Another charity softball tournament to be held. This time the cause is the “war” against the Alzheimer’s disease. The competition is named “Miriam Burnette Memorial Softball tournament”. There are lots of local softball teams, which are going to take part in the competition.

This will be the fifth edition of the charity tournament. The competition is called after the chairman’s mother, who has died of Alzheimer’s disease 4 years ago after fighting it for 6 years. The chairman of the tournament, Darron Burnette, told that he was helped by his friend (Chandler Dennard), who has already had a softball tournament and then just renamed it in Marion’s honour. Dennard used to call the competition “Bulloch Bash”, but he decided to help his friend Darron Burnette.

In the very beginning of the organization of the tournament, there have been 6 teams. But, now there are 14 softball teams to take part in the competition.
To continue with, such an initiative is a great opportunity to be raise the awareness of such diseases. The growth of the tournament has attracted several sponsors, who have donated much more money for the cause.

Thanks to the main sponsors – Southeast Roofing Solutions and Southern Manner, the chairman has reached his goal of $20 000. The sponsorship was necessary, because the tickets hardly paid the cost for renting the softball facilities. The total amount Burnette has collected is $250 000 for the last year. He is going to use the money for a new Alzheimer’s research.

The teams to take part in the competition are mainly schools. And this tournament will be very helpful for the players, who can play in competitive games before the start of the season. Moreover, the coaches of the teams have been touched by the initiative, because all of them know people, who is suffering from the disease. They are also causing a great support to the chairman!

The tournament is going to last 2 days. The local high school teams will be 4, while there will also be lots of high school teams from the neighboring counties. For example, there will be teams of Pinewood, Bryan County, Vidalia, Gatewood and so on.

Two of the Cuban softball team’s players, who are competing at the Women’s World Softball Championship didn’t appear for their last match in Surrey. And nobody knows where are they! So, it’s time the Canadian border services to look for them.

Cuba’s last softball match of the tournament was scheduled for Monday, 18th July, and both women didn’t show on the pitch. That was the second match they are missing from the tournament and now the Border Service Agency of Canada is looking for them.

All the players from the team have visas, which allowed them to be in the country for a six-month period, during the competition. They were scheduled to leave Canada next Monday and this may be the reason for their absence. But it’s still not clear whether the players are trying to defect.

“I don’t know where the players are. But you know, at this point, they have a visa and at the moment they can be legally here in Canada,” Laura Ballance, who is a spokesperson of the tournament, said in an interview. Ballance also said that all the players, who are taking part in the competition are in hotels, which are located near the stadium, but she didn’t tell where exactly the Cuban team has been staying.

We also don’t know the names of these women, but they are an example of how you shouldn’t act when you are at an international softball competition.

The Women’s World Softball Championship is one of the most prestigious softball tournaments, as Surrey won the bids to host it in 2016. 31 countries and about 500 players will compete in the last stage of the competition this weekend, when will be the last round of the tournament. So, these two women have maybe thought that they can imperceptibly stay in Canada. And notice how smart are they – the players have waited almost until the end of the tournament before the escape. But this is only a guess, they can also be kidnapped, which is a worse scenario.

The Michigan Wolverines (second rank) made a big step toward a Big Ten Conference softball tournament championship on Friday evening. They beat Indiana at The Beard Field in State College with the smashing result of 10-0 in a match, which was decided after just five innings.

Michigan (45-4) made two runs during the first inning. Then, they scored five in the second part and three in the third, leaving Indiana with no chance for anything in the game.

The best players of the match were Kelsey Susalla, who homered and had three RBIs, Kelly Christner had 2 hits and 2 RBIs. Key for the success were also Tera Blanco (two RBIs) and Sierra Lawrence (2 hits and an RBI). Megan Betsa gave up two hits in five innings for the Wolverines.

The semi-finals seem to be very interesting, as the Michigan Wolverines will play against the host – Penn State. A victory can put the Wolverines in the title game later in the day.

