixtures in the Midwest Division,
Arnie Burke (left) and Ron Neely have
invested their time tirelessly to insure
USSSA’s success.
The great South Padre Island atmosphere was evident throughout the
weekend, concluding with a party on a pirate’s ship.
14 USSSA TODAY
In charge of convention logistics,
Louisana’s Neal Swanner was all
smiles...all weekend.
Event organizers, Tuffy Martinez(left) of Brownsville and Skip Keller extended
South Texas hospitality to everyone.
Malone Retires
from National Assistant UIC
by Robert Boudreaux
Samuel Johnson wryly observed: “Don’t think of retiring from
the world until the world will be sorry that you retire. I hate
a fellow whom pride or cowardice or laziness drives into a
corner, and who does nothing when he is there, but sit and
growl. Let him come out, as I do, and bark!”
Well, the softball world --- at least ours here in the USSSA --is sorry to see Danny Malone retire. And not that he’s been
barking. But rather that he’s been leading the pack.
Danny Malone. We’re going to miss that leadership. You’ve
been vocal about rules that needed to be changed; leadership has changed them. You’ve been vocal about policies and
procedures; we’ve set up new standards for umpires. You’ve
been vocal about teamwork and the eight divisions nationally
have seemed to facilitate as one. Some of your thoughts have
yet to be implemented, but I think they give us challenges for
the future.
Because you have “been there”, been in the battle wholeheartedly, the demands of the job have been do-able and your
motivation has been replenished with your enthusiasm…..your
insight….and your dedication.
That’s not to say, of course, that we have always agreed. We
haven’t. But always, Danny has stood up for what he thought
was right and best for all in the USSSA, often in the face of
heavy opposition. We have agonized over rule changes and
decisions. We fought rule changes, equipment issues and
decisions over insurance issues. Danny has worked hard and
long to bridge whatever gap there happened to be. There
were even times we considered leaving the USSSA. But the
work was enjoyable because, ultimately, we were always on
the same side --- creating a superior umpiring product we
could provide to our teams.
I could go on to compliment Mr. Malone’s competence and his
results. But then those have been obvious to everyone who
has had the opportunity to work with him. He has handled his
National Assistant UIC position with admirable efficiency and
expertise. As a result, we can say to our colleagues, our fellow
directors and umpires, that USSSA is one to model, due in large
to Danny Malone’s efforts as an umpire.
Let me just sum up by saying, the USSSA will feel a great loss
from Danny’s absence. You command our attention and our
respect.
We do understand you plan to remain as North Texas UIC. It is
great that you have a plan to stay involved.
Let me just add a few other suggestions for these golden years:
Continue to sound off in public about the short comings of the
USSSA. Influence our new umpires to apply themselves. Stay
active.
Our best as you do so. Your rest and relaxation is well deserved.
Danny Malone is surrounded by his family after receiving the inaugural Danny Malone Award.
16 USSSA TODAY
THIRD ANNUAL
SPACE CITY CLASSIC
MAJOR N.I.T.
JUNE 5-7
BIG LEAGUE DREAMS
HOUSTON, TEXAS
CONSOLATION BRACKETS:
All C & D teams will also play in consolation brackets
with PAID BERTHS to their USSSA World Tournaments!
ENTRY FEE: $350 per team
DEADLINE:
Friday, May 29, at 5 p.m.
GAME TIMES: Available Tuesday, June 2, at 5 p.m.
PRIZE PACKAGE:
•Team Trophy (1st — 4th)
•Individual Awards (1st — 4th)
•Most Valuable Player Award
•Gold Glove Award
•All-Tournament Awards (15)
TO ENTER:
GREG HUCHINGSON
Office: (979) 774-9408
Cell: (979) 575-5669
Huch@SouthTexasUSSSA.com
Big League Dreams / League City
The Essence of Sport
The essence of sport is not contained in winning
or losing. The true essence of sport is contained
in sportsmanship.
Sportsmanship is most often framed in context
of how one treats other participants. Is a participant friendly, respectful, a worthy opponent? But
sportsmanship must always be taken in light of a
framework of rules. Does a participant compete
within the boundaries of the rules established for
the sport?
A competitor who steps outside the boundaries of
the rules is respecting neither the opposing participants nor the sport itself. When self-achievement
(winning at any cost) comes before respecting the
game itself, the game begins to fail. With regard to
the proliferation of altered bats, softball is beginning to fail.
Lots of people will argue that the Directors are
failing the game ...by not catching and punishing
the cheaters. Naturally, I must take a different view.
Many of today’s participants take an attitude that
it is up to the Directors (and umpires) to catch
the cheaters. They feel this same way about illegal
players, about team classification, and about
altered bats. For many (not all), the prevailing attitude is “I’ll do whatever makes me happy (or most
successful) and I dare them to catch me.”
But, sportsmanship demands another attitude.
Sportsmanship includes a willingness to live by
the rules ...be governed by the rules ...and respect
the rules. If the rules need to be changed, it
demands that participants work within the process
to change the rules - not deliberately set out to
circumvent the rules.
In order to preserve the integrity of the sport, we
need the help of the game’s participants. Possibly
the greatest crisis we face in softball today has to
do with the use of altered/juiced bats. In a game
that is already suffering from equipment that puts
it “out of balance” between the offensive side of
the game vs. the defensive side of the game, the
introduction of altered/juiced bats just accelerates
that process and makes the game both less fun
and actually ...dangerous. If this trend continues,
we will end up driving more and more participants
away from the sport, rather than to the sport.
We need your help. We need softball’s participants
to help us police the game. When it comes to
altered bats, we want your support and we want
you to do everything you can to keep the sport in
competitive balance and within the bounds of good
sportsmanship. To a large extent, the future of this
game depends upon you.
Scott Kuhnen USSSA
18 USSSA TODAY
The Search for a Safer
(and Better!) Game
by Scott Kuhnen
Prior to the 2008 season, in my rounds to pre-season manager’s meetings and umpire
meetings, I spent the largest percentage of my time telling attendees about a game
that most of them are too young to remember. That game was called “Softball.”
Most players don’t remember games that were won by scores like 11-9, 8-6, or 7-5. By
the same token, most of today’s players likely don’t remember when bats cost $30,
fielder’s gloves cost $30, and shoes cost $30. Old timers, even those who played the
game after aluminum bats were introduced, recall these games fondly.
When the teams were properly classified and fairly evenly matched, these were games
noted for a certain “balance” between offense vs. defense. Games were certainly not
determined by the equipment in those days.
Because it was slow-pitch, all players could put the ball in play, and games were
usually won by teams who had players hit the ball a little bit better than the other
team, and possibly more important, championship teams could definitely field the
ball better than their opponents.
In the old days, pitching was less of a factor before USSSA’s unique style of pitching
was permitted. However, pitching has always been something of a factor, whether
directly by a very effective pitching strategies, and certainly by pitchers who could
effectively field their position.
Things began to change, of course, with the introduction first of aluminum bats and
solid core softballs in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Prior to that, the standard softball had a leather cover over a core made of cork and wound by yawn and bats were
like baseball bats of that day…made of wood. This was a game known as softball.
Back “in the day,” players who played with true softballs knew that if you didn’t hit
that ball early…within the first few innings…you certainly weren’t going to hit it for
any distance late in the game. Back then, the ball really did “go square.”
Back in the day, when we said we were playing with a “mush ball,” we really meant
it. Today’s players like to whine and complain about the balls but, the truth is, they
likely have never really experienced a mush ball in their entire lives.
The time between the introduction in the late 1960’s of aluminum bats & the early
1970’s of solid core balls and the equipment of today is fairly well documented. It
includes a transition to livelier balls, even some higher than .50 COR, and a transition
not just into high-tech aluminum, and then titanium bats, to today’s composite bats.
During that time, the game of softball has, in my opinion, morphed into a game
which is out of balance with respect to offense vs. defense. The scoring has increased;
the cost has increased; and, unfortunately, the risks have also increased.
To make the game safer and/or to bring the game back into balance, many people
like to argue that the associations should merely outlaw certain bats. While that
might be one approach, I think most people will admit that unless the associations
all take a standardized approach and adopt a fully coordinated standard of performance for equipment, the manufacturers will continue to make equipment which
enhances performance and can be used by at least one of the sanctioning bodies.
One can hardly blame them for this.
The bat companies also should not be faulted for making and promoted equipment
which both meets the standards established by the associations and at least appears
to give high performance to the consumers. When it comes to bat evolution and
technologies, I believe most reasonable people agree that it is simply too late to put
the genie back in the bottle.
2009
Garland Softball Association
GARLAND
Date
Garland
Mar-14
Mar-28
Apr-25
May-09
May-23
Jun-06
Jun-20
Jul-18
Aug-08
Aug-15
Sep-19
Sep-26
Oct-31
E
D NIT
E
E/W
D/E
E
E/W
D/E
Women’s State
D/E
UPS
D/E
D/E
ROWLETT
Date
Mar-21
Apr-04
Apr-18
May-02
May-16
May-30
Jun-13
Jun-27
Jul-11
Jul-25
Aug-08
Rowlett
E
D/E
E/X
D/E/X
B/C NIT
D NIT
D/E
D/E/W
E
D/E/X
D/E/X
C = Men’s C
D = Men’s D
E = Men’s E
Garland
M. G. “Jerry” Carter, Sr.
Softball Complex
550 West Oates Drive
Garland, TX 75043
Tourney Line (972) 613-7729
Danny Malone, Tournament Director
Date
Aug-22
Aug-29
Sep-12
Sep-19
Oct-03
Oct-10
Oct-17
Oct-24
Nov-07
Nov-14
Nov-21
W = Women’s
X = Mixed
Rowlett
Rowlett Community Park
10200 Saint Andrews Lane
Rowlett, TX 75088
Tourney Line (972) 475-9988
Mike Delatte, Tournament Director
Rowlett
D/E/W
D/E/X
D/E/X
D/E
Fall C/D State
D/X
D/E/W (DM)
D/E/X
D/E/X
D/E/X
D/E/X
However, in my opinion, USSSA
has taken a bold step forward
in an attempt to make not
only a safer game but also a
better game. The adoption
and transition by USSSA of a
.40 COR ball with a reasonable
compression (375-400) is, in my
opinion, a great stride forward
in all respects.
Unlike the softball of that
bygone era, the new solid
core softballs of today and the
future, will not ‘go square’ and
will not ‘go mushy.’ The ball of
the future will retain all the
best features of the modern
era, which include your option
to use leather or synthetic
covers, optic yellow covers for
increased visibility, long-lasting
quality
performance
and
feel, and a reasonable cost.
All of these represent serious
advances over the softballs of
the past.
David Evaul, USSSA legal counsel, and Combat’s Don Cooper look on as different balls are hit.
And, because the ball carries
less distance than the balls of
the recent past (.50 or .47 or
even .44 COR), every player isn’t
a homerun hitter and every
pitched ball doesn’t stand as
much of a chance of becoming
a dangerous batted ball.
In this just-concluded 2008
season, the Ohio Men’s C State,
held in Dayton, produced
an exciting, safer, and lower
scoring event when we used
the .40 COR ball.
