Alton hosts state co-ed softball tournament over weekend

Brent Feeney, Sports Writer

Aug 17, 2015 4:10 PM

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ALTON – Slow-pitch softball has been a very popular recreational sport for many years.

At the highest level, however, it can be a very entertaining game.

Seventeen teams from throughout the state of Illinois converged on Gordon Moore Park this weekend for the annual Illinois Amateur Softball Association Class C Coed State Tournament, with the winner earning a berth in next week’s ASA Class C National Championship in Rolla, Mo.

The double-elimination tournament started Friday evening on four diamonds at the park, with games being played from 7-11 p.m. Saturday’s games commenced at 9 a.m. and lasted throughout the day, with the final beginning a few minutes after 9 p.m.

“We have teams from Rock Island, Jacksonville, the Quad-Cities, Danville and Murphysboro here this weekend,” said ASA tournament director Dean Emerick of Bethalto. “We’ve got some good teams here and have had some really good-quality softball.”

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The Riverbender area was represented by Westco of Wood River, Cutting Edge of Godfrey, Cap Daddy’s of Alton and Low Tax Service of Granite City and O’Fallon. The tournament’s two-time defending champion going into the weekend’s play was Ball Park Motors of Jacksonville.

Ball Park’s bid for a third straight title, however, fell short as Westco defeated Ball Park 14-1 in the final; Ball Park had come through the loser’s bracket to reach the final, then defeated Westco in the first game to force a winner-take-all final game. Ball Park’s Travis Steer was named male Most Valuable Player of the tournament, while Westco’s Katie Wilson was named female MVP.

Coed softball is much like regular softball; teams are made up of 10 players, of which five men and five women take part. The batting order must alternate between the sexes and the infield and outfield must have two men and two women playing at any time. The pitcher and catcher must also be one of each sex as well. Other regular slow-pitch softball playing rules, of course, apply.

Of the teams who came to the tournament, some play coed for fun, others take it a bit more seriously. “All the teams are having a good time here,” Emerick said. “We’re seeing players who can really play well.

“The skill level of the teams is pretty good. The C level is the highest level for coed softball in the state, so we’re seeing some good play here.”

The tournament has been a fixture in the Alton area since 1989, when it was first held at Gordon Moore; the only year it wasn’t there was 1996, when Quincy hosted the tournament. It returned to Alton the next year and has remained, with the Class C ranking starting in 2010, when Wesley-Reams/Franchise won the championship.