A short review of the Friday’s matches:

Minnesota 2-0 Illinois

The key player for Minnesota was Sara Groenewegen, who struck out nine, tossing a one-hitter. Fabia and Sam Macken made the runs for Minnesota (39-12). At both ends, Illinois (35-21) were eliminated from the competition. So, Minnesota will have to play against Northwestern in the semi-final match.

Northwestern 3-1 Ohio State: The winners scored three times just before the end of the first inning. The pitchers Letourneau and Kristen Wood made the runs stand up. Brook Marquez (2-for-3) doubled in a run, while Andrea Filler and Sammy Nettling scored the RBIs for the Wildcats (25-25). Shelby Hursh showed really good performance, pitching 5 1/3 scoreless innings in relief for Ohio State (33-18-1), striking out six. Lena Springer took the defeat, missing three hits and three runs over two-thirds of an inning.

Penn State 8-7 Nebraska: The Nittany Lions recorded a very dramatic victory. They scored five runs in the 3rd inning and added three more in the 5th, holding off the Cornhuskers. Alyssa VanDerveer and Shelby Miller had a great night. They hit a grand slam and homered for Penn State (30-23). Marlaina Laubach secured the victory. She allowed only three hits and four runs over 42/3 innings. Kiki Stokes and Mattie Fowler of Nebraska drove in three runs apiece (33-18), but couldn’t help their team record a victory.

Larry Fitzgerald is one of the most famous American football players. At the age of 32 he has won The Pro Bowl on 9 occasions and many other awards and tournaments. He has also set a lot of records in his long career. But many people have started speaking about it will be better if he retires. However, Fitzgerald is not interested in what other people are talking about him. Larry proved that and showed he has a good heart, after he started organizing a charity softball match.

The 32-year-old wide receiver is going to host his annual charity softball game on Saturday night at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale. The event will be 6th annual softball game for Fitzgerald. But that’s not all! He will also host a charity golf tournament.

These two events will benefit Larry Fitzgerald’s First Down Fund. The Fund will help families, which are in crisis. So, Fitzgerald is going to fund positive activities for kids not only during the summer, but also throughout the year. He will also support different health organizations.

But why Larry Fitzgerald chose exactly softball? The answer is easy – because the softball has been growing annually. And the number of people playing softball has recently increased dramatically. Softball is played by both men and women. That’s why Larry Fitzgerald has such a big success of the initiative. The other reason is because he has thousands of fans.

With a star like Fitz, it is clear that a lot of famous people will be attending the event. So, here is a list of well-known persons, who will take part in the match: Anquan Boldin and Andre Roberts (former Cardinals wide receivers), Sammy Watkins, Broncos WR Demaryius Thomas, Michael Floyd, Archie Goodwin and P.J. Tucker of the Phoenix Suns, Terrell Owens, Calais Campbell and Andre Ellington.

“With your support, the First Down Fund will continue to increase its efforts to assist children and their families throughout the United States and abroad. Each year the need for services and resources grows and the First Down Fund is committed to meeting those needs. Let’s continue to build a legacy of giving back,” the athlete wrote on his official website.

After the end of the game, Larry Fitzgerald will organize Official VIP After Party at W Hotel Scottsdale. Because every successful initiative should finish with proper treats.

It’s always interesting to see who is the best in every single sport. There is a specific calculation method in softball rankings. The method is opposed to other international sports ranking systems. All the calculations have been made by the World Baseball Softball Confederation, which was created by International Softball Federation in 2013.

Here are the rules for calculation: the first placed team receives 50 points. The second team – 40 points and the third 30 points. The 4th-placed team takes 15 points and so on. There is also a specific formula in the calculation of the points.

There are also several multipliers in the different competitions:

1.00× – Continental Championships or Qualifying Tournaments, where 3 or more competing teams are in the previous year-end Top 10.

0.75× – Continental Championships or Qualifying Tournaments, where 2 competing teams are in the previous year-end Top 10.

0.50× – Continental Championships or Qualifying Tournaments, where 1 competing team is in the previous year-end Top 10.

