John Rohde
The Oklahoman

The 2010 class joining the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame will feature a passer, a slugger, a pitcher, an outfielder and a tackler.

Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett on Thursday revealed this year’s inductees during a noon luncheon at the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame & Jim Thorpe Museum. The class includes two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Michele Smith.

Also leading the way is quarterback Troy Aikman, who led the Fighting Hens of Henryetta High School, began his collegiate career at Oklahoma, transferred to UCLA and later directed the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl championships in the 1990s.

This will complete a hall-of-fame trifecta for Aikman, who previously was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (2006) and the College Football Hall of Fame (2008).

The Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame selection committee has eyed Aikman for several years, but wanted him to be able to attend when inducted.

Joining Aikman will be Oklahoma State slugger Pete Incaviglia, who in 1999 was named college baseball’s player of the century. Most agree Incaviglia’s 48 home runs, 143 RBIs and 1.140 slugging percentage achieved in 1985 will never be surpassed.

Left-handed pitcher Smith, a two-time All-American at Oklahoma State and a National Softball Hall of Fame member, will become the first softball player inducted into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame.

Major-league outfielder Don Demeter of Capitol Hill High School originally signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers and played 11 seasons with five different teams. He hit 20-plus home runs for four straight seasons and received MVP votes in 1962 and 1963 with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Rick Bryan was one of the greatest defensive tackles in OU history, earning All-American status in 1982 and 1983 before becoming the ninth overall pick in the 1984 NFL Draft and having a nine-year career with the Atlanta Falcons. Bryan is honored posthumously. He died of a heart attack on July 25, 2009, in his Coweta home at age 47.

This year’s induction banquet will be Aug. 3 at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

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Sparks, MD – Former Virginia Tech softball All-American Angela Tincher, the 2008 NCAA Player of the Year, and University of Maryland head coach Laura Watten will highlight an accomplished instructional staff at the All-Pro Fastpitch (APF) Softball Coach/Player Seminar scheduled to be held December 5, 2009, at the Hunt Valley Marriott. They will be joined by former Maryland All-American Amber Jackson and Tincher’s college teammate, former All-ACC selection Kelsey Hoffman Schmitt, at the event, which is designed for coaches, parents of fastpitch athletes and youth players 12 years of age and older.

The APF Coach/Player Seminar is scheduled to run from 10 am. Until 1 p.m. on Saturday, December 5. It will cover most aspects of the game, including pitching, hitting, defense and catching as well as a segment on developing an effective practice plan. Each segment will include a Q&A opportunity with the instructors, and there will be an opportunity for photos and autographs following the event.

The cost of the seminar is $75 for parents and coaches and $35 for players 12 years of age and up. Instructors will teach and demonstrate in a classroom-style format, however players attending the seminar may be asked to help demonstrate some of the lessons and drills being discussed. For more information or to register please go to www.APICamps.com or call 410.472.3500. Space is limited, so please make sure to register in advance.

Instructor bios:

Angela Tincher was named the 2008 USA Softball College Player of the Year after leading Virginia Tech to its first-ever Women’s College World Series appearance. She is best known for no-hitting the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, breaking its 185-game pre-Olympic win streak. A member of the 2009 U.S. Pan Am Qualifier team, Tincher was a two-time All-American, an ESPY finalist and ranks among the top five collegiate pitchers of all time statistically. She plays professionally in Japan as well as for the NPF Akron Racers and is a two-time All-NPF selection.

Laura Watten is entering her fifth year guiding the Terrapin softball program, looking to improve upon an impressive initial four campaigns with her most talented and experienced squad yet. Named the 2005 NFCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year after taking a fledgling Bethune-Cookman program all the way to the NCAA Super Regionals, Watten’s 2008 team set a Maryland record for victories with 36, including a school-record 16 wins in a row at one point. That season marked the third consecutive year that the Terps had improved their record under Watten.

Amber Jackson transferred to Maryland from Bethune-Cookman when Watten signed on to guide the Terps. A three-time All-American in college, she was named the National Pro Faspitch Player of the year in 2007 as a member of the Washington Glory. Jackson, who currently plays for the NPF Florida Pride, led Bethune-Cookman to a 49-19 record in 2005 and a regional championship against the likes of perennial powers Florida, South Florida and Central Florida.

