Sports Journal - Vol 1 No 27 - June 28, 2011 (1)

8/6/2019 Sports Journal - Vol 1 No 27 - June 28, 2011 (1)

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LOCAL SPORTS IN YOUR INBOX E-mail: [email protected]

Volume 1, No. 27 One (Sports) Nation Under God June 28, 2011

Where No Sport Is Too Small


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2 SPORTS JOURNAL OF CENTRAL INDIANA June 28, 2011

FOR A FREE E-MAIL SUBSCRIPTION, SEND REQUEST TO:

[email protected]

Dean W. Hockney Owner, Publisher

William Gibson Photo Editor

Douglas Hockney Art Director

Sports Journal of Central Indiana is published weekly by Hockney

Publishing Company, Post Oce Box 1145, Kokomo, Indiana 46903.

Copyright 2011 by the Sports Journal of Central Indiana

A Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB)

(765) 252-0222

Sports Journal of Central Indiana

After Luke

Cameron scored

the winning run

(inset), McPike

celebrated its

City-County

baseball

championship

(Photo by William Gibson)

3McPIKE IS McCHAMP

H.P. McPike of UCT wins the

David A. Kasey Memorial title

7WINS AND LOSSES

The final bracket of the Kasey

Memorial tournament

8TOURNEY IN PICS

Two pages of Kasey Memorial

tourney pictures10

OUTDOORS WITH TOM

New Sports Journal outdoor

columnist Tom Fagel Jr. debuts

AND DONT MISS

Need to Know

IndyCar Series Results

Fun & Games

The Deans List

12

15

16

17

The Sports Journal salutes our brave

soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines

and civilians who defend our

freedom everyday. Thank you!


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STORY BY DEAN HOCKNEYPHOTOS BY WILLIAM GIBSON

RUSSIAVILLE Instant classic! That ishow those who witnessed the finale ofthe Kokomo Tribune sponsored David A.Kasey Memorial Youth Baseball Tournament will

remember the 2011 rendition of the annual endto the local baseball season. Strong pitching, ex-cellent defense and clutch hitting made thischampionship one for the ages.

With more than a thousand spectators circlingRussiavilles Robert M. Waddell Memorial Park,highly favored H.P. McPike of UCT used a one-out, sixth inning, walk-off single to win Howard

County bragging rights with a 4-3 win overWhites Meat Market of Taylor Southeast.

They always come through with the bats sooner

or later, said winning manager Jason Hurlock.You can hold them down for a while, but theyget hot.

Entering the game with an unblemished recordand outscoring all-comers 80-6 through the firstfive games of the tourney including Russiavilleleague champion Hollingsworth Lumber (25-2) many in attendance thought McPike would win

After 40 years, H.P. McPike lays

claim to the Ralph Stewart Trophy


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in a rout over Whites (20-7). But with three shut-out wins in four games, Whites showed it was aforce to be reckoned with. After giving up tworuns in the first inning thanks to hits by NateHemmerich, Noah Hurlock and Josiah Bolton Whites veteran pitcher Kacy Wilson showedwhy he was on the hill in the championship

game as he held the UCT squad scoreless inthe second, third and fourth innings.

At the same time, McPike ace Jack Perkins wasfiring a gem of his own, tossing a three-hit, eightstrikeout shutout through the first five innings. Inthe bottom of the fifth, Perkins added an insur-ance run to the board with a solo home run and heading into the sixth and final inning,

McPike held a 3-0 lead. But Perkins hadreached his tourney-mandated pitching limit,which brought in relief pitcher Garreck Durato.

What can I say about him, he threw great andhit that home run that really meant somethingwhen it was said and done, said Hurlock.

The pitching change was just what Whitesneeded as Noah Poe, Wilson and BraydenMcKay started the inning with singles to scorethe first run. Following an out by the No. 6 hitter,Aiden Arnold drilled a single down the line, scor-ing Wilson and McKay to tie the game at 3. Justwhen it looked like Whites would take the lead,the McPike defense turned a 5-4-3 double-playto squash the rally and leave the game knottedheading into the bottom of the sixth.

That was a big play. Wow! It really picked theplayers spirits up, said the winning manager.

The UCT champions wasted little time in thesixth. No. 9 hitter Luke Cameron led off the in-ning with a single to center field, advanced tosecond on a passed ball, and scored the cham-pionship winning run on Hemmerichs second hit

Hes Out!: McPikes shortstop Noah Hurlock takes a cleat to the face but still

makes the ESPN-worthy highlight play against Whites Chad Brubaker..