0.25× – Continental Championships or Qualifying Tournaments, where no competing teams are in the previous year-end Top 10.

That’s all about the method and let’s see now who is the best:

• Top 10 of Women’s teams:

We can see Czech Republic in 10th place. They have collected 620 points. The Italians are 9th-placed. Italy have won 760 points. New Zealand can be found in 8th place (820 points), while Holland are one position in front with 880 points. Until the rest of the table, we can see China (6th), Chinese Taipei (5th), Canada (4th) and Australia (3rd). And now I am sure that you think the USA are lying in the first place. But, the Americans are second placed with 1500 points. The leaders in the standings are Japan with 1560 points.

All the calculations have been made on 22nd March 2016.

• Top 10 of Men’s teams:

We can proudly say that Great Britain have collected 460 points, which gives us the 10th position. In the 9th position can be found Mexico (540 points). In the tables also find their places: the USA and Czech Republic (7th), Argentina (6th), Japan (5th), Venezuela (4th), Australia (3rd), Canada (2nd) and New Zealand, who are the best team in the men’s competition. New Zealand have collected 1340 points, 120 more than 2nd-placed Canada.

So, we can’t wait for the next big softball competitions. It will be interesting whether there will be any changes in the world rankings.

The Western Nebraska Community College (WNCC) softball team made the amazing 10 home runs, smashing the North Platte Community College on Wednesday in North Platte.

The best player of the games was Jasmine Wessel, who hit a pair of homers and drove in six runs in a 20-4 first-game win. Key for the success were also Whitney Fields and Kenzie Sawyer, who also had homers in the match.

The Cougars added four more homers in the 8-0 victory in the second match. Fields made her third consecutive one-hitter in the circle.

The Western Nebraska Community College team recorded the impressive stats of 14 victories against 4 defeats of the season so far. The Cougars are going to host in a two-games battle The Western Texas College, the first of which is going to be on Friday. The second match will be played on Saturday. The games are scheduled to be held at The Volunteer Field in Scottsbluff. But, The Cougars won’t have so much resting time, because they will host another two teams just after the matches against the Western Texas College.

The Cougars amazed with 17 hits, including 13 for extra bases in the first match against the North Platte Community College on Wednesday. Wessel scored three runs for the victory. Sawyer finished with two hits, three RBIs and two runs.

Courtney Medina and Celyn Whitt also managed to collect two hits each. Whitt was among the best on the pitch, recording two doubles, three RBIs and two runs scored. Courtney Medina had also two runs scored. Andy Hancock was also on top level. She allowed just one run on three hits and struck out three in three innings.

Whitney Fields allowed just the one hit in the second game between these two teams and struck out nine. The WNCC made 11 hits, including four homers and two doubles, which helped Fields a lot.

Four of the Cougars’ players finished with two hits each. Sawyer scored a double, a home run, an RBI and a run scored. Weber made a home run with two runs scored, while Celyn Whitt finished with two singles. Payten Davies had also a double – a home run, an RBI, but she made two runs scored.

After the games against the Western Texas College on Friday and Saturday, the Western Nebraska Community College are to host the Dawson Community College on Sunday and then the Luna Community College on Monday. Considering the good form Western Nebraska Community College are in, they will maybe have no problems in their next home matches.