Analysis of scoring at World
Tournament over the last few
years, and especially after the
introduction and use of the
.40 COR ball at many of these
events, has seen an overall
decline when measured against
the runs scored back in 2004,
2005, and 2006. In my opinion,
this is a good thing.
As we continue down this
path toward the use of a safer
softball, I would encourage
the teams to realize that this
Combat’s Dal Beggs.
20 USSSA TODAY
is being done very much with
their interests at heart. USSSA
has seen the recent past and it
is hasn’t been particular pretty
or safe. One could argue, in
fact, that unsafe equipment
has driven many players from
the game.
I contend that the “fun” in
a team sport tends be more
noticeable on the “team” side
of the game…which is defense.
The game we have played for
the last twenty years or so was
skewed very much toward the
offense. And, while I admit
that offense is fun, it tends
to be more centered on the
individual than on the entire
team…as defense tends to be.
When fun leaves a sport, and
when costs increase as they
have, and when the game
actually starts to scare the
participants, that’s when they
will find other things to do.
It is true that many of the baby
boomers have left the game
for safer sports like fishing
and golf. I believe one could
also argue that many left the
game when it became less fun
and less safe. When batted
balls were through the infield
before a player could react or
if a batted ball was coming
at such a rate of speed that
a defensive player could not
react adequately to a bad hop,
the result was players leaving
the game. One could hardly
blame them.
USSSA headquarters was the site for testing balls this past January. At the plate is Donnie DeDonatis.
However, in my opinion, by
USSSA taking a stand on game
safety and better balance by
adopting the .40 COR ball, I
believe the players will find not
only a safer but also a better
game. I encourage directors,
park managers, umpires, and
even the players themselves
to welcome this change as it is
intended…to make for a better
game for everyone.
Mizuno’s Larry Brushett.
USSSA TODAY 21
Dave Neale / Softball Legend
by Mike Macenko
National Sales Mgr., Anaconda Sports
It all began a long time ago in the suburbs
of Cleveland, Ohio. A young man named
Dave Neale at 19 years old was fighting
golden gloves. He was learning then
that if you keep fighting the same guy
everyday you will eventually beat him.
He carried that thought process with him
throughout his life . It definitely helped
him win softball championships after
softball championships. That way of life
paid off as Dave helped coach his Steele’s
Silver Bullets to the 1988 USSSA Men’s
Major Softball crown that was held in
Long Beach, California.
of the best teams in the country playing
in it and that made for some great slopitch softball. We finished right behind
Howard’s Furniture that year good for
second place. Dave had made a promise
to Ted Stepien that he would do the
amateur thing for one year and then he
would coach a team in the Professional
Softball League. He coached our team call
the Cleveland Competitors that year and
guess what happened? We finished in
second place again. It was then that Dave
decided to go back into the amateur
ranks and try his luck there again.
Dave Neale graduated from Rhodes
High School in 1956 and lettered in
three different sports, football, basketball and track. Right after high school he
got married and had 5 children. Early in
his marriage you could see his love and
passion for the game of softball grow
stronger and stronger.. He started playing
softball in 1957 for a team called Trio
Tavern. It was then that he realized what
he wanted to do. He wanted to coach
his own softball team some day. Little
did he know that someday he would be
coaching one of the finest softball teams
ever assembled.
The first thing he did was take over
Steele’s Sports Company. He joined
forces with Dennis Helmig (USSSA Hall Of
Famer) to put together the best amateur
team money could buy. In 1983 we took
the best players in the Cleveland, Ohio
area and went after the championships
that had eluded him. The cream of the
crop in Cleveland proved to be the way
to go but guess what? We finished in
second place again to Jerry’s Catering
from Florida in the USSSA Men’s Major
World Championship. So over the winter
Dave, Denny and Jerome Ernest decided
the best way to beat the best was to go
after some of the players from some of
the other teams to try and win that first
championship. In 1984 we picked up
players like Mighty Joe Young, Greg “The
Bull” Furhman, Dave Steffen (ISA Hall Of
Famer) and slick fielding Rick Trudeau to
try and win that first crown. It just was
not to be as we opted to play in the ASA
Major that year and lost to Cable TV to
finish in 4th place.
brother Jim owned, so why not sponsor
your own softball team His Hillcrest
Tavern teams played in their first ASA
Men’s Major in Parma, Ohio in 1977. In
that tournament were the teams like
Ken Sanders, Nelson’s Painting Service,
Howard’s Furniture, Jerry’s Catering just
to name a few of the teams. His Hillcrest
team finished a respectable 9th place. In
1978 he took his team to California for
the ASA again and this time defeated Ken
Dave played on a number of teams Sander’s 3-2 on a field where the wind
over the years, Swing Inn, Pyramid café, was blowing straight in. Ken Sanders the
Number One Lounge, Pesano’s Rest., and manager and owner of the team told the
Hillcrest Tavern. In 1965 he was tabbed for umpires he wanted the game changed to
second team All American as an outfielder another field. Dave came out onto the
for Swing Inn at the ASA Nationals. They field and ask Ken if he was nuts? After
say the crowds were in excess of 10,000 all the arguing the game stayed where
people all weekend long. In the Cleveland it was and we put Ken Sanders into the
area he was a four time All-City selection losers bracket. The Hillcrest team finished
and still holds the record for the most 5th that year and was knocked out by
It was in 1985 when Dave finally put all
home runs in the city tournament with Nelson’s Paints.
16. I had 15 in 1979 when we won the city Dave was a very aggressive manager the pieces together to win that championchampionship with our Hillcrest Tavern during those days and was not going to ship that he was looking for. We got Craig
team. Dave proved he could still play let anybody get in his way. After 5 years of Elliott to play for us and that was really
when at the age of 49 in 1987, he suited having his own team he got involved with all we needed to do was get a player of
up to be able to fill a complete lineup Ted Stepien and put together a team with his caliber and it seemed like everything
when some of his Steele’s players were some players from the Pro Softball team fell right into place. Over the next few
injured. He played 3 games that day and in Cleveland, the Teamster 293 team and years Dave really excelled at coaching his
pitched in all 3 games. He ended up going our Hillcrest Tavern team. We were called softball teams. That year we won the ASA
5-7 in one game and ended up hitting Nationwide Advertising and played in the Men’s Super Nationals in Birmingham,
.600 for the day in Muncie, Indiana.
N.S.P.C. The N.S.P.C. was then what the North Carolina over Elite Coatings. This
was the first one of many championships
Hillcrest Tavern was a bar that he and his USSSA Conference is today. They had all
22 USSSA TODAY
for Dave. He had finally come into his
own as a softball manager.
Dave was the kind of guy who didn’t
care much for trophies and awards. All
he wanted was to know that when he
left the field he was the winner. Period!
He loved the thrill of victory. He also
would bet anyone who wanted to put a
friendly wager on any game.
Dave loved to watch softball and was
always looking for that great athlete.
While barnstorming the countryside
with his team he would be scouting the
players. He would try and pick out the
best athlete, not so much the best softball player. Then you try and turn that
athlete into a great softball player. He
would look for an all around athlete. An
athlete with speed. He used to like to
hear people say Geez, look at that big
guy run, not how far he can hit a softball. His ideal team was not one filled
with all home run hitters. The reason
being he said was where would he put
Rick Weiterman. Rick was a team leader
and the best base hitter he ever saw.
His perfect softball team would be if
someone came up to him and say we
want to play your team in basketball or
football. He felt he could beat you in
any sport with the players he had over
the years.
Dave was a firm believer in preparation
24 USSSA TODAY
for the big tournaments. He wanted to
work on it all year long. He use to say
”wind them up and watch them play”.
He use to keep an eagle eye out during
batting practice, not just during not just
during the game. Every now and then
he would see a player like myself try to
hit it too far. That’s when he said you
would lose your natural swing. Hitting
can be a funny thing. When it’s going
good it’s going good. When it’s going
bad it’s going bad. The best players in
the world go bad. They are all the same.
They are only human. Dave was a firm
believer in practice. The more you practiced the easier it got.
One thing about Dave was the he
always played up. He never dropped
down to win a tournament. He always
tried to play the best possible softball
that there was to play in the country.
It all goes back to 1959 when he found
out about softball. And that is the way
he wanted it until the day he died. He
would say that managing is the same as
it always been, you are only as good as
your players.
Dave Neale Sr. retired from Steele’s
Sports Co. in 2000 after working for the
company for more than 18 years. During
his career he won all of the associations
respective world tournaments. He has
been inducted into all 4 softball Hall Of
Fames. He is in the Greater Cleveland
Hall Of Fame. One of his biggest joys
was winning the Smoky Mountain
Classic 3 times.
During the last couple of months I
would go and have breakfast with Dave
and we would talk very little about softball. We would always be talking about
what team was going to win the next
game, meaning pro sports. Dave loved
to gamble and that was something else
that he enjoyed. I would ask him this
question, do you think we created a
monster with our teams over the years.
He would say no! What we did was bring
the softball game to the people. We put
together the best team we could and
promoted the game of softball. He used
to say “we were all softball people”. I
asked him one time was there something that we should have changed
during our careers. He said “maybe we
should have never played with the poly
balls”. “Play the game with cork balls
like it use to be and maybe the game
might be different today”. Other than
that he said “softball is still a great
game”. Every now and then he would
go down to watch the city tournament
with his buddy Andy Okulovich.
On January 16th of this year we lost
Dave. Dave Neale passed away at 70
years old at home after a short illness.
His family was by his side. All I know is
his softball legacy will live on forever.
‘BIG CAT’ On The Prowl
For Anaconda Sports
By Greg Huchingson, Contributing Writer
Anaconda Sports’ John Stote III (owner) and Kevin Schullstrom are proud to have the BIG CAT on Anconda’s team.
The “Big Cat” caught a case of white-line fever while crisscrossing the country back in the 1980s with the Steele’s
Hitmen, and now slow-pitch softball’s premier ambassador is
using those skills to promote products to fellow ballplayers.
Mighty Mike Macenko, one of only three people to be
inducted into all four softball Halls of Fame – ASA, ISA, NSA
and USSSA, has recently been named National Sales Manager
for Anaconda Sports, manufacturer of Trump softballs and
other great products.
“With his resume, Mike could be working for anybody in
the softball industry, but he chose our company and we are
honored to have him,” said Kevin Schullstrom, Vice-President
of Sales & Marketing for Anaconda/Trump.
Macenko, now 53, has received many nicknames over the
years; “Big Cat” and “Gorilla Boy” are two of the most
popular. His personal website – www.BigCat844.com -- is called
Mike Macenko’s House of Swing and is a veritable cornucopia
of softball history. He has worked off and on in the softball
industry much of his life, including part-time for Anaconda for
the past couple of years.
“Kevin (Schullstrom) approached me about joining Trump
in December of 2006,” said Macenko. “I had known Kevin
for several years and knew he had helped develop many
outstanding products, so I jumped at the opportunity. It was a
chance to tap into the many relationships I had accumulated in
softball by selling their great balls and bats.”