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SJ Photos: William Gibson

Outstanding Pitching: Jack Perkins pitched five shutout

innings for McPike in the championship game. He also had

a key solo home run.

Headin for home: In a bang-bang play at the plate, Jus-

tin Hurlock is tagged out by Whites catcher Braydon

McKay.

of the game this one a walk-off single to cen-ter.

He has been coming through all year, said

Hurlock of Cameron. That is why he is there to put the ball in play and bring up the top of theorder.

I had to stay focused and thatswhat I did, said Hemmerich justprior to posing with his team andthe Ralph Stewart InsuranceTrophy, which has been present-ed to the winning sponsor for 33years. I saw the pitch down the

middle and just drove it.

McPike assistant coach ScottPerkins may have been the mostexcited person on the field as hewas pulling triple duty assistantcoach, father of the pitcher, and son-in-law ofthe team sponsor.

It was incredibly special, said Perkins afterwatching his family collect their trophies. Thisgroup of kids, I cant say enough about them.They are not only good ball players, but just

good kids they have tremendous heart. But ithas been special for Jack to be a member of this

team, with Steve (McPike,Jacks grandfather) and his dadsponsoring this team for thepast 40 years. He really appreci-ates being out here and wearingthat uniform.

Along with strong pitching andthe solo home run, Perkins add-

ed a double to finish an out-standing championship game 2-3. Hemmerich also had a pair ofhits and Durato picked up thewin in relief.

For Whites, Wilson and Poe each finished witha pair of hits.


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Clutch Performances: (Above) McPike slugger Josiah

Bolton takes a rip at a pitch down the middle resulting in a

base hit. (Below) Despite the loss, Kacy Wilson was sensa-

tional on the hill for Whites, holding the high-powered

McPike team to four runs.

On the Field: (Above) After questioning a call at third

base, Whites manager Scott Sullivan gives a high five to

third baseman Preston Pearce. (Below) McPikes third

baseman Garreck Durato prepares to fire to first after

making a nice play on a slow roller.


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1 2 3 4 5 6 R H LOB

Whites Meat Market (TSE)0 0 0 0 0 3 3 7 5

H.P. McPike (UCT) 2 0 0 0 1 1 4 8 8

2011 David A. Kasey MemorialMajor League Howard County Baseball Tournament Championship

H.P. McPIKE

Road to the Championship

FIRST ROUND WIN

June 18 vs Thriveat Financial (GT) 20-0

SECOND ROUND WIN

June 19 vs Hague Quality Water (ES) 15-0

SWEET SIXTEEN WIN

June 20 vs Coke (TSE) 20-0

ELITE EIGHT WIN

June 21 vs CFD Investments (TSE) 17-1

FINAL FOUR WIN

June 22 vs Hollingsworth Lumber (R) 8 -5

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME WIN

June 23 vs Whites Meat Market (TSE) 4-3

McPIKE TOURNEY FACTS & FIGURES

First Howard County tourney tle

Outscored opposion 84-9 in tourney

Outscored opposion 72-1 in rst 4 games

Posted three shutouts in six games

Finished season undefeated at 29-0

8th tourney champion from UCT


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(Above) Brayden DeWeese touches home plate for Hol-

lingsworth Lumber after crushing a home run. (Below)

Expression hitter Noah Dowden makes solid contact.

(Above) Chandler LaMott of Hollingsworth Lumber eyes a

fly ball from his center field position. (Below) T.J.

Macaluso reacts after getting hit by a pitch while batting

for Expresssions.


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(Above) Hammers rightfielder Rylee Burnett fires the ball

back to the infield after scooping up a groundball single.

(Below) Kolten Gifford on the hill for Salsbery Garden Cen-

ter.

(Above) Hammers shortstop Tanae Stigger rifles the ball

to first base after making a nice stop on a hot grounder.

(Below) Salsbery Garden Center shortstop Trevor Fortune

catches a pop fly.


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Feelin for snappers

As we slide down the grassy bank of a smallcreek that wound its way through the seclud-ed woodlands of Indianas farm country, the

rush of adrenalin began to buzz around our headsalong with the mosquitoes. The day was hot and thewater cool, and only one thing laid on our minds -snapping turtles.