Have you wondered how was softball invented? Well, the game is a combination of the elements of several other sports, including boating (boating club), boxing (boxing glove) and football (football game). The first mention of the sport was made at Harvard-Yale football game on Thanksgiving day in 1887.
Then, the American journalist George Hancock invented the game, similar to everyone’s favourite baseball, but it could be played in a hall. He wrote the rules and gave the dimensions of the field. The first demonstration of the new sport was held in Chicago, at the club Farragut Boat. In 1895, it was held the first outdoors softball game. The first women’s softball team was also formed. The sport received its present name in the 20s of the 20th century.
In 1933 was founded the ASA organization – softball association. In 1952 was founded the ISF – International Federation of Softball. Today it includes more than 130 countries. The first softball competition has been for women only (1965), and a year later appeared a men’s tournament. In the program of the Olympic Games softball was included for the first time in 1996.
The essence of softball as the rules are very similar to baseball. It is played by two teams of nine participants each. Playground for the match looks like a rhombus with sides of 27.4 meters (90 feet). On each corner there is a “base”. First, the visiting team is attacking, while the hosts are defending. The main player is standing in the middle of the diamond. In all the “bases”, there are the defenders. For the strikers it is important to run all the “bases” and return to “home”, the defenders need to bring three hitters of the game (out of bounds). The batter – attacking player stands in front of the catcher, next to the “home” with a bat.
But, I already wrote about the positions in softball and so on… It’s interesting that now there are so many teams, in which play both men and women. That’s why softball is so popular and interesting sport, because I haven’t heard about any other sport to unite men and women at the same time. Of course, that’s more common for the amateur leagues. The sport is practiced mostly by women, which makes it the most popular and trained by girls, sport in the United States.
In conclusion, it can be said that softball has now its traditions among the people all over the world and especially in the USA. It becomes more popular and practiced and it is very sad that it was excluded of the Olympics.

Kurt Ludwigsen, who is a former women’s softball coach in Christian Nyack College, was accused of sexual abuse, which included licking his players’ ears, kissing their faces and lips, slapping their buttocks, grabbing their breasts, directing the girls to sit on his lap, lying on top of them, commenting about ladies’ physical attributes and many other disgusting things.
44-year-old man has even invited a pornographic actress to counsel the athletes. She has directed the underage girls to drink alcohol and dance with male strangers. The actress has also asked the girls to join the pornographic industry. It is also said that some of the Nyack’s staff members have known what was exactly Kurt Ludwigsen doing. So, all the employees will be required will be questioned by the investigators.
The ex softball coach has gone even further, asking regularly his athletes talk about their sexual lives. He has also made a list of the girls he liked more. Ludwigsen also encouraged them to begin a career as a stripper.
Kurt Ludwigsen has even encouraged his underage players to drink alcohol at a cocktail during a trip to New York City. He also made the girls to wear cocktail dresses. This is not the first criminal investigation against the former coach. In 2014, under the alias Kurt Vogner, he was again investigated for the same thing, while coaching a girls’ softball team in California.
But that’s not all! When Ludwigsen had received a negative treatment by his victims, he had limited their playing time or had removed them from the squad. There are several abolished of the team players, due to the fact he felt neglected.
On the other hand, despite of Kurt Ludwigsen’s abuses, he has been a good softball coach, as he has won two national championships while being a coach at the University of Arizona.
“In terms of the criminal resolution, it doesn’t feel like justice. There’s some frustration and, I think, on a larger scale, some concern,” Krouner, the lawyer of the players, said.
Kurt Ludwigsen eventually pled guilty and will be required to serve three years of probation and perform community service. The sentence doesn’t seem harsh enough for the former Nyack College’s softball coach, whose inadmissible actions deserved a crueler punishment.
The only good news is that the former coach, for sure, will struggle to find his next workplace as a softball coach. So, he will surely need to change his profession.