Now, Macenko will be on the road selling softball products
full-time for Anaconda. Traveling the roadways of America is
nothing new for Macenko, who has a well-known preference
for driving over flying.
“I never mind hopping in my truck and heading to a softball
park anywhere in the country,” said Macenko, who conducted
the interview for this story while driving from his home in
Cleveland, Ohio to a softball exhibition in Jacksonville, Florida.
Macenko logged many miles over the years while playing
for the Steele’s Hitmen. For two years, 1986-87, the historical
team was softball’s version of the Harlem Globetrotters. After
playing in a weekend tournament, the team – while traveling
in a pair 15-passenger vans – would make stops every night of
the week in small towns en route to the next weekend’s tournament and play exhibition games against local teams, who
would serve as their version of the Washington Generals. That
schedule, which was organized by their late, great traveling
secretary/promoter Jerome Earnest, would continue every
week throughout the softball season. Macenko, who loves to
drive, was usually at the wheel of one of those vans.
Steele’s played 230 games in the 1986 season, and followed
that up with 350 in 1987. It was during the ’87 season that
USSSA TODAY 25
Macenko set an all-time softball record
of 844 home runs (which is where his
website got the name BigCat844.com).
By comparison, the most home runs hit
by any player in 2008 was Greg Connell
with 88.
“I guarantee you at least half of those
home runs – about 400 – were hit on
baseball stadiums, such as local high
school baseball fields,” said Macenko. “I
was just confident that I could hit it out
of anywhere. Other guys complained
about us always having to play on baseball fields, but I enjoyed trying to do
something different.”
The longest home run Macenko ever
hit (that was measured) came at a tournament in Las Vegas in 1987. Steele’s
was playing the San Antonio Stars and
Macenko went 8-for-8 with 6 home
runs. One of his blasts struck the local
commissioner’s car as he was pulling
into the parking lot. They stepped off
the distance and it came to 508 feet!
And Macenko hit the ball with a 36 oz.
Steele’s Orange Elliott bat that the team
was promoting at the time.
“The week before in Albuquerque, New
Mexico, I hit several balls that I swear
went further, but we never stepped any
of those off,” Macenko recalled.
The purpose of the barnstorming tour
was to promote the products of Steele’s
Softball Company, which was owned by
the team’s coach, the late Dave Neale.
“Dave wanted to take the game to
the people,” said Macenko. “One day
we traveled all over rural Pennsylvania
trying to find this town called
Turbinville. When we finally got there
and found the ballpark, there was a
crowd of 2,500 waiting for us. We put
on quite a display that night and one of
the boys in the crowd was Mike Shenk,
who was just a young kid at the time. He
said to himself, ‘I want to play like these
guys one day,’ and sure enough he grew
up to be an All-American third-baseman
and power hitter for many great teams
of the late 1990s and early 2000s.”
Though not likely, Macenko the barnstorming concept could conceivably
happen again, “If the right people, with
enough money, wanted to get out and
promote the game the way Dave did.”
26 USSSA TODAY
Neale, Macenko and Bruce Meade are
the only players in the softball Halls
of Fame of all four major associations.
Ironically, Neale, who is also from the
Cleveland area, discovered Macenko
playing in a local city league for Hillcrest
Tavern before either of them made the
big time.
Macenko loves to tell stories about
his days of playing for Neale and the
Steele’s Hitmen and hints that a book
detailing those travels could be forthcoming in the future. He said that his
favorite tournament was always the
Smoky Mountain Classic in Maryville,
Tenn.
“The atmosphere there is just incredible. The people truly enjoy coming
out and watching the best slow-pitch
softball teams from across the country
compete,” said Macenko. His most vivid
memory was the Saturday night winner’s
bracket final in 1987, when 7,000
people crowded into Sandy Springs Park
to watch Steele’s play. Macenko loved
making it to Sunday morning, when
the Tennessee Walking Horses would
greet the teams and fans with a classical performance. “If you were there
to see that, you knew you had done
pretty good and were about to play for
a championship,” he said.
Macenko recalls playing Howard’s
Western Steer for the Smoky championship in 1987. Steele’s was undefeated,
so Howard’s had to double-dip them.
Howard’s was winning the first game,
31-15, and Steele’s players were playing
lethargically in the scorching heat. “So
Dave went out and picked a fight with
umpires Doug McBrane and Larry Hunt.
Doug said, ‘Dave you’ve got two minutes
to leave the field or it’s ballgame.’ Dave
replied, ‘Start counting!’ Craig Elliott
said to me, “Mike, you better come get
Dave, I think he’s lost his mind.’ Sure
enough, after two minutes Doug called
ballgame. Dave took us down in the
shade for 20 minutes while we waited for
the if game to start, while the Howard’s
guys stayed out in the sun. We came out
fired up and smoked their asses, 52-30,
to win the championship. I’m not sure
how, but Dave’s strategy paid off that
time.” Macenko was named MVP of the
tournament that year.
Macenko and fellow teammates Danny
Williams and Scott Virkus travelled
to be at Neale’s side to recall many of
those memories before he passed away
recently.
In addition to his many years with
Steele’s, Macenko also played for such
great teams as National Advertising,
Sunbelt/Lighthouse
and
RitchesSuperior. He came out of retirement in
1999 to help an upstart Budweiser team
from Texas place high at the Kentucky
Major, Busch Classic in Little Rock,
Smoky Mountain Classic and ASA Major
National Championship. Even though
Macenko has been retired from fulltime play on the Big Time Softball circuit
for over 10 years, he stills ranks 5th alltime in most home runs at the USSSA
World Series. He also ranks in the top 15
in most hits and most RBIs at that event.
“All that traveling, I enjoyed it. I
would do it again in a heartbeat,” said
Macenko. “I was fortunate that I had the
support of my wife, who wanted me to
excel. It definitely prepared me for what
I am doing today within the softball
industry.” Macenko said he would likely
attend 10 or so tournaments during
this season, plus other trade shows and
conventions.
Macenko looks forward to sharing many
of his war stories with customers while
he’s selling products for Anaconda and
Trump. One of the top-sellers for the
company is a new bat produced for
50-and-over players by Combat called
the Senior Gear Mike Macenko Model.
“The bat is a tribute to the ol’ guy, and
its as hot or hotter than anything on the
market,” said Schullstrom. Another bat
in the inventory is The Legend by Larry
Carter, which is made by DeMarini and is
named after one of many former teammates of Macenko during his prolific
career.
In addition to the bats and Trump balls,
Anaconda carries an extensive line of
softball products. Several team buy-in
packages are available for budgets of
varying sizes. For more information on
Anaconda or Trump products, or just
to talk softball with a true legend of
the game, call Mike Macenko at (330)
419-0205.
Host Hotel for all
Worth Lone Star Shoot Outs
at Big League Dreams–Mansfield
Mansfield
Inn & Suites
775 N. Hwy. 287
Mansfield, Texas
For Reservations:
817-539-0707
Call For Special Softball Rate
3 miles from Big League Dreams–Mansfield
USSSA SLOWPITCH SOFTBALL
MIDWEST DIVISION
Conference USSSA To Make Two Stops
In Texas During 2009 Season
Big Time Softball had been around for
decades. Players like Big Jim Galloway,
Tex Collins, Mighty Joe Young and Bruce
Meade belted towering home runs
before huge, captivated crowds dating
all the way back to the wood bat era.
Everybody wanted a piece of the action.
Over the years, multiple associations
flooded the market with their versions
of Major NIT’s and the net result eventually became a bunch of smaller, watereddown get-togethers that lacked the
appeal of large events from softball’s
heyday. Sure, premier showcases like the
Smoky Mountain Classic in Maryville, TN
and Dudley Classic in Brooklyn Center,
MN still flourished as always. But many
of the newer and less-visible tournaments often turned into disappointing
six-to-eight-team brackets that served
as nothing more than glorified scrimmages.
By the end of the 20th century, numbers
had dwindled drastically. Sponsors who
were spending big dollars on airline
tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, meal
money and equipment became discouraged with what they were getting for
their investment and began leaving the
sport.
Something had to be done, fast, before
the upper level of slow-pitch softball
became extinct. After the 2005 season,
USSSA Executive Director/CEO Don
DeDonatis came up with the concept of
Conference USSSA. Many now hail it as
the savior of the sport.
“Basically, we wanted to get the best
teams in the country together for
several weekends a year to showcase
the best players and teams at locations
from coast to coast,” said DeDonatis.
“This is the Major League of softball.”
30 USSSA TODAY
Conference USSSA has been a resounding
success. Eighteen teams bought into the
new program in 2006. After witnessing
the popularity of the venture, many
more teams jumped on board and the
Conference maxed out at 32 teams for
both 2007 and 2008. DeDonatis expects
Conference USSSA to fill up even faster
in 2009 than it has in previous years.
“With all the positive feedback from
Conference USSSA 2008, I can’t wait for
the 2009 season to begin,” DeDonatis
said. “With more teams joining,
Conference USSSA 2009 will be even
more exciting.”
Teams must invest $5,000 to join
Conference USSSA, but what they get
in return makes that fee a bargain.
For starters, it covers their entry fee
for any six of the 19 Conference NIT’s
that are spread around the country.
For the bigger budget teams who want
to play in more than six Conference
events, additional entry fees are $350.
For smaller budget teams from remote
areas who perhaps cannot make it to
six Conference tournaments, they may
apply unused entry fee money toward
any other USSSA tournament.
Conference USSSA is not just for Major
and class A teams, either. It is an excellent opportunity for top B, C and even
D teams to play a competitive schedule
to better prepare themselves for their
own World Tournaments.
“Instead of playing down all the time
and winning nothing more than a
trophy, some of these folks (B, C and D
teams) are stepping up to see how well
they stack up against the best competition in the country, and it is turning into
valuable points and ultimately dollars
for them down the road,” DeDonatis
said. “Everybody is treated equally..”
Conference USSSA 2008 consisted of
the three Major teams (Resmondo/
Worth, Dan Smith/Combat and Long
Haul/Miken), 11 class A teams, 15 class
B teams, two class C teams, and one
class D team. Even more participation is
expected from B, C and D teams in 2009.
Teams receive points based on their
results at Conference events, which are
then used to compile the standings. If
a team plays in more than six tournaments, their total points will be based
on their six best finishes. After the last
Conference NIT, all team point totals are
accumulated to determine the top 14
Men’s Major World series teams and the
top eight Men’s B/C/D teams. The highest
finishing A, B, C and D Conference teams
then get 500 bonus points toward their
open class point total, plus an additional
$500 travel money for their respective
World Tournaments. In addition, 100
participation points are awarded to all
B, C and D Conference teams for each
entry into a Conference NIT.
At the end of the season, the Conference
USSSA Championships are held at
the USSSA National Headquarters in
Kissimmee, FL on fields that are the
spring training home of the Houston
Astros. The top eight class A and above
teams play in the Conference USSSA
Major Championships, while the top
eight class B and below teams play in
the Conference USSSA B Championships.
Each of these 16 teams receives 10
rooms for two nights at one of the
host hotels and the events are covered
live on USSSA Live.. One of the highlights of championship weekend is the
Awards Dinner and Ceremony, where
Conference USSSA superlatives are
presented and All-Conference teams are
announced.