Accompanying me this day was a good friend ofmine, Vince Pitstick, a classic good ol boy who Ihad met in southern Indiana while studying at Vin-cennes University. It was rare to find someone whoshared the same passion for catching turtles as I did,a sport almost unheard of today. We had spentcountless nights reliving previous hunts, speaking of

old mentors and giant snappers. Now the seasonwas here, and the wait was over.

The muddy water quickly filled our boots as we eachtook to the opposing banks. Crawling upstream withhands probing beneath undercut banks and logjams,the anticipation grew.

Got one! I turn to see Vince pull out a nice heavysnapper from his muddy hole underneath the tangledroots of an old river birch. He let out a holler that canonly come from a man turned wild. As the old dino-

saur clawed and snapped we lowered him into theburlap sack. First turtle of the season, and it was go-ing to be a good one.

Turtle hunting, more specifically the art of using yourhands to find and capture the turtle, is a sport knownby few, and practiced by even fewer. The commonsnapping turtle is a tough opponent, with its beak-like

jaws and large size it has an intimidating disposition.Yet once this animal is properly understood and re-spected it proves to be one of the most exciting ani-mals to chase. Though there are many ways to

catch these rarely seen reptiles, such as using handlines (fishing poles) or jugs (floating containers withline tied to a baited hook on the other end), not muchcompares to the excitement and efficiency of usingbare hands to capture them. This is done usually insmall to medium size creeks, reaching into holes un-der the banks or within debris where the snappersusually lie. Upon feeling the top of the turtles shell,use your other hand to locate the jagged edge wherethe tail is located, and pull it out.

The idea sounds simple, though the idea of using thefeel of fingers alone to catch an animal known for itsbite sounds ludicrous to most, yet for those who do,the excitement is like nothing else. I asked Vince whyhe decided to start feeling for turtles, and he simplysaid I wanted to do something different.

As with any sport there are precautions and safety

Outdoorswithtom By Tom Fagel, Jr.

Outdoor Columnist

Snapper: Stacie

Wolfe displays a

snapping turtle.


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measures a hunter must employ to enjoy a fun, safehunt. Never hunt alone. If you are injured far awayfrom your vehicle it is imperative to have someonewith you to seek help.

Boots and jeans are a must as they will protect your

feet and legs to prevent cuts which could premature-ly end a hunt.

It would be wise to always carry a knife, as in allhunting situations. Becoming entangled in line indeep water can be deadly. With a knife close at handyou can cut yourself free.

The most important lesson I learned was from theone who taught me about the sport, The most dan-

Snappers times two: Veteran

snapping turtle hunter Vince Pit-

stick shows off two of his latest

catches.

gerous thing in the water is not the turtle, nor thesnake, or the muskrat. It is man. What he meant bythis is the litter in the water, such as broken bottlesor scrap metal, will cause the most damage. Becareful around bridges and populated areas as theseare the most likely places to run across these

manmade dangers.

If you are looking for some excitement, or just wantto try something different, give turtle hunting a shot.Take a friend or find someone experienced in thesport and you might just find you like snapper on themenu.

(Tom Fagel Jr. is a monthly outdoors columnist forthe Sports Journal.)


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Need to Know


come the eighth member of the 1,000 point clubon the hardwood, and in the spring will competefor top shot put and discus honors in the confer-ence and area.

BEACHY, BERRYMAN NAMED ALL-STARS

Northwestern High School graduate and IndianaWesleyan University pitching recruit BryanBeachy has been named to the Indiana HighSchool Baseball Coaches Associations NorthAll-Star Team. He will be joined by Ryan Berry-man - who recently announced his resignationas the head coach of the Tigers to spend moretime with his young family - who will serve as theNorth squads head coach. Berryman andBeachy led the Purple Tigers to Class 3A No. 1ranking during the 2011 season.

The annual North/South All-Star Series will beplayed at Fort Waynes Parkview Field on July 9(two games) and July 10 (one wooden batgame). Parkview Field is the home of the Ft.Wayne TinCaps Minor League Baseball club, aClass A affiliate of the San Diego Padres.

BEACHY RETURNS TO BRAVES HILL

After nearly six weeks on the sideline with a

strained left oblique, Kokomos Brandon Beachyreturned to the Atlanta Braves hill on June 22with a masterful performance as he picked uphis second career victory. The NorthwesternHigh School product struck out a career-high 11Toronto Blue Jay hitters while giving up just onerun on four hits over six innings.

