Not even the looming threat of rain throughout the weekend could dampen the spirits of the more than 400 athletes who turned out in Owensboro Sept. 7-9 for the 2007 Special Olympics Kentucky State Softball Tournament.
As teams first arrived on Friday, Sept. 7, it looked as if it may be difficult to play any of the scheduled games over the weekend as rain had fallen throughout the day. However the skies cleared just in time and the Jack Fisher Park staff did a fantastic job of getting the fields ready for play so the tournament could start as scheduled. Friday night saw eight games played, but none ended up being as thrilling as the 2A Division matchup between the hometown Owensboro Thunder and the Area 7 (Northern Kentucky) Rockets.
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Lexington Thunder shortstop Mike Frederick makes a play in his team's first-round game. |
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Owensboro trailed from the first inning on, but managed six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull out an amazing come-from behind win 7-6.
Rain seemed to threaten again all day on Saturday, but held off just long enough to get all of Saturday's games, as well as the Team Skills Competition completed. Saturday provided yet another exciting finish, this time in the 3A Division where the Lexington Thunder narrowly escaped an amazing comeback by the West Kentucky (Paducah) Tigers. Lexington held a commanding 13-2 lead through two and a half innings before, in what would be the last inning before the time limit ran out, West Kentucky scored 10 times in the bottom of the third. With 10 runs across, only one out and the Tigers still threatening, Lexington shortstop Mike Frederic fielded a line drive that had tipped off of pitcher Justin Butler's glove and then threw on to first to complete a double play and secure the win.
The run Frederick saved for Lexington was an important one as mother nature couldn't hold off any longer with rain falling from Saturday evening through Sunday morning. This time the rain was just too much and all of the Sunday action had to be called off. The tournament was shortened to a single-elimination format (instead of the regular double elimination) and the lone team remaining in the winner's bracket in each division was declared the state champion. The only exception was in the B-2 Divison, where two teams remained in the top of the bracket. In that Division the Lexington Bat Cats were declared the winner on the basis of fewest runs allowed.
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A Pitt Academy (Louisville) Cubs player rounds second and heads for third during the Team Skills Competition at the 2007 State Softball Tournament. |
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Nine teams that had not qualified for the State Softball Tournament also made the trip to Owensboro to participate in the Team Skills Challenge, a series of events that test individual players' abilities and a team's ability to work together. Challenge skills include hitting, throwing and catching and baserunning.
In the Skills Competition, two teams defended championships they won in 2006. The Lexington Twisters, who had been shocked in one of the regionals after dominating the Lexington Softball League this year, retained their crown in the B Division. The Stewart Home School Panthers repeated as Champions of the 2A Division. The lone new gold medal team in the Skills Competition was the homestanding Owensboro Blasters topped the West Kentucky Bears.
4A - Campbell County Wildcats
3A - Lexington Thunder
2A - Owensboro Thunder
1A Yellow - Christian County Eagles
1A Purple - Northern Kentucky Cobras
B-1 - Bowling Green Rebel Cadets
B-2 - Lexington Bat Cats
2A - Stewart Home School Panthers
1A - Owensboro Blasters
B-Red - Lexington Twisters
Our thanks to everyone who made the 2007 Special Olympics Kentucky State Softball Tournament possible, especially the people at Jack Fisher Park and all of the volunteers who helped out during the weekend.
For information about how you can get involved in the 2008 State Softball Tournament or about the Special Olympics Kentucky softball program, contact Erin Young at 800-633-7403 or via e-mail at eyoung@soky.org.