Kelsey Hoffman Schmitt was a second-team All-ACC catcher at Virginia Tech, mainly handling Tincher, before signing with the NPF Akron Racers in 2009. She recorded a double off U.S. pitcher Jennie Finch to set up the only run in Tech’s stunning 1-0 shutout, no-hit win over the U.S. National Team in 2008. Schmitt had a breakout year as a junior, hitting .277 and committing just two errors in 572 chances, good for a remarkable .992 fielding percentage.

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ESPN The Magazine’s inaugural ‘Body Issue,’ which honors athletes of various shapes, sizes, genders, races and — it would appear– stages of pregnancy! USA Softball star Jessica Mendoza, a gold medalist in the 2004 Olympic Games, posed alongside her teammates this summer while 8 ½-months pregnant with her first child.

“The bodies in this issue vary from super buff, to lean, to stocky … all exemplifying beauty in their own way,” the 28-year-old outfielder notes. “I was proud to be in this issue at a unique time of my life.” Jessica adds,

“I felt that by showing athletes in every shape and form, including those of us who have children and continue to play, ESPN The Magazine is trying to break those stereotypes.”

Her athletic background almost certainly came in handy just a few weeks later, when she delivered son Caleb Ashton Mendoza-Burks — after 41 hours of labor! Baby boy arrived at 6:51 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12, weighing in at 6 lbs., 8 oz. and measuring 21 inches in length. He is the first child for Jessica and her husband, Adam Burks.

Last weekend the Triple Threat Softball Camp held their first camp in McKinney,Texas. Since I live about 30 miles from McKinney I thought I would take The Fastpitch TV Show camera to McKinney and see what kind of film footage I could get for future episodes.

If you not be familiar with The Triple Threat Softball Camp, you are not alone. It is a brand new project put together by former Olympians Caitlin Lowe, Cat Osterman, and Kelly Kretschman. As I said the McKinney Stop was the first of seven currently scheduled. You can visit the camp website at www.triplethreatsoftball.com

Upon reaching the field, I tried to find someone in charge, so I could make sure it was OK to film. I was pleasantly surprised to find myself talking to Caitlin Lowes Mom. Then I met Catlin’s boyfriend, as well as Kelly Kretschmans Mother. I must say it was a pleasant atmosphere to see that this camp was a family project. They were all very pleasant, and gave me permission to shot all the film I wanted.

I must say I was impressed a second time with the camp itself. This was not a camp where you come met some famous players, and walk through some drills. This was a camp were the kids worked, and worked hard. Caitlin teaching people how to bunt, Kelly teaching how to hit, and of course Cat teaching how to pitch.

At the end of the day on Saturday they held a thirty minute Q & A period. The kids asked questions for about twenty minutes. Then parents had the last 10 minutes to ask questions. It is amazing the kind of questions that are important to kids. I loved it. I know know there favorite colors, favorite bands, favorite songs. I even know whether the Olympians sing songs on the team bus, when they travel from town to town. that may have been one of my favorite parts of the day.

Besides that 30 minutes of fun, this camp was mostly a teaching, and working camp. Olympians teaching the skills they have honed over years of playing, and students working hard to learn what was being taught by their heros. I learned a lot just from filming, and listening to the three great softball players that were giving the camp.

I would recommend this camp to anyone who has a daughter that is serious about softball. I would of sent my daughter to this camp, and she would of loved it. The fact that they get to know these great players is just a bonus. It is kind of like the Mastercard commercial says, being taught by some of the greatest softball players in the world PRICELESS.

WALNUT CREEK, Calif.- Washington softball player Danielle Lawrie has been named one of 10 finalists from around the world for the 2009 Women’s Sports Foundation’s Sportswoman of the Year award, the organization recently announced. Each year, the Women’s Sports Foundation recognizes an individual and team Sportswoman whose performances over a 12-month span has been above and beyond those of their peers. Criteria is based on new records and world championships won.

Lawrie is nominated in the team category with 10 other qualified athletes, including Brazilian soccer player Marta, University of Connecticut basketball player Renee Montgomery and other athletes representing the sports of tennis (doubles), volleyball, bobsledding, curling, bowling, lacrosse and ice hockey.