In his first full Major League Baseball season,

Your business ad, thats what

Business card special

4 weeks for $150Call 252-0222 for more informaon

(Do you have an upcoming event or recent re-sults that you would like to see on the Need to

Know pages? If so, send the information to [email protected] and we will do ourbest to publicize it.)PRICE CHOOSES MICHIGAN STATE

Eastern three-sport starJosiah Joey Price end-ed months of specula-tion on where he wouldplay football following

his senior season byverbally committing toMichigan State Universi-ty and 2010 Big TenCoach of the Year MarkDantonio.

The 6-foot-5, 240-pound Price was listed as athree-star prospect by Rivals.com following a

junior season at linebacker in which he tallied 95tackles, 68 solo tackles, 10 sacks and 23 tackles

for a loss. He also entertained offers from Indi-ana, Purdue, Ball State, Bowling Green, Illinoisand Minnesota before committing to be a Spar-tan.

Price is on pace to have one of the best Cometathletic careers on record. When his senior yearbegins in August, along with dominating the grid-iron as an All-State caliber player, he could be-


13/17


Beachy has 57 strikeouts in 50 1/3 innings in hisnine starts and has walked 18 while maintainingan earned run average of 3.22.

KOKOMO ALL-NCC ACADEMIC WINNERS

The North Central Conference announced its all-

conference teams,and several KokomoHigh School student-athletes were recog-nized: (Baseball) Aus-tin Colby; (boys golf)Taylor Balog, BlakeBrown and NicholasCardwell; (boys track

and field) Adrian Glover; (girls tennis) Ellen Ew-bank, Eileen Oaks, Jacy Rush and Hannah Wer-

ner; (girls track and field) Emily Keller.

IHSAA GIRLS HOOPS CHANGE

The IHSAA Girls Basketball State Finals has anew home for 2012. Terre Hautes 10,000-seatHulman Center - home to the Indiana State Uni-versity basketball programs will host the fourstate championship games after agreeing to aone-year contract. The girls state finals wereheld in the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum

in Fort Wayne the past two years and in LucasOil Stadium in 2009, but no Indianapolis venuehas been available since. The 2012 girls statefinals will be held on March 3.

HOOPS HALL GOLF OUTING

The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame will host afundraiser golf outing at Kokomos Chippendale

Golf Club on Wednesday, July 6.

It is the eighth consecutive year the event hasbeen held at Chippendale and will incorporate anumber of Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in-

ducteesand nota-

ble bas-ketballnames.The eventis a best-

ball scramble and each participant will includegolf fees, cart, favor, prizes, a post-round buffetmeal, free passes to the Halls New Castle mu-seum, and awards. Registration begins at 12:15p.m. with a scheduled 1:00 p.m. shotgun start.The cost for a foursome is $300 and registra-

tions may be made by contacting the IndianaBasketball Hall of Fame at (765) 529-1891 [email protected]. Hole sponsorships are al-so available for $100.

The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit that receives no tax dollars and isself-sufficient to operate its 14,000 square footmuseum in New Castle. The museum is openseven days a week, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00p.m. Monday Saturday and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00

p.m. on Sundays and celebrates the rich, proudhistory of Indiana high school basketball.

The Kokomo boys basketball team will partici-pate in the prestigious 2011 City Securities Hallof Fame Classic, hosted by the Indiana Basket-ball Hall of Fame, on December 30, 2011 at theNew Castle Fieldhouse.

Help Support Local Youth Sports CoverageBottom Runner Ad - 4 columns by 2 inches

Call the Sports Journal at 252-0222 for details


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Northwestern Youth BaseballRookie League Champions - 13-0

HUSTON ELECTRIC

(Front row) Wes Miller, Cayden Greer,Kellen Greer, Gavin Foreman, ConnorBostic, and Josh Bell; (middle row)

Brayden Prince, Cole Cardwell, EaynVanSickel, Kyle Cardwell, Tyson Good,Caden Talor, and Jeremy Bell; (backrow) coach Rick Cardwell, coach KevinBostic, coach Dennis Bell, and managerBrent VanSickel

Battle of the Bullpen TournamentRunners-up

HOOSIER HIGHLANDERS 13U

(Front row) Cameron Dessing, SeanSmith, Tanner Heady and BraytonWoolley; (back row) Tim Blankenberger,Ben Tracy, Julie Tracy, Aden Merchant,Aaron Deis, Trey Richmond and RobMerchant. Not pictures is Ezra Berry