Softball was played at the Olympics in the period between 1996 and 2008. Then it was removed and the efforts to be brought back in 2020 may not be successful. However, there has been 4 tournaments within the period.
The first appearance of Softball in the Olympics was in 1996. The tournament was held at Golden Park, Columbus, Georgia (USA). 8 teams took part in the competition (the USA, China, Australia, Japan, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Holland and Puerto Rico). The competition was pretty predictable, as the US team won the golden medals. The US players lost only 1 game and won 8, becoming the first softball Olympics champions.
Then, the US national softball team performed at the same top level again in the next two Olympic games (Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004) and eventually won again the golden medals. And the Americans were expected to do it again in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
The United States finished unbeaten in the preliminary group. They recorded 7 victories of 7 matches. Then, again, everything looked ok in the semi-finals, beating 4-1 Japan. But Japanese players had another chance to qualify for the final. They just had to win against Australia and they did it (4-3). So, Japanese players had another chance to win the tournament.
US team beat Japan twice in the tournament before the final match. But, the big underdogs made something special and took the golden medals. Japan put an end of the three consecutive successes for the United States at the Olympics. Can you imagine a team like Japan, which has lost twice (0-7 and 1-4) from the United States, becoming the champion? Well, maybe they have learned from their mistakes in the beginning of the competition.
So, the balance of the all 4 softball tournaments at the Olympics is: 13 nations have ever taken part in such a tournament. The USA national team won 3 golden and 1 silver medals. The Japanese players won 1 golden and 1 silver medal. Australia set a record in the competition for the bronze medals, retaining them on 3 occasions. The Aussies won also the second place in 2004.
We are looking forward to see what will be the decision for the 2020 Olympics, but maybe Wrestling is going to be on the programme instead of softball and baseball, which is so sad for such enjoyable sports.

The infielder Hailey Breakwell, who graduated in the Idaho State University, will join the White Sox team to take part in the Down Under Fastpitch Classic in Sydney on 5th February. Breakwell was born in The United States, but her father is a Kiwi and she has decided to become a part of the New Zealand national softball team.
An interesting fact is that her father, Peter Breakwell is a famous show-jumper. He even participated in the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, representing New Zealand.
Hailey’s grandmother, cousins and uncles still live in Hawkes Bay and Palmerston North.
‘The selection in The White Sox’ squad gives me the opportunity to represent New Zealand while playing softball at the highest level. It is an honour to be able to represent this country while being able to further my career playing the game I love,’ said Breakwell.
But, she wasn’t the only happy person with this decision. The head coach of The White Sox, Kevin Gettins was quite delighted of Hailey’s declaration for the nation.
‘She’s a specialist shortstop, who plays a bit of third base and was a solid hitter for her school team. I spoke to her coaches and they were very complimentary about her as a player and a person’, Gettins said.
Here is the squad of the New Zealand women national team: Shannon Hearne (WA, Australia), Pania Monk, Beth Stavert, Gillian Wills, Jennifer Feret, Rebecca Bromhead, Stefanie Trutanic (Auckland), Katrina Nukunuku, Rita Hokianga, Mel Gettins, Kurarora Ratu-James, Charlotte Pointon (Hutt Valley), Mereana Makea (Wellington), Ancelle van Molendorff, Hailey Breakwell (California, USA).
Trutanic has recently married a New Zealander and has also been included in the White Sox’ squad. She can play at top level on each position on the field and that’s why Gettins called her in the squad. Pania Monk and Mereana Makea are going to make their debut for New Zealand national softball team. Jennifer Feret and Rita Hokianga will be the frontline pitchers in Sydney. Ancelle van Molendoff of Auckland has recently been in an impressive form and that’s why she is selected by the head coach. Charlotte Pointon and Kurarora Ratu-James have been recalled in the squad and will take part in the competition.
Despite many of Gettins’ first choice players are on scholarships in the United States, the head coach is happy that he has lots of quality players with equivalent skills. He can easy replace the missing players.

Glendale Community College softball player Elena Kramer, who was 19 years old, died in a car crash when she was on her way to school on the first day after the holidays.
On Monday morning, Elena Kramer was driving down Bouquet Canyon Road in Santa Clarita when she suddenly lost control of her 1999 Ford Mustang and collided with a tree, according to the California Highway Patrol.
‘She was driving southbound on Bouquet. We don’t know how fast she was going but, somehow, she lost control of the car. The right passenger side of the car hit the tree. She was the sole occupant, and there were no other vehicles involved that we know of. The impact goes all the way from the passenger side to the driver’s side. So she died on impact, most likely,’ Patrol Officer Jose Alhumada said.
The teenager graduated high school in 2014. She started to study at Glendale Community College this autumn. Kramer had received a softball scholarship at a university in West Virginia, but she stayed there only for one semester. Then the girl moved home. Her desire was to continue playing and she hoped to get an offer at another four-year school after a year in Glendale. The softball season was just about to start…
The college’s head softball coach, Sal Pizzo, who had coached her for a few years through ‘travel ball’ program was very emotional and sad about the death of the teenager.
‘As good of a player as she was, and she was a well-above-average player, she was even better a kid. Already many four-year schools were watching her. She just had that personality that makes friends really quickly — that’s what I remember most about her’, Pizzo said.
There was a team meeting on Wednesday and all the Kramer’s teammates were informed that they could talk to a grief counselor at the school’s health center if needed.
‘They’re all in shock. I understand them. It’s hard to realize you’ve lost someone that you have spent so much time together. I let them know there was support for them if anyone was having a problem or trouble with the situation,’ added Pizzo.