Since the team category’s inception in 1993, four softball players have won the award, including the past two years, with Stanford’s Jessica Mendoza (2008) and Monica Abbott from Tennessee (2007). Previous winners include Lisa Fernandez (1994) from UCLA and Texas’ Cat Osterman (2003).

Other Pac-10 athletes to win the award include Stanford’s Kerri Walsh, the four-time All-American and gold medal Olympian won the award with Misty May-Treanor in 2006. Lisa Leslie, a three-time All-American at USC, is a two-time winner of the award in 2003 and 2001. Cynthia Cooper, also a decorated Trojan, received the award in 1998.

On the individual side, former Cal swimmer Natalie Coughlin won the honor in 2003. Famed Olympian and UCLA Bruin Gail Devers received the award in 1997. Swimmer Amy Van Dyken from Arizona adds to the list of Pac-10 athletes bestowed with the honor, having won it in 1996.

Award winners will be announced on October 13, 2009 and honored at the Annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City.

Lawrie has been racking up the accolades since leading the Huskies to their first-ever softball National Championship. She was the Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year and USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year before leading the Huskies to the title. After the team’s storied run, she was named the NCAA Women’s College World Series Most Outstanding Player along with winning the Honda Award, presented to the nation’s top softball player. Lawrie was also a finalist for the Honda-Broderick Award, which is presented to the top collegiate female athlete regardless of sport, and was an ESPY Award nominee in the category of Top Female Collegiate Athlete.

Lawrie is a member of the Canadian National Team and competed in the 2008 Olympic Games, leading Canada to the medal round. With the Huskies last season, she broke career and single-season UW strikeout records and led the nation in wins (42) and strikeouts (521).

Vote for Lawrie Here

BY MATT WING
Journal-Courier

Imagine being three outs away from winning a state championship. Now imagine losing the title before another pitch is thrown.

Parents, players and coaches from the Beardstown Girls Junior League All-Stars are crying foul after Beardstown was ruled the loser in the championship game of the Girls Junior League Softball State Tournament in East Chicago, a tournament that feeds into the Little League World Series.

“They basically took a state title away from us, and I’m pretty upset about it,” said Craig Myers, who coaches the team of 13- and 14-year-olds.

Beardstown had rallied for five runs in the top of the seventh inning to take an 8-6 lead against the Burbank Nationals Wednesday when the game was suspended because of darkness. Both teams were to return to the field the next day to complete the game.

But when Beardstown arrived, it got a nasty surprise. Tournament officials learned Thursday morning that they had made a mistake: Games suspended because of darkness cannot be continued. Instead, the score reverts back to the last completed inning, and the game is over.

Burbank had won 6-3.

“It was really emotional and we did cry a lot, but then we just kind of sucked it up and went home,” said Lynne Griffin, a Beardstown player. “And now I know a lot of girls don’t want to play All-Stars next year and their parents don’t want them to, either, because they don’t want to put up with this again.

“It was just a really bad time.”

Beardstown protested the ruling but was told nothing could be done. Parents have been making phone calls appealing to Little League officials in an attempt to have the ruling overturned, but so far, have had no luck. Parents say they will protest as long as they have to in order to get their team into next weekend’s World Series qualifier in Ohio.

Bill Davidsmeier, the father of a player on the team, was furious when his daughter called him on the way home from Chicago to tell him what had happened.

“She called me from up there and they had just got done and she just kept saying, ‘Daddy why do we even play?’” Davidsmeier said. “I’ve been her dad for 13 years and there’s never been a question she’s had that I didn’t have an answer for, and as soon as I got off the phone I just sat down and cried. I didn’t have an answer for her and I just felt completely helpless.”

Wednesday’s game was delayed in the seventh inning. A Beardstown player was called out after singling home two runs to tie the score at 6-6; an umpire ruled she had stepped out of the batter’s box. After an appeal by the Beardstown coaching staff, the call was overturned by assistant tournament director Sean Gibbons, who called the Little League Regional Office in Indianapolis for assistance.

That prompted the Burbank coach to argue the reversal. The game was delayed 45 minutes, and by then it was too dark to continue. The teams were told to return to the field the next day to finish the game.
But when Beardstown returned, the team got a different story.