Don DeDonatis III of Resmondo/Worth
Greg Connell - Resmondo/Worth- 2008 Conference USSSA Homerun Champion.
was named Most Valuable Player for 2008. Jeff Hall was named
the Batting Champion and Greg Connell was the Home Run
Champion. Both Hall and Connell also played for Resmondo/
Worth. Scott Nastally of Dan Smith/Combat was named the
Outstanding Defensive Player, while J.C. Phelps of GTL/Worth
was named the Outstanding Offensive Player. John Rector of
Resmondo/Worth was tabbed the All-Conference Manager.
The benefits continue. The top 14 Conference teams, regardless of class, receive paid berths to the Men’s Major World
Series played at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Stadium. Each
team also receives 10 hotel rooms for four nights at one of the
host hotels, plus $2,000 travel money. All class A, B, C and D
teams who participate in Conference USSSA receive paid berths
to their respective World Tournaments, along with $2,000
travel money for those events. Class B and C teams also get
paid hotel rooms at their World Tournaments, while D teams
receive an additional $1,500 to apply toward their rooms at
John Rector, Resmondo/Worth- 2008 Conference USSSA Manager of
the Year.
World. DeDonatis points out that 22 of the 32 teams in the
Conference will receive the big financial package at the end,
which will more than recoup their initial $5,000 investment.
The 2009 Conference USSSA schedule will begin April 17-19
with the USSSA Hall of Fame Classic in Kissimmee, FL. The next
stop is a week later on April 24-26 at the USSSA Worth Men’s
Major in Glenn Burnie, MD, which is followed by the Gateway
City Classic on May 1-3 in St. Louis, MO. The circuit makes its
first of two trips to Texas on May 8-10 for the 8th Annual Texas
Legends N.I.T. in Euless, which is near Dallas. The Columbus
Major is held May 15-17 in Columbus, IN and is followed by
the Peach State Shootout on May 23-24 in Atlanta, GA. Two
Conference events are held on the May 29-31 weekend; the
21st Annual Mike Davis Memorial in Concord, CA and the
Music City Classic in Nashville, TN.
The second half of the Texas two-step will be held June 5-7 with
the 3rd Annual Space City Classic at the Big League Dreams
USSSA TODAY 31
complex in League City, which is just outside Houston. The
Windy City Invitational will be held June 12-14 in Joilet, IL and
will be followed by the heralded 27th Annual Dudley Classic
in Brooklyn Center, MN. The tour travels to New England on
June 26-28 for the Easton Sports Northeast Shootout in North
Branford, CT. Two Conference events are held on the Fourth of
July weekend; the Combat Major in Kent, WA and the Busch/
Pepsi Classic in Little Rock, AR.
Given the success of Conference USSSA, all other associations
have virtually abandoned trying to compete in the upper level
of softball, making the Conference the only game in town.
An added benefit of playing in Conference USSSA is nationwide
exposure on USSSA Live. The new company arrived on the scene
for the 2008 season and broadcast many of the Conference
events live via the Internet. Softball fans everywhere could
sit in front of their computers in the comfort of their homes
and watch the action live, complete with announcers, multiple
camera angles, instant replays and great interviews.
“They came in with a vision of taking softball to the next
level by showing all the folks out there what is going in these
premier events,” DeDonatis said. “The exposure has helped
the Conference, and fans get to see their favorite teams play.”
USSSA Live will further expand into girls fastpitch, boys baseball and possibly even other USSSA events.”
Conference USSSA has been a savior of Big Time Softball.
Conference events averaged a robust 28.7 teams per tournament in 2008. Sponsors who were beginning to feel neglected
are now seeing more value in their investment and sticking
around the game longer.
That means softball fans everywhere should be able to watch
and enjoy whenever the next Big Jim Galloway, Tex Collins,
Mighty Joe Young or Bruce Meade comes along.
2009 Conference Schedule
April 18-19
USSSA Hall of Fame Classic
Kissimmee - Florida
April 17-19
USSSA Hall of Fame Classic-Dual Event
Kissimmee - Florida
April 24-28
Shuckers/Worth USSSA Men’s Major
Glen Bumie - Maryland
May 1-3
Gateway City Classic
Bridgeton - Missouri
May 5-10
8th Annual Texas Legends Major NIT
Euless - Texas - North
May 15-17
Columbus Major NIT
Columbus - Indiana
May 23-24
Peach State Shootout
Marietta - Georgia
May 29-31
2009 USSSA Music City Major NIT
Gallatin - Tennessee
May 29-31
21st Annual Mike Davis Memorial
Concord - California - Northern
3rd Annual Space City Classic
League City - Texas - South
June 12-14
Windy City Invitational
Joliet - Illinois
June 19-21
27th DudIey/Budweiser Classic by Easton
Brooklyn Center - Minnesota
June 26-28
Worth/TYJA Northeast Shootout
North Branford - Connecticut
July 3-5
USSSA MEN’S MAJOR DOUBLE NIT
Kent- Washington
July 3-5
30th Pepsi Softball Classic
Sherwood -Arkansas
July 45
The Combat Major - Dual Event
Kent - Washington
July 10-12
Smoky Mountain Classic
Maryville - Tennessee
July 17-19
101h Annual Cincinnati Men’s Major
Cincinnati - Ohio - Cincinnati
July 24-26
3rd Annual Carolina Shootout
Raleigh - North Carolina
July 24-26
Rocky Mountain Shootout Men’s Major
Aurora - Colorado
August 7-9
Last Chance Conference Major NIT
Sterling Heights - Michigan
June 5-7
32 USSSA TODAY
Texas Softball Community
Mourns Death Of Dago Mendoza
DICKINSON -- The Texas softball community lost one of its most popular members
when Dago Mendoza was tragically
killed in a motorcycle accident on Jan.
14, 2009. Dago was the coach of Bud
Crew, a Men’s C team from Dickinson.
Dago was a friendly person, who was
known for wearing his Chuck Taylor
high-top sneakers, and having a beer
in his hand and a smile on his face. He
started the Bud Crew team many years
ago and for a long time they were just
an average D team. But Dago persevered and the team gradually got
better. Eventually, Bud Crew became a
dominant D team and got bumped to
Class C. After a brief adjustment period,
Bud Crew quickly became a dominant
team in C as well. They won first place
in the stacked Fall Budfest and followed
that up with a first place finish at the
Jokers’ Bring Your Best.
At the time of the accident, Bud Crew
was entered to play in the USSSA Winter
World just three days later. After a discussion with the players, team organizer
Diana Holub declared that the team
would play as Dago would have wanted
them to. It was an emotional weekend,
beginning with the team traveling
party of about 40 people entered the
gates at Big League Dreams together
wearing matching black Dago memorial
shirts. Large crowds packed the stands
to watch every Bud Crew game. Rene
Hinojosa sold Dago-tribute shirts and
towels, with all of the proceeds going
to Dago’s wife and children. Robin, one
of Bud Crew’s loyal supporters, passed
a bucket during the first game, telling
fans “It’s not free to watch Bud Crew
play!” Fans eagerly made donations
to the fund that also went to Dago’s
family. The sponsor of Bud crew’s first
opponent, Jerry Burks from Straight
Shot Trucking, presented Dago’s wife
with a check for $1,000 before the game
-- even though he did not know Dago
personally. In all, over $4,200 was raised
for the family.
Bud Crew won their first game over
Straight Shot, 16-9. After the game, close
to 100 fans and supporters rushed on
the field for an impromptu gathering to
grieve together for Dago. An hour later,
the team return to the playing field and
score a thrilling 19-16 win over Mares/
Zamora’s All-Out Sports in a game that
ended with a walkoff home run. In the
semi-finals of the winner’s bracket, Bud
Crew dropped a 12-8 decision against
the Fighting Cocks. But the went to
the elimination bracket and scored two
more exciting wins -- 14-13 in a re-match
with All-Out, and 15-14 over Slapaho
-- before finally being eliminated with
a fine third place finish. The Fighting
Cocks ended up winning the division,
and when the tournament was over
their team voted to give their first place
trophy to Dago’s family.
The next day, Dago’s viewing was held
in Dicksinson. “The place was packed;
this man was loved by a lot of people,”
said Hinojosa. “I was very happy to see
players I have not seen in years that
used to play for Bud Crew in the early
years. But it was also sad to see so many
people hurt and crying for a great friend
to us all. He will never be forgotten.”
Dago’s funeral service was held Monday,
Jan. 19, in Dickinson. Hinojosa said there
was a line of cars 4 miles long driving
down the freeway from the funeral
home to the cemetery.
Hinojosa said he plans to host a
Memorial Tournament in Dago’s honor
every year.
USSSA TODAY 33
Big League Dreams - League City, TX
Hosts Winter World Championships
LA Strokers
Mens D Champions
LEAGUE CITY -- The 2009 softball season got underway with
the USSSA Winter World I Tournament at Big League Dreams
in League City on Jan. 17-18. The skies were sunny and clear
and the weather was warm, yet the mood was somber as softball players were grieving from the recent passing of their
friend Dago Mendoza.
Mendoza’s team, Bud Crew, competed in the Men’s B/C bracket
and made a strong showing by finishing in third place despite
having to play with heavy hearts. The B/C division was captured
by the Fighting Cocks from Houston. Manager Elias Wallace’s
team opened with an 18-4 win over the Coors Light Wizards
from San Antonio. They followed that with a 12-8 victory over
Bud Crew from Dickinson, then knocked off Team Crush from
Spring, 13-11, to advance to the championship game. After the
loss to the Fighting Cocks, Team Crush dropped to the loser’s
bracket and beat Bud Crew, 18-7, to advance to the championship game. In a re-match of the same two teams who met
in the 2008 Lone Star Shootout Series Men’s C State Finals,
Team Crush snuck past the previously-undefeated Fighting
Cocks, 21-20, to set up a winner-takes-all “if” game. But the
Cocks pounded the ball in the finale to take a 19-7 championship win and finish with a 4-1 record. With the victory, the
Fighting Cocks earned an automatic berth to the 2009 USSSA
Men’s C World Tournament to be held at the Disney Complex
in Florida. Team Crush finished second in the division with a 4-2
34 USSSA TODAY
record, followed by Bud Crew from Dickinson in third place at
4-2. Slapaho, who is from Dickinson and had some former Bud
Crew players on their team who were grieving Dago’s passing
as much as anybody, came in fourth place in the strong 10-team
bracket with a 3-2 record. Team Steel from Corpus Christi and
Mares/Zamora All-Out Sports from Rosenburg tied for fifth
place, while Texas Smash from Austin and Straight Shot from
Conroe tied for seventh.
Monty Lewis of the Fighting Cocks was named Most Valuable
Player of the B/C division, while Tom Batson of Team Crush
was named Gold Glove winner. Other players named to the
All-Tournament team were Adrian Mendoza, Ryan Riddle,
Thomas Melvin and Walter Schomburg, of the Fighting Cocks;
Doug Waindell, Jody Higginbotham and Curtis Hall, of Team
Crush; and Mike Christiansen, Joe Brown and Damien Tracy,
of Slapaho. Rather than designate any individuals to the
All-Tournament team, Bud Crew wanted to bestow the honor
on all their players for having the courage to come out and
play ball just three days after the passing of their coach.
