By By Ryan Satcher / sports writer
July 12, 2002
It's going to be a big day on Saturday at Sammie Davidson Softball Complex
The ASA 14 &Under A Slow-Pitch State Tournament will be held in Meridian with the first games to start at 9 a.m. with the finals set to start at 7:30 p.m. The tournament will be played on all four fields
12 teams will be competing in the double-elimination tournament. The top four teams will qualify for nationals to be held in Decatur, Ala., Aug. 1-4. The other teams will qualify for regionals held in Columbus on July 19-21 to play for a chance to travel to nationals.
Due to the large number of teams that compete in 14 &under, the tournaments were broken into A and B groups. The teams competing in A have been together longer and have played together in the summer. A lot of the B teams are formed for the tournament and haven't played together as long.
A couple of local teams will be competing in the tournament. North Meridian Optimist has a bye in the first round while West Lauderdale faces off with the Topsy Tornadoes at 9:00 a.m. on the Yellow Field. North Meridian Optimist's first game will be at 10:30 a.m. on the Red Field.
Other first round games include Lincoln Lumber against D'Iberville, Booneville All-Stars against the Picayune Big Dawgs and the Tupelo Twister will face Biloxi.
Moss Point, the Amory Lady Panthers, and the Columbus Silver Streaks will each have a bye and play their first game at 10:30 a.m.
The teams will then face off in losers' and winners' bracket games. The finals are set for 7:30 p.m. on the Green Filed. If the team from the losers' bracket wins the game, the teams will face off once again on the Green Field at 9 p.m. to determine the champion.
The admission fee will be $3.00 per person. Small children will be able to come in for free. Admission for the players and coaches will also be free.