UCT Youth BaseballRookie League Champions

RETHLAKES S.S. MARATHON

(Front row) Fain Mundy, Lucas Cum-mings, Jon Callane, Jr., Caleb Moonand M.J. Norman; (middle row) Camer-on Arcari, Jervionte Horton, TrevorStucker, Trey Shelby, Drew Bowser,Seth Hrabos, Breighzion Carpenter andTy Lauderbaugh; (back row) coach JonCallane, coach Stacy Hrabos, coachDon Lauderbaugh, team sponsor Mike

Rethlake, manager Zach Cummingsand coach Martin Norman. Not picturedis coach Steve Shelby.


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NEWTON, Iowa - Marco Andretti overtook for-

mer Andretti Autosport teammate Tony Kanaanon Lap 232 of 250 and went on to a 0.7932-of-a-second victory in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 pre-sented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway.

Andretti had passed Kanaan on Lap 209, only tohave Kanaan return the favor four laps later. An-dretti was running second to Dario Franchittiwhen they cycled through for their final round ofservice on Lap 184 under caution. Andretti gotout first. On a Lap 199 restart, Kanaan overtook

Franchitti for second and the charge to thecheckered flag was on.

It was the third victory for Andretti Autosport inthe five races at Iowa Speedway, including Ka-naan in 2010.

Scott Dixon charged from 23rd on the startinggrid to finish third and Target Chip Ganas-siRacing teammate Dario Franchitti, who led themost laps, was fifth. Rookie JRHildebrand, the

Indianapolis 500 runner-up, passed Franchitti onLap 242 for fourth place.

Also on June 25, Josef Newgarden, who over-took pole sitter and Sam Schmidt Motorsportsteammate Esteban Guerrieri on Lap 26, turned a0.3574 of a second advantage into a 5.4724-second victory.

Newgarden, earning his third victory of the sea-son, improved his championship points lead from

13 to 46 over Guerrieri, who retired midwaythrough the race with a mechanical issue(steering) and was credited with 12th place.

Gustavo Yacaman, driving the No. 2 TMR-Tuvacol-Xtreme Coil Drilling car, recorded aFirestone Indy Lights-best runner-up finish. Clau-son, competing in his third Firestone Indy Lightsoval race, was 5.8 seconds back but also fin-

Andretti ends 79-race streak with a

win in the Iowa Corn Indy 250ished a season-high third.

ROCKET RICK HELPS FRANCHITTI

It was 1997 and a 23-year-old Dario Franchittimoved to the States to drive for Hogan Racingin CART, which included a mixture of roadcourses and ovals. Franchitti had a best finish ofninth at Australia, earned his first pole at Toron-to and wound up 22nd in the championshipstandings.

Franchitti, whose best oval finish was 13th atNazareth, sought and received oval racing inputfrom Rick Mears, who had amassed 29 victoriesover the course of his career under USAC andCART sanction.

Now, the four-time Indianapolis 500 and six-timeseries champion (Mears) and the two-time Indi-anapolis 500 and three-time IZOD IndyCar Se-ries champion (Franchitti) are tied for ninth onthe all-time win list.

"If I'd had known that I wouldn't have helped,"Mears deadpanned as the drivers discussed thepast and future of IndyCar racing and their lega-cy a few hours before the Iowa Corn Indy 250presented by Pioneer at the Iowa Speedway.

Mears recorded seven USAC- and 22 CART-sanctioned race victories (22 on ovals) in a three-decade Indy car career.

"I had opportunities to do other things over theyears, whether it be Formula 1 or (stock cars) orwhatever, but I always enjoyed our series be-cause of the diversity of tracks," said Mears,whose first Indy car victory came June 18, 1978,at the Milwaukee Mile. "I felt like you accom-plished more if you won the championship; youhad to be a more well-rounded driver. That wasalways the challenge of the series.


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Guess Who ???

It took five tiles but we have a winner.

TOM MITCHELSON will forever be remembered for his

correct guess of basketball hall of famer Michael Jor-

dan.

Tom wasnt the only correct guess this week, but his

name was drawn and he takes home a prize pack from

the Sports Journal.

A new puzzle will appear in the next edition of the

Sports Journal, so be ready to guess and win a prize

pack of goodies.