In the Men’s D bracket, the LA Strokers from Lafayette,
Louisiana made the long trip to League City and waltzed
through six games undefeated to claim the championships. The
Strokers defeated Craftmasters from Houston (13-1), T-Baggers
from Houston (12-8), BTX Outsiders from Beaumont (14-2),
TKO from San Antonio (17-7) and Third
Coast from Texas City (12-0) to advance
to the championship game, where they
defeated Third Coast again, this time
13-12, for the title. Third Coast settled
for second place with a 6-2 record.
TKO took the third place trophy back
to the Alamo City with a 5-2 record,
while Sam Sjolander’s new Unleashed
Softball team from Highlands came in
fourth place with a 4-2 record. Other
teams who made strong showings in the
41-team bracket were the BTX Outsiders
and H-Town Boyz, tied for fifth place;
Dirt Monkeys from Houston and Steel
Softball from Corpus Christi, tied for
seventh; and Trailer Park Stars from
Deer Park, Pizzini Sports from Corpus
Christi, Urban Assault from Austin and
Cool Arrows from Baytown, all tied for
ninth place. USSSA Winter World Points
were paid out through 24th place, so
that included the 13th place finishers:
Hardfeathers, T-Baggers, Triumph and
Takeover, as well as the 17th place
finishers: Swamproom, Craftmasters,
Reds, Fierce Ultra, Notorious, Bad
Intentions, RMS and Underdawgs.
Channing Creadur of the LA Strokers
was named MVP of the D division,
while Alberto Trevino of Third Coast
was named the Gold Glove winner.
Other members of the All-Tournament
team were Eloy Cornajo, Blake Lemaire,
Bryan Roberts and Jonathan Doucet,
of the LA Strokers; Bryan Pinder, Andy
Monterrubio and Marc Ortiz, of Third
Coast; Eddie Ortiz, Steve Navarro and
John Ortiz, of TKO; and Conner Carberry
and Derek VonHeader of Unleashed
Softball.
The Men’s E division is relatively new to
South Texas, but 11 teams competed in
the bracket. Los Clavos, who made a long
journey from Uvalde, went undefeated
to win first place. Los Clavos knocked
off Intoxicated (5-3), Buc’s (13-7) and
Hellrazers (9-8) to get to the championship game, where they defeated
Hellrazers again (11-1) to capture the
crown. The Hellrazers from San Antonio
earned the second place trophy with
a 3-2 record. Buckwild from Houston
lost their first game of the tournament,
then rallied to win four straight in the
loser’s bracket before being eliminated
with third place. Intoxicated from Lake
USSSA TODAY 35
36 USSSA TODAY
STX BIG LEAGUE DREAMS / LEAGUE CITY
Date
2009 Qualifier Dates & Locations
2008 QUALIFIER
DATES & LOCATIONS
Complex
City
Contact
March 14-15
Big League Dreams/Mansfield
Mansfield
Greg Huchingson
DATES
COMPLEX
CITY
CONTACT
Feb.
PhyllisMary
Williford
March 2-3
14-15
Time WarnerSTX
Cable Big
Park League Dreams League City
San Antonio
Regan
Feb. 16-17
Time Warner Park (Ancira) San Antonio
Dale Padro
March 21-22
The Grandstands
Corpus Christi
Raul Dominguez, Jr.
March 1-2
STX Big League Dreams League City
Scott Sheldon
March 28-29
Huchingson
March
8-9 Big League Dreams/League
Bryan Reg.City
Ath. Complex Bryan League City Greg Greg
Huchingson
March
NTX Big League Dreams MansfieldMansfield
Greg Greg
Huchingson
April 4-5 15-16
Big League Dreams/Mansfield
Huchingson
March 15-16
Time Warner Park (Ancira) San Antonio
Dale Padro
April 18-19
Harlingen Sports Complex
Harlingen
Frank Tamez
March 22
Grady T. Wallace
Texarkana
Chris Bates
April 18-19
Complex
Bates
March
29-30Grady T. Wallace
Kreig
Complex
Austin Texarkana
Greg Chris
Huchingson
April
5-6 Bill WilliamsSTX
League Dreams League City
PhyllisTommy
Williford
April 18-19
Sports Big
Complex
Midland
Hawkins
April 5-6
Killeen Athletic Complex Killeen
Pete Vento
April 25-26
Big League Dreams/Mansfield
Mansfield
Greg Huchingson
April 12-13
NTX Big League Dreams Mansfield
Greg Huchingson
May 2-3
Budweiser Festival
Huchingson
April
19-20 24th AnnualHarlingen
Complex
HarlingenBryan-College Station
FrankGreg
Tamez
April
19-20 Time WarnerCentennial
Park
Pearland San Antonio Robert
Borden
May 23-24
Cable Park
Mary
Regan
April
26-27
Lindsey
Park
Tyler
Van
Jordan
May 30-31
The Grandstands
Corpus Christi
Raul Dominguez, Jr.
May 3-4
Budweiser Festival
College Station
Greg Huchingson
June 6-7
League Dreams/League City
League City
Greg Huchingson
May
10 (SatBigonly)
Riverbend Park
Waco
Cynthia
Simms
May
17-18 Big League Dreams/Mansfield
NTX Big League Dreams MansfieldMansfield
Greg Greg
Huchingson
June 13-14
Huchingson
May
24-25
Time
Warner
Park
(Ancira)
San
Antonio
Dale
Padro
June 27-28
NORTH TEXAS STATE FINALS (All divisions)
Mansfield
Greg Huchingson
May 31-June 1
STX Big League Dreams League City
Phyllis Williford
July 4-5
STATE FINALS (Men’s D)
Huchingson
June
14-15 SOUTH TEXAS
NTX
Big League Dreams MansfieldLeague City Greg Greg
Huchingson
July 11-12
SOUTH TEXAS
STATE FINALS
(Men’sD,
B, C,
Women, Co-ed)
League City
Huchingson
July
5-6
FINALS
(Mens
E,E,Co-ed)
Mansfield
Greg Greg
Huchingson
July 5-6
FINALS (Mens B, C, Women) League City
Greg Huchingson
BATTLE FOR TRUE STATE CHAMPIONSHIP OF TEXAS
The top five finishers in each division of every Lone Star
Shootout qualifier receive a berth to the Lone Star Shootout
State Championship Finals, where the prize package will
include WORTH bats and custom Super Bowl style rings.
TO REGISTER OR GET MORE INFORMATION:
Series Coordinator GREG HUCHINGSON
Phone: (979) 575-5669
E-Mail: info@lonestarsoftball.com
Phone
(979) 575-5669
PHONE
(281)
(210) 316-3400
545-2700
(210) 545-2700
(361) 854-9994
(281) 316-3400
(979) 575-5669
575-5669
(979)
(979)
(979) 575-5669
575-5669
(210) 545-2700
(956) 245-0264
(903) 908-1327
(903) 575-5669
908-1327
(979)
(281)
(432) 316-3400
520-9100
(254) 501-8861
(979) 575-5669
(979) 575-5669
(979) 245-0264
575-5669
(956)
(281)
(210) 652-1675
545-2700
(903)
531-1377
(361) 854-9994
(979) 575-5669
(979) 575-5669
(254)
750-8071
(979)
(979) 575-5669
575-5669
(210)
545-2700
(979) 575-5669
(281) 316-3400
(979) 575-5669
(979)
575-5669
(979) 575-5669
575-5669
(979)
(979) 575-5669
Many prayers from the ballfield were sent up to remember Dago Mendoza.
Jackson came in fourth place, while the
Buc’s from Houston and Texas Dawgs
from Euless tied for fifth place; and
Swingin’ Richards from Pasadena and
Rich’s rejects from Baytown tied for
seventh.
Jayce Creech of Los Clavos was named
Most Valuable Player in the E division,
and Ricky Olmos of the Hellrazers was
named the Gold Glove winner. Other
players picked for the All-Tournament
team were Randy Aleman, Presiliano
Briones, Rick banda and Rick Hernandez,
of Los Clavos; Jericho Trevino, Joey Perez
and Rich Clemms, of Hellrazers; Larry
Hernandez, Gerald Dickerson and Zinc
Ramirez, of Buckwild, and Perry Ellis and
John Hargrove, of Intoxicated.
It was a rollercoaster ride for Team Crush
from Houston. They opened the year
with a top 10 finish at the Snoball Classic
in Denison, which is an open home run
tournament that featured many Class A
players and teams. Crush, which began
the year classified as a B team, then
38 USSSA TODAY
suffered through some tough times.
After a few player defections, manager
Willie Whittington considered shutting
the team down. But he was granted a
reprieve with a reclassification to Class C
and made the best of the second chance.
A few high tournament finishes were
just a precursor of the season highlight
-- winning first place at the Lone Star
Shootout Championship Finals. Team
Crush posted wins over Tradewerkes,
Team SSB, Lackland Warhawks and
Team Steel to reach the championship
game undefeated. Fighting Cocks/Elite
emerged from the loser’s bracket and
then handed Team Crush their first loss
of the tournament, 13-8, to force an “if
necessary” game. Team Crush managed
to get off the canvass and defeat
Fighting Cocks/Elite, 10-7, to capture the
crown with a 6-1 record.
Fighting Cocks/Elite, also from Houston,
settled for second place with a 5-2
record at the State Finals. Mares/AYS
gave Houston a sweep of the top three
places by finishing third with a 4-2
record. Team Steel from Corpus Christi
scored several upset wins to capture
fourth place with a 4-2 record. The
Lackland Warhawks from San Antonio
and UT-Brothers from Houston tied for
fifth place, number one-seed Bud Crew
from Dickinson and the Brokers from
Houston tied for seventh, and Most
Hated from Corpus Christi, Whut It Dew
from San Marcos, FW Jokers from Ft.
Worth and Team SSB from San Antonio
tied for ninth.
Bryan Rogge of Team Crush was named
the MVP of the C division, while Thomas
Melvin of the Fighting Cocks/Elite
was the Gold Glove winner. The rest
of the All-Tournament team included
Kody Nail, Jody Higginbotham, Jason
Guillory and Allen Sanders, of Team
Crush; Jeff Smith, Jonathan Cole and
Walter Schomberg, of Fighting Cocks/
Elite; Mark Sanchez and Dustin Haas,
of Mares/AYS; and Richard Salazar and
Mikey Garibay, of Team Steel.
Wood Law Gets Past Vivid
To Win C Bracket
at USSSA Winter World II in Mansfield
Wood Law
Mens C Champions
MANSFIELD - With at-large berths to the
2009 World Tournaments and National
Level Points on the line, there were some
exciting battles at the USSSA Winter
World II held Jan. 24-25 at Big League
Dreams in Mansfield. One bracket was
decided by a single run in the championship game, another went to an
“if” game that forced a third battle
between two visiting teams, and allin-all the tournament was competitive,
if not chilly. After a gorgeous week in
North Texas, teams were welcomed by
a cold front on Saturday morning that
brought temperatures in the 30s with a
gusty wind that made the misery factor
even worse. Those winds dies down
by Saturday night and Sunday finals
rounds were played in a mostly pleasant
climate.