Andrew Barragan has been appointed as a new head coach of the softball team at San Benito High. He was exceptionally happy to take this challenge, because he is a man, who likes to work hard and prove he is one of the best in the profession. On Thursday, Barragan was named as the new softball coach at San Benito High. The Balers softball team won the Central Coast Section Division championship on nine occasions under former coach Scott Smith. So, Barragan can feel a little bit under pressure, because everyone is going to expect great things of him.

The new coach was very happy with his new role and gave an interview:“It’s an honour to take Scott’s place and step into a program that pretty much he has built. I wouldn’t coach any other program if it wasn’t this one. I’m up for the challenge, and I know I have gigantic shoes to fill. At the same time, it’s a new era. I’m ready to rock and roll, and it’s exciting stuff,” Barragan said.

Barragan will feel more comfortable with his task, because Scott Smith has promised to help him if needed. “I’d like to thank Scott for being my mentor and having faith in me. He said that if anyone in this town can do it, it was me. I’ve been around Scott for the last three to four years, and the knowledge he’s given me has really evolved my game and coaching style. In a way, he has prepared me for whatever situations will come as far as teaching the mastery and skills of the game. I wouldn’t have taken this job if I wasn’t prepared,” added the new head coach.

An assistant coach of Barragan will be his friend Kim Reeder. He is one of the best pitchers in Notre Dame-Salinas softball history. Then he played at Ohio State University.

Andrew Barragan was so excited that couldn’t stop talking: “I’m excited, ecstatic and ready to go. I’m looking forward to having a fantastic season, because let’s face it, we’ll have a target on our back as the defending champs. I’m ready to defend, and we have the horses to do it,” the new coach said.

In conclusion, we have to say that the task in front of Andrew Barragan is very tough, but not impossible. He will have the support of the one of the most successful softball coaches – Scott Smith. In addition, if Barragan weren’t ready to take the challenge, he wouldn’t have done it! So, it is very likely San Benito High to be successful under their new coach.

If you haven’t heard much of one of the most entertaining sports – softball, I am here to tell you more about it. To begin, softball is a very similar game to baseball. Of course, there are differences. The ball is bigger and the field is smaller. You will be surprised to find out that this sport was invented in 1887 in Chicago. The sport has had many names through the years, but in 1926 is officially called softball. An interesting fact is that softball has been also called ‘ladies’ baseball’, because of the big number of women, who played it.

But what are the biggest differences between softball and baseball? Well, when playing softball, the ball must be pitched underhand and there are 7 innings instead of 9. The number of the players in a team is 9-10. There are two kinds of softball – slow-pitch and fast-pitch, which I will explain later. And don’t mislead that the ball, used in softball is soft. No, it is not!

You can expect…

If you are interested in softball this is the right place for you. The website is appropriate to you even if you are not so familiar with the sport, but think that it is very interesting. In the e-magazine you can expect news, analysis, interesting facts and stats. I will also talk about the biggest forums and the local softball leagues. Of course, I will answer to every single question you are going to ask me. Furthermore, you can find here different videos with tactics of playing softball and the most effective drills, explained by the best coaches in softball. So, you have already found the best site for softball if you consider yourself as a fan. Everything, connected with the sport you can find in one place – here!