Fun& GamesSports Trivia

With Cal Ripken all-stars kicking o, here is some

Ironman trivia

1. What posions did Cal Ripken, Jr. play on a regu-

lar basis?

2. How many consecuve games did Ripken play in

to break Lou Gehrigs record?

3. How many games did Ripken play in during his

MLB career?

4. How many home runs did Ripken hit during his

nal season in 2001?

5. In how many seasons did Ripken play in 162 or

more baseball games?

Answers can be found on the Sports Journal of Central Indiana

website: www.indianasportsjournal.com.

I took a lile English, a lilemath, some science, a few hub-

caps and a some wheel covers.

GATES BROWNMLB ouielder on high school

2011 Sports Journal of Central Indiana SJOriginalArtw

ork:DouglasHockney


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17 SPORTS JOURNAL OF CENTRAL INDIANA June 28 2011

By Dean W. HockneySports Journal Publisher

TheDeansList

David Kasey tournament a success

I

look forward to certain times of the year, suchas opening night and tournament action in high

school basketball, the World Series, the SuperBowl and the Indianapolis 500. Last week wasanother one of those times as 46 teams played in theDavid A. Kasey Memorial Howard County YouthBaseball Tournament at the eight ballparks in thecounty. There are not many if any tournaments ofthis kind in Indiana, and I love when it rolls around.

If you are a baseball fan, there isnt much like watch-ing these 9-12 year-olds play their hearts out for achance to hoist the Ralph Stewart Insurance Trophy.As I wrote on page 3, this years championship game

was epic as H.P. McPike scored in the bottom of thesixth inning to defeat a surprising Whites Meat Mar-ket squad 4-3. If you werent there, you missed adandy and I am already excited for next years tour-nament.

This was the 55th rendition of the Kokomo Tribunesponsored tournament and my hat goes off to SteveMcPike and his family for finally capturing the titleafter sponsoring a team at UCT for 40 years. McPikehas fielded some very good teams in years past butthey never climbed the hill to local glory until now.

McPike is the eighth champion to hail from UCT andthey join the 2003 Eriks Chevrolet team to run theseason undefeated. Other winners from UCT includeCoca-Cola (1958, 1959 and 1977), Lowdermilk Elec-tric (1986 and 1988) and Replay Physical Therapy(1998).

The win puts McPike on the elite list of 33 local busi-nesses and organizations that have sponsored achampionship team since 1957. To show how hard itis to win the City/County tournament, since 1991 onlyNorthwesterns Cossells Landscaping (2007 and

2010) and Russiavilles Mikes Pizza (2002 and2009) have won more than one title. This is a bigtime tournament and those who play in it remember itfor life.

After the championship game, McPike assistantcoach Scott Perkins, son-in-law of Steve McPIke,told me of his pre-game talk to the team.

I told the kids before the game that there are certain

memories that you will never forget, he said. Thefolks who have never been around youth baseballdont understand how important this memory truly is.It is something that you will create tonight that willalways be there it wont be a memory that is blackand white, it will forever be in a vivid color picture.

I played in three of these tournaments withEastsides Sprite, and yes, losing the 1979 champi-onship game in extra innings to First Federal ofSouthside is still a full color memory some 32 yearslater. I can even remember how a ground ball head-ed my way at shortstop stuck in the extremely wetUCT dirt infield instead of popping into my glove. Itwas a miserable rainy night, but one full of memoriesthat are as vivid as yesterday.

One final note on this years tournament; what agreat job league president Rob Gifford and the entire

Russiaville Youth Baseball League organization didin hosting the championship game. It was a carnivalatmosphere as they hosted a live band and a pre-game hog roast to entertain those who ventured outto the finale. With no offense to other leagues, Rus-siaville is a near perfect facility to host the champion-ship game due to generous parking, amble seatingand fantastic diamonds and concessions. Job welldone, Russiaville!

Now it is on to all-star competition, which I am not ahuge fan. It sure would be nice to be playing the Da-

vid A. Kasey tournament championship game in Julyinstead of June. But that is a discussion for anotherday and the Sports Journal will follow our local teamsas they make their bids for state tournaments andbeyond. I wish all eight leagues well and hope theyadvance far.

Until next time, remember to keep the man and shipin sports and Ill see you at the game.

Documents

Sports Journal - Vol 1 No 27 - June 28, 2011 (1)