Fresh off a second place finish at the
Snoball Classic (open HRs) just one week
earlier, Wood Law from Dallas went
undefeated through five games to claim
the championship of the Men’s C bracket.
In their opener, Wood Law crushed a
Class D team (texas Playboys) who was
playing up, 37-5. Next, they snuck past a
2008 D team that got bumped to C for
2009, Ruthless Ink from Plano, 13-11 to
reach the winner’s bracket semi-finals of
the 14-team bracket. In a battle of longtime Big D powerhouses, Wood Law
earned the judgment over Team RCM,
21-12. Then in the winner’s bracket
finals, Wood Law barely defeated Vivid
from Princeton, 15-12. Vivid dropped to
the loser’s bracket and sent home Mafia/
Fleetwood Concrete of Ft. Worth to get
another shot against Wood Law in the
finals. The game went down to the wire,
with Wood Law scoring a hard-fought
19-18 win to claim the championship.
Vivid, who entered the tournament
as the number one-ranked C team in
Texas, settled for the runnerup trophy
with a 4-2 record. There will surely be
more epic battles between these two
teams in the 2009 season. Third place
went to Mafia/Fleetwood Concrete,
while fourth place went to Team RCM
with a 3-2 mark. Coors from Ft. Worth
and Monster from Little Elm (another
D team playing up) tied for fifth place,
while BG&S Diamond Kings from Dallas
and Savesecond.com from Pantego tied
for seventh place.
Loyd Watson of Wood Law was named
Most Valuable Player of the C division,
while Angel Castillo of Vivid was the
Gold Glove winner. Others named to
the All-Tournament team were Brad
Clay, Kevin Ballard, Preston Spurlin
and Adrian Cottle, of Wood Law; Perry
Hensley, Jacob Miller and Jeremy Clark,
of Vivid; and Kyle Atkins, Keith Perry
and Chad Girard, of Mafia/Fleetwood.
In the Men’s D bracket, couple of teams
made the trip from different directions
but both paths led to the championship
game. In the top half of the bracket,
USSSA TODAY 39
Texas Gunline
Mens E Champions
Kickin’ U from Oklahoma City posted wins over the Jokers/GKI
from Fort Worth (8-7), North Texas Hype from Grand Prairie
(14-13), Raging Lunatics from Dallas (12-1), and Aztecas from
Dallas (17-14) to reach the finals of the winner’s bracket. In
bottom half of the bracket, DSP from Houston defeated
Ballistic from Euless (10-7), Escobar/Ronoco/Worth from DeSoto
(17-12), Five Star from Tyler (12-11), and Outlawz from Dallas
(14-2) to join Kickin’ U in the winner’s bracket finals. DSP won
the king’s seat game (16-6) and waited for Kickin’ U to drop
to the loser’s bracket and knock off the Outlawz to come back
for another shot in the finals. The team from north of the Red
River put it on the Bayou City Boys (22-13) in the first championship game to force an “if necessary” contest. But the big sticks
from Kickin’ U ran out of gas, as DSP scored a convincing 16-1
run-rule victory to claim the championship with a 6-1 record.
Kickin U settled for second place with a 6-2 slate. The Outlawz
came in third place with a 5-2 mark, while Linedrive Softball
from Little Rock, Ark. came in fourth with a 6-2 record. Unreal
Softball from Wills Point and the Aztecas tied for fifth place in
the 36-team bracket, while Jokers/GKI and the Raging Lunatics
tied for seventh. Other teams placing in the top 10 were the Ft.
Worth Titans, Five Star, Ballistic and Terror Squad from Bryan,
all tied for ninth place. USSSA National Level Points were
paid out through 24th place, so other teams scoring points
on the weekend were: 13th place finishers Escobar/Ronoco/
Worth, Pinche Balazos, Famous Softball and the Bullets, plus
17th place finishers CSI, 2-n-Gone, DJ Rudy’s Boyz, North Texas
Hype, Turmoil, Louisiana’s Finest, Outcasts, and Mayhem.
Brandon Oritz of DSP was named MVP of the D division, and
Adrian Gascon of Kickin U was named Gold Glove. Others
named to the All-Tournament team were Justin Mark, Casey
40 USSSA TODAY
Sparks, Louis Castillo and Rubin Leos, of DSP; Lee Beavers, Zack
Dennis and Steve Pollard, of Kickin U; Nathan Donohoe, Ismael
Rodriguez and Sal Mancillas, of Outlawz; and Chase Cope and
Kyle Lemm, of Linedrive Softball.
In the Men’s E bracket, Texas Gunline from Nacogdoches went
undefeated through six games to win first place. Texas Gunline
posted wins over Relentless from Dallas (15-3), Texas Sawx from
Mansfield (14-6), Tacabron from Euless (14-2), Aftermath from
Dallas (16-15), and Texas Trouble from Forney (15-3) to reach
the championship game. Texas Gunline met Texas Trouble
again in the finals and posted a 20-8 to claim the crown. Texas
Trouble made a fine second place showing with a 5-2 record.
Titan Softball Club from Dallas came in third place with an
8-2 mark, and Future Softball from Amarillo in the West Texas
panhandle came in fourth place at 6-2. Aftermath and the
Ballers tied for fifth place; Disruption and pre-tourney favorite
Texas Smoke tied for seventh; and Tacabron, N-Dangered,
Hostility and the Merchants of Death tied for ninth. Other
teams who earned USSSA Points in the event were: 13th place
finishers the Diamond Rats, Odessa Diablos, Texas Select and
Relentless, along with 17th place finishers Major Impact,
Rehab, Entourage, Texas Turbulence, D-12, Texas Anarchy, Los
Pistoleros and Texas Sawx.
Chase Phillips of Texas Gunline was selected Most Valuable Player
of the E division. Phillips was joined on the All-Tournament list
by teammates Matthew Strode, Tyrone Fields, Reece Leonard
and Aaron McGuire. The Gold Glove winner was Nick Senn,
of Texas Trouble. Other players named All-Tournament were
Ryan Cooprider, Melvin Gause and B.J. Taylor, of Texas Trouble,
Chad Harris, Sean Greeley and Blake Hughes, of Titans SBC;
and Max Mungia and Michael Littlejohn, of Future Softball.
NORTHWEST DIVISION
‘Crown Jewel of the Northwest’
by Mark Terpening
Oregon USSSA Slow Pitch
State Director
Along I-5 and an hour south of Portland is Salem, the capitol of
Oregon. Salem is where you will find the government hard at
work, and the surrounding land is known for it abundance of
Christmas trees, grass seed, fruit farms and wineries. However,
tucked along the Willamette River in West Salem you will
find beautiful Wallace Marine Sports Complex with it’s five
immaculate softball fields. Often referred as ‘the star’ due to
the symmetrical design of the fields and walkways, Wallace
has drawn countless players and spectators from all 50 states
as well as several countries from around the world. Since it’s
opening in 1986, the park has been a destination for player’s
young and old and of all abilities.
river, and with its proximity a few blocks off busy Wallace
Road, the park offers a glimpse of the great Oregon outdoors
and the seasons are distinct by the Spring buds on the maple
trees that line the pathways and parking lot, to the abundance
of leaves offering people shade during the Summer, and the
mess they make as the fall during…the Fall.
While Salem has been the home of Oregon USSSA for over 30
years for league, the park also hosts scores of other events for
other associations, high schools and college play. League play
at Wallace has about 110 teams per week, and the weekends
often have to have the overflow parking lot open to accommodate the mass of players and spectators. Salem Softball
In a day where new state of the art softball complexes with Umpires Association has been a consistent group of umpires
field turf garner most of the attention, for over 20 years has that have provided umpire services since well before the park
been a hot spot for softball activity and continues to endure opened. SSUA still has several umpires active that were there
the test of time. Arguably, it’s in better condition now and in 1986 and continue to call games today.
even more attractive than when it was first build. Through the
The park has seen its share of ups and downs over its 23 year
cities efforts and some passionate volunteers, the park recently
existence. After being a privately run park for the first 20 years,
has gone through a makeover that includes raised landscaped
the City of Salem has taken over the park and has reinvested
beds, new shrubs and flowers, lights and signage.
in its future with new landscaping, paint, infield dirt, and an
A typical season in Salem runs from April 1st through October. updated playground. The park has also survived two devasWhile dealing with chances of rain in April, and colder nights tating floods, with the flood of 1996 tearing down the fences,
in October, the five months in between provide a comfortable removing the topsoil, and water nearly reaching the 2nd floor
playing experience with cooler temperatures coming off the of the main building that holds the concessions, umpire room,
river, ample shade trees, and almost zero humidity. A typical office and storage.
day at the park will offer a chance to see a falcon like bird
While plans have been in the works for another five field ‘star’
called an osprey with a fish in its talons in flight to the waiting
across the parking lot and may happen some day, Wallace
chicks nestled in their nest high atop one of the light posts.
Marine Sports Complex has not only preserved over time, but is
On occasion, a fish carcass will be tossed out of the nest for
aging very nicely. In another 20 years, the park will be hosting
an unsuspecting player to come across and dispose of. Large
another generation of softball enthusiasts, and even then, the
Cottonwood trees offer a buffer between the park and the
slogan ‘Crown Jewel of the Northwest’ will surely still fit.
USSSA TODAY 41
Wallace Marine Sports Complex
by Thomas Kaffun
In the process of designing the sport complex back in 1983
everyone considering developing four fields. I thought
we could do something different and after looking at a
complex in Kansas where they had developed a five field
complex in a different fashion that currently exists with the
Wallace Marine Sports Complex. I indicated to the director
that we could develop five fields. The time frame was short
and we had to start developing construction drawings for
the four fields. One night I had a dream and a light switch
went off about 4:00AM when I woke up. I had an office in
my home with a drafting table. From 4:00 AM to 8:00 AM
I designed the facility that currently exists and presented it
to the administration staff the next morning. Everyone in
the room agreed that this might work and we proceeded
to develop construction drawings for the five fields.
As a part of the sports complex I needed to design a road
to the facility. I wanted a sense of arrival. As you drive
down Glen Creek Road you enter Wallace Marine Park. As
Wallace Marine
Park Profile
n
Built in 1986
n
5 dirt & grass fields
n
300’ fences all around
n
Concessions stand
w/ restroom facilities
n
Field #1 Championship field
with grandstand
n
250 parking spaces
n
No admission or player
fee for most events
44 USSSA TODAY
you look to the left you will see the sports complex in the
distance. The road turns to the left, you loose site of the
complex, and as the road continues over a hill and you see
the sports complex in it grandeur.
Wallace Marine Sports Complex is in a pristine natural
setting along the Willamette River. You don’t even know
that you are next to a city. The Sports Complex opened in
June of 1986, is now 23 years old, and has stood its time in
serving the community of Salem and softball teams from
all over the United States.
HISTORICAL NOTE TO GO ALONG WITH THE FIRST HOME
RUN BY JIM DICKERSON: The first home run by a female
player at Wallace Marine Park was on July 15, 1995 by
Kathy Riley of Cannon Illusions playing out of Texas in the
Women’s Northwest Open. Kathy was the tournament
MVP as one of her many accomplishments before her
induction into the USSSA Hall of Fame in 1999.
NORTHWEST DIVISION
Player Profile
Jim Dickerson
• Age 60
• Lives in Salem
• Hit first Homerun at Wallace Field #2 1986
• First swing batting left
• Bat used: 38oz. Whipped and Whomped
Bombat.
Jim is still playing at Wallace and is known as
one of the nicer guys that plays hard and plays
to win. Jim is a switch-hitting outfielder, with
great speed, a steady glove and deadly arm. A
fearsome slugger who could knock em’ out of
the park on any swing, Jim still has plenty of
game left at a young age of 60.
USSSA TODAY 45
USSSA BASEBALL
The Hottest New Amateur Baseball Program
in the Country…Global Sports Baseball
Pointstreak to provide
Real-time Scoring for
CENLA Q’uen on the Red
Toronto, ON – Pointstreak.com Inc.
and CENLA Baseball are pleased to
announce that Pointstreak will provide
real-time scoring and official statistics
services to the Que’in on the Red tournament on March 21-22. All interested
stakeholders fans, friends, family,
media will be able to follow the games
and their outcome in real-time on the
CENLA website. (www.cenlabaseball.
com)
The Que’in on the Red is the Largest
Youth Baseball Tournament in Central
Louisiana. It is a National Invitation
tournament that will award 2 World
Series Berths to Each Age Group.
This event coincides with the largest
Bar-B-Que festival in Central Louisiana.
The tournament will be host to over
60 Teams that will showcase their
talent before thousands of fans.
“Cenla Baseball has always been on
the leading edge of youth sports and
joining with Pointstreak is another
privilege that we feel once again
puts us in front of other Tournaments
around the country”, said Fred
Ruggles, Tournament Director of
CENLA Baseball.
“Pointstreak is proud to have been
chosen as the official real-time
scoring and statistics provider for
the CENLA Baseball Que’in on the
Red Tournament. We look forward
to servicing the needs of the players,
fans, and media and wish everyone the
best of luck during the tournament”,
said Scott Secord, President/CEO of
Pointstreak.
46 USSSA TODAY
What is Global Sports Baseball?
Global Sports Baseball is a division of
USSSA Baseball which is designed to
serve the growing need for regional,
affordable World Series. Global Sports
World Series is a 4 day, 7 game (average
minimum) World Series open to all classifications of USSSA teams ages 9 – 14.
How can my team participate in a GS
World Series?
Teams must qualify through a Global
Sports qualifying tournament to participate in a GS World Series. Most states will
offer 24 berths per age group through
qualifying tournaments. These tournaments will be scheduled during the
months of April, May and June. Once
qualified, teams must enter GS World
Series at www.usssa.com on a first come,
first served basis. Teams that qualify will
not be assured a spot at a specific World
Series location. Teams may qualify in one
state and play in a Global Sports World
Series in another state.
Do I need to register my team to
play Global Sports?
Teams must be registered with USSSA
Baseball and also must be registered
with Global Sports Baseball. Teams may
register for both at the same time at
www.usssa.com. Teams that have already
registered for USSSA Baseball may
register for Global Sports at any time
by logging into ISTS at www.iowausssa.
com. Registering at one time for both
USSSA and Global Sports will cost $45 per
season ($30 for USSSA and $15 for Global
Sports). Registering for USSSA and Global
Sports at separate times will cost $50 per
season ($30 for USSSA and $20 for Global
Sports).
Can my team earn USSSA Points
by playing in a Global Sports
Tournament?
Teams earn USSSA NIT points in all Global
Sports Qualifying Tournaments. Teams
earn USSSA World Series points in all
Global Sports World Series.
Does Global Sports have its own
rules and rule book?
Global Sports uses the Official USSSA
National Baseball By-laws and rules with
one addition: Teams may add up to two
USSSA players (frozen or unfrozen) to
their official USSSA roster at team checkin to participate in a Global Sports World
Series. Official rules are posted at www.
usssabaseball.org.
Where can I find Global Sports
Qualifiers and World Series Dates
and Locations?
Teams may find Global Sports Qualifiers
and World Series dates and locations at
www.ussssabaseball.org and www.usssa.
com. Teams may also contact their State
Director for qualifier and World Series
information.
Can my team play in two Global
Sports World Series?
Teams may play in multiple Global Sports
World Series if properly qualified and
have entered and reserved spot at www.
usssa.com.
My team qualified for the Elite 32 at
Disney but declined the berth, can
we play in a Global World Series?
Elite World Series qualified teams cannot
participate in a Global Sports World
Series even if declining the berth to the
Elite.
How much is the entry fee to play in
a Global Sports World Series?
Entry fee is $625 to participate in a Global
Sports World Series. The majority of all
teams will play 7 or 8 games over the 4
day World Series.
Will awards will be presented at a
Global World Series?
Each Global Sports World Series will
crown 3 World Series Champions in each
age group. Team and individual awards
will be presented to the champion and
runner up of the Red, White and Blue
Championship Play.
Gopher State Baseball League
by Dawson Blanck
Welcome to the GSBL Nation! It’s hard to believe that we are
about to embark upon the 10th season of the Gopher State
Baseball League, a USSSA sanctioned league. The season has
snuck up on us even though it is only the end of January and
often 0 degrees outside. So prepare yourself by cleaning and
oiling up the gloves, wiping the dust off the cleats and bats
and getting ready for another action-packed season.
The MYAS baseball staff is currently gearing up for the best
year yet of our comprehensive baseball program. We are very
proud of the GSBL and we’re excited to report that since its
inception in 1999, this league has become one of the largest
traveling baseball leagues in the Upper Midwest.
Each year more teams join the GSBL due to word of mouth as
well as the administrative services it provides. The 2009 season
looks promising because of the recent commitment from new
communities within the east and west metro areas and in
central Minnesota. As of 2008, the GSBL boasted the largest
representation of communities in a traveling league in the
Midwest.
Entry packets and team information will be sent to all association presidents and/or travel directors of GSBL member
associations on February 6. If you would like to ensure you
receive this important packet by being placed on the distribution list, feel free to email the league commissioner, Dawson
Blanck. For 2009 league information, including the 2009 Team
Classification Policy and Important League Dates, log onto
www.myas.org.
USSSA TODAY 47
For more information, including tournament dates and sites
and an entry application, please visit the Minnesota USSSA
Baseball web page at www.myas.org or contact Dawson
Blanck at 763-746-1719 or dawson@myas.org.
10AAA
June 5-7
Mahtomedi, MN
10AA
June 12-14
Andover, MN
10A (“C”)
June 19-21
Roseville, MN
11AAA
June 5-7
Mahtomedi, MN
11AA
June 12-14
Andover, MN
12AAA
June 12-14
Brooklyn Park, MN
12AA
June 12-14
Brooklyn Park, MN
Minnesota USSSA Baseball State Tournament Coming to a field
near you in June! The Minnesota USSSA State Tournament is
your opportunity to qualify for a USSSA World Series event.
At no other tournament can you qualify for your respective
2009 USSSA Baseball World Series as well as the Gopher State
Tournament of Champions (GSTC) at the 10-18/19U age levels.
The Minnesota USSSA will also administer a 10A & 11/12A
State Tournament for in-house teams looking to compete in a
tournament atmosphere in 2009!
11/12A (“C”)
June 19-21
TBD
13AAA
June 19-21
Mendota Heights, MN
13AA
June 12-14
Mendota Heights, MN
13A (“C”)
June 19-21
Mendota Heights, MN
14AAA
June 12-14
Elk River, MN
14AA
June 5-7
Coon Rapids, MN
15AAA
June 12-14
Eagan, MN
The USSSA State Tournaments combine competitive teams and
great venues, volunteers and awards to offer an outstanding
tournament experience for everyone involved. This will be a
tremendous event to participate in regardless of whether your
team’s intent is advancement to a USSSA World Series.
15AA
June 5-7
Eden Prairie, MN
14/15A (“C”)
June 19-21
Plymouth, MN
16U Open
June 26-28
Fridley, MN
17-19U Open
June 26-28
Maple Grove, MN
Global Sports Baseball - a Division of USSSA Baseball Global
Sports Baseball will offer multiple World Series Qualifiers in
the Midwest as well as World Series events in July. Global
Sports will provide many teams an opportunity to play in a
World Series event within a reasonable driving distance.
Due to the growth of USSSA Baseball, there is a greater demand
for events than the USSSA can supply. Therefore, the USSSA
created this opportunity for teams to stay closer to home and
create lifelong experiences without the long distance travel
and the need to spend additional funds.
USSSA Baseball recently announced that the 11 & Under Global
Sports World Series will be held in Brooklyn Park, MN on July
22-26, 2009.
48 USSSA TODAY
More information regarding that tournament will be available
soon.
Log onto the Global Sports Baseball portion at www.myas.
org or the USSSA Baseball website to learn about Minnesota
10-14U qualifiers or to gather more information about Global
Sports. You may also contact Dawson Blanck, Minnesota USSSA
Baseball Director, at 763-746-1719 or dawson@myas.org.
GLOBAL SPORTS WORLD SERIES LOCATIONS
DATE
7/1-5
AGE(S)
LOCATION
12 & 14(54/80)
Kansas City, MO
7/8-12
9 & 13
Des Moines, IA
7/15-19
10 & 14(60/90)
Des Moines, IA
7/22-26
11 & 12
Minneapolis, MN
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2008 USSSA Great Lakes “AA” Challenge
11U Champion
13U Champions
West Michigan Elite
Michigan Elite
2008 overall record: 14-9
Manager: Brent Gates
2008 overall record 9-9
Manager: David Hoogendoorn
12U Champions
14U Champions
Vernon Hills, IL Cougars
Newton Park, IN Knockouts
2008 overall record: 6-2
Manager: Marty Crowley
2008 overall record 2-0
Manager: Jeff White
10U Champion
Michigan Elite Thunder
2008 overall record: 24-6
Manager: Tom Bylsma
2008 USSSA Great Lakes Fireball Classic
10U Champions
Battle Creek Bullets
Tournament record: 3-1
Season overall: 17-15
Manager: Greg Flesch
13U Champions
Around The Horn
Stampede Orange
Tournament record: 4-0
Season overall: 34-9
Manager: Russ Snow
50 USSSA TODAY
11U Champions
Diamonds
Tournament record:5-0
Season overall: 23-4
Manager: John Vanderwal
14U Champions
Michigan Elite Edge
Tournament record: 4-0
Season overall: 13-3
Manager: Roger Pols
12U Champions
Michigan Elite
Tournament record: 3-1
Season overall: 11-4
Manager: Bruce Dieterle
USSSA FASTPITCH SOFTBALL
2008 USSSA Maryland State Championships
By Keri Lounge
It can be said that one of the most prestigious titles in fastpitch softball is State
Champion. Teams fight for a year’s
worth of bragging rights and the ultimate representation of competition
in their area. 92 teams in five different
age brackets battled the playing field
for this very title during the 2008 USSSA
Maryland State Championships June
20-22. Teams from all over the state of
Maryland joined to form a highly competitive atmosphere – a tradition since 1984.
With the continuing rise of competition
on the East Coast, tournament director
Bill Dowell considers these teams to be
the thoroughbreds of the sport. The
2008 State Tournament had an exciting
turnout with some repeating champions
and some new faces taking the spotlight
for the first time in Maryland history.
Coach Terry Colebrook is no stranger
to the winner’s circle at the State
Tournament. With his Lake Shore
Lightning 10U team finishing in first
Coach Colebrook has now won eight
of the last nine state titles. With his
growing reputation as State Champion,
Coach Colebrook was given the honor of
throwing out the first pitch at Camden
Yards on August 25 just before the
Baltimore Orioles took on the Chicago
White Sox. Coach Colebrook expressed
his excitement about his state title, “We
are very proud and happy to continue
the tradition.” The Lake Shore Lightning
was undefeated the weekend of the
State Tournament and outscored their
opponents 39-4. An amazing showing
and another victory to add to their list
as the 10U team entered the tournament coming off a win at the renowned
Blast at the Beach tournament in Ocean
City, Maryland which included 143 teams
from seven states. The championship
game was an amazing feat to watch as
the Lake Shore Lightning defeated the
determined Maryland Chill who came up
short after losing their first game of the
tournament and fighting through the
loser’s bracket.
The excitement did not end with the
10U age bracket for the Lake Shore
Lightning organization. The 12U Lake
Shore Lightning also brought home the
state title after beating the noteworthy
Bayside Blues. The Bayside Blues lost their
third game of the tournament putting
them in a vulnerable position early on.
Remarkably, the Bayside Blues made it to
the championship game where they had
to beat the Lake Shore Lightning twice
for the state title. History shows that
in fastpitch softball there is only a 20%
chance that a team will win a tournament coming out of the loser’s bracket.
With those odds, it was incredible to see
the Bayside Blues defeat the Lake Shore
Lightning the first game. Although it
was an outstanding effort, the Bayside
Blues were not on the upper hand of the
“if” game, but they left with a tremendous record of 8-2 for the weekend. The
Lake Shore Lightning finished the tournament with a 5-1 record losing their
only game to the Bayside Blues.
The 14U age bracket did not go unnoticed as it had one of the highlighting
achievements of the tournament and in
Maryland State history. Fighting through
a 29 team bracket, the championship
game brought together the Western
Howard County Fever and the Maryland
Chill O’Connor team. Both of these teams
had remarkable seasons. The WHC Fever,
which just two years ago was considered
a recreational team, ascended to runner
up in the Maryland State Tournament.
This was an outstanding achievement
for the organization but they were ultimately topped by the Maryland Chill
O’Connor team who came out winning
their first ever Maryland State title
and was the only team from Howard
County to ever win a state championship. This is the first Maryland State title
for the entire Maryland Chill organization and Coach Chris O’Connor could
not have been more proud. “Strong
pitching, defense and timely hitting
was the recipe for success,” as Coach
O’Connor described his team’s effort for
the weekend. Special recognition went
to Sammi O’Connor who pitched every
game that weekend allowing only seven
earned runs and finished with a 1.32
ERA. Not only did the Chill win the state
title, but they went undefeated with a
6-0 record and outscored their opponents 31-9. The big hitters at the plate
for the Chill were Jennifer Arruda and
Camille Calvin who had a homerun each
and Julia Draper and Kim Dorsey who
ended the weekend with a .500 average.
It was truly an outstanding accomplishment for both organizations.
The Lake Shore Lighting brought home
the third and final state title for the
organization in the 16U bracket. Not
only did the team go undefeated with a
record of 5-0, but they did so as a 14U
team playing up in the 16U age bracket.
They had an amazing average run allowance of less than one run per game.
Disciplined hitting along with a onehitter pitched by Emily Weiman earned
the Lake Shore Lightning the victory
over the Maryland Stars in the championship game. The Lake Shore Lightning
handed the Maryland Stars both of their
losses throughout the double elimination event.
Another age bracket jumble came when
the Severna Park Green Hornets Miller
16U team won the 18U age bracket. The
defending champs beat the Churchville
Lightning 9-1 in the championship
game making them undefeated for
the weekend. Amazing hitting came
from Shelby Taylor who hit a three-run
homer in the first inning giving her 5
RBIs in the championship game alone
and Jessica Butler had a great showing
on the mound pitching a two-hitter. The
Severna Park Green Hornets 16U were a
force to be reckoned with and succeeded
in proving their worth at the next level.
With some surprising outcomes and
exceptional talent the 2008 USSSA
Maryland
State
Tournament
was
indeed a success. Dowell exclaimed,
“Congratulations to all the teams on a
great effort and a phenomenal tournament. The state of Maryland could not
have been represented any better. We
cannot wait to see the talent develop
and growth of the teams at the State
Tournament next season.”
USSSA TODAY 51
Fast Pitch World Series and Columbus,
IN prove to be great combination
by Tonya Perkins / Photos by Michael McNutt
Between the 2 ages group there were close to 100 teams that
participated. Pool play was played on Tuesday and Wednesday
with each team playing 3 games within those 2 days. The
teams were seeded into tournament play, which began on
Thursday morning finishing on Sunday with the championship
game starting at 3:00. The tremendous talent made for some
quick and low scoring games. Awards were given to the top 5
finishing teams.
For the 16 under the Classics, Mi. were the champions with a 10
-0 record, 2nd place Richmond Elite, Va. record 8-3, 3rd place
Ohio Wave, Oh. record 8-3, 4th place Fairfax, Va. record 8-2.
And tied for 5th were The Lady Charmers, Oh. record 5-2 & The
Lady Panthers, In. record 5-5.
52 USSSA TODAY
Racine Belles, Wi. were the champions for the 18 under World
Series with a record 8-0, 2nd place Cincy Storm, Oh. record
10-2, 3rd place Pa Vipers, Pac. record 6-2, 4th place West End
Waves, Va. record 7-3. Tied for 5th were the Livingston Breeze,
Mi. record 5-3 & Lady Irish, Mi. 4-3.
If you want to host a successful World Series just remember the
3 P’s- Partnership, partnership, partnership. Columbus Indiana
and Tonya Perkins with Indiana USSSA Fast Pitch have the 3 P’s.
The 2008 16 and 18 under Fast Pitch World Series was as always
a great success.
You start with first class facilities and then strive to make them
better. You take a dedicated, hard-working grounds crew train
them well then turn them loose. “How
many fields would be ready for play two
hours after a night’s worth of torrential rains? The Columbus fields are!”
according to Tonya Perkins, USSSA Fast
Pitch State Director.
Mark Jones, Sports Program and Athletic
Facility Manager for Columbus Parks
& Recreation commented “when we
decided to run with this (World Series),
everyone wanted to do it in a first class
way. We felt we already had first class
facilities, but everyone wanted to make
sure the event was first class as well.”
1st Place 16 and under: Classics
“We’d be lying if we said we haven’t
had any troubles the past five years, we
have, but I think we’ve had some good
dialogues, and they’ve been open and
honest. What we have done is troubleshoot together,” added Lynn Lucas,
Executive Director, Columbus, Indiana
Visitors Center. Tonya Perkins agrees,
“There is a mutual respect for each
other and everyone’s job-from ground
crews to drawing up the tournament
to adjusting to weather-simply treating
everyone with respect.”
Teams and families who have been to
Columbus for previous USSSA World
Series make a point of telling local officials they’re glad to be back. Another
group that is always happy to see
Columbus, Indiana on the list to host
World Series tournament : the umpires.
2nd Place 16 and under: Richmond Elite
“Our umpires love to come to
Columbus,” stated Tonya Perkins. The
secret? “They tell us it’s because we feed
them well,” said Katia Hatter, Parks and
Recreation public relations coordinator.
Actually, the umpires, when describing
Columbus, used words like-strong
competition, the tournament directors
are organized and show respect for staff
and fans, friendly people, hospitality,
the weather, the quaintness of the
town and ‘the fact that the city really
gets behind the tournament’. All this
and more is why Columbus, Indiana has
become a favorite among many USSSA
Fast Pitch coaches, players, families and
umpires.
3rd Place 16 and under: Ohio Wave
Joe Simmons, long-time umpiring
partner has been coming to Columbus
for the past seven years and is impressed
with the changes he’s seen in support of
softball. “They take care of their commuUSSSA TODAY 53
nity,” Simmons said. “It’s clean, it’s really
friendly and they stick together. A lot of
volunteers were helping out and they
didn’t treat us differently. They take
care of us.” Tim Foster, Indiana USSSA
UIC always has schedule and information posted; therefore umpires know
their schedule for the entire week.
Umpires form bonds but the bond that
has been create over the past 5 years
in Columbus, Indiana with the umpires
and USSSA staff has become over and
beyond the field. Tim Foster stays in
contact with umpires and their families all year. “We always look forward
to seeing our family in Columbus every
year,” the umpires stated.
1st Place 18 and under: Racine Belles
2nd Place 18 and under: Cincy Storm
The hospitality thing is so important…
Columbus has been in the hospitality
business for years. “This isn’t something
that just started five years ago, the
Visitors Center has had volunteers since
the late 50’s,” Lynn Lucas explained“there is a tradition of welcoming
people to this community and those
same volunteers that help with tours,
that help with Columbus in Bloom—
they’re often the same volunteers that
spend all week at the ball diamonds as
our ambassadors. They’re people who
really care about the community and
this is another way to show it.”
Each team is assigned a local “ambassador” and frequently the ambassadors spend all week following and
cheering for “their” team. Many volunteers receive “honorary” team member
status, often developing long-lasting
relationships with the girls and their
families.
“After all these years, we know Tonya
Perkins and staff will host a quality tournament but If the teams, their families,
the coaches, and the umpires can’t wait
to return to Columbus when they leave,
then we haven’t done our job!” stated
Jim Dietz, Director of Sports Tourism for
the Visitors Center.
With the partnerships and friendships
that have evolved it is exciting to think
of what the future holds for Columbus
and USSSA. One thing for certain both
Columbus and USSSA realize that at the
end of the day their goal is to create
smiles and memories.
3rd Place 18 and under: Pa Vipers
54 USSSA TODAY
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USSSA Fastpitch of Southern California
Holiday Magic Charity Challenge
Photos courtesy of Stacy Fish
ions
hamp
18U C
erican
Am
e
Pastim
unner
18U R
ce
e For
Strik
56 USSSA TODAY
Up
16U Ch
a
NC Ins mpion
anity
16U Ru
nner U
Presti
ge
p
USSSA TODAY 57
USSSA Fastpitch of Southern California
Holiday Magic Charity Challenge
14&15
pions
Cham
ors
limat
aE
Coron
r Up
Runne
evel
ext L
U
14&15
The N
58 USSSA TODAY
12&13
U
San D Champions
iego E
lite
12&13
UR
So Ca unner Up
l Wave
s