“We came back Thursday and went through our warm-ups and everything and I just happened to look over there and saw the other team wasn’t warming up and I thought that was a little strange,” Myers said. “Then I talked to the tournament director and he said that the Little League district director was going to be there in a couple minutes and he wanted to have a meeting with both teams, and all of a sudden I thought something is not right here.”

Beardstown’s players, parents and coaches were shocked.

“This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen happen in Beardstown Little League, or any Little League tournament for that matter,” said Rita Lindley, a parent of a Beardstown player. “This tournament was rigged.”

Wedryk, the tournament director, admitted that the game should not have been suspended. He said he was not present when it was. Still, Wedryk said everything was handled by the book.

“We tried to do a classy job with the thing and I know they’re disappointed but I had to stand up on my own two feet and tell them what the decision was,” he said. “I was straightforward with them and I was honest with them and I didn’t pull any punches.”

Tournament officials asked the players to line up on the field to receive their first- and second-place pins after the game, but Beardstown refused to take the field.

“At the time I just told the girls to stay in the dugout. They wanted us to go out on the field to accept our second-place pins and I told the girls we weren’t going to do that,” Myers said. “I huddled the girls after and told them they were the state champions.”

The Beardstown contingent had to stay in the Chicago area Wednesday night for Thursday’s scheduled completion. Other fans and relatives drove to Chicago from Beardstown Thursday afternoon, only to find there was no game.

Wedryk said he got word from Indianapolis at 11:30 a.m. Thursday that Burbank was declared the winner. Instead of calling to notify any of the Beardstown coaches, he waited until 5:15 p.m., after Beardstown had already taken the field for pre-game warmups.

“You would have to get ahold of everybody by phone, and making that kind of announcement by phone is kind of rotten, I think,” Wedryk said.

Some Beardstown parents were outraged that they had stayed overnight for nothing. Wedryk said Friday there was nothing he could do about it.

“I had no regrets about them spending an extra night or getting extra lodging or getting extra meals,” he said. “There’s nothing I could do about it. If they had to pay it, they had to pay it.”

Myers said he talked to a few parents from Burbank who said they didn’t feel right about the situation. Not everyone from Burbank felt that way, though.

“The rest of them were yelling at us to be quiet and things of that nature,” he said.

The state tournament marked the last scheduled tournament of the summer for Beardstown, whose team members include: Taylor Myers, Morgan Davidsmeier, Lynne Griffin, Taylor Cooper, Kennedy Dotzert, Kait Herter, Darrian Gregory, Allaina Leischner, Jordan Welker, Kennedi Lindley, Megan Icenogle and Jennifer Janssen.

Parents said they hope the incident won’t turn their daughters away from softball.

“You’re talking about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (to go to the World Series). This may never come around again,” said Steve Griffin, another parent. “I grew up in Jacksonville and I was on a few all-star teams in Jacksonville and I still have those memories, and these are 13- and 14-year-old girls and this will probably be etched in their minds for the rest of their lives.”

If a girl you liked had Jack Nicholson as a father, would you be too scared to ask her out? Even if that girl was Reese Witherspoon? I would think so, but then this isn’t a situation I would ever find myself in. Paul Rudd and Owen Wilson will however, according to The Hollywood Reporter: Nicholson is “in talks” to take the role in an untitled romantic comedy from James L. Brooks.

The romantic comedy stars Reese Witherspoon as a professional softball player who is torn between two handsome, available men: Rudd, a nice, ordinary guy, and Wilson, a rakish fellow with one heck of a fastball. It clocks in at 94 miles an hour.

Nicholson will play Witherspoon’s father, stepping into a role that until recently belonged to Bill Murray. The former “Ghostbuster” lost interest, allowing Nicholson to potentially step in. The deal hasn’t been made yet, but given Nicholson’s and Brooks’ track record together, this has a better-than-decent chance of working out.

Brooks and Nicholson go way back, and they’ve had a lot of good luck together. Nicholson has won two Oscars (for “Terms of Endearment” and “As Good As It Gets”) working with his good luck charm of a director.

Unless Brooks loses another cast member, the shoot is set to start on the East Coast later this month, just in time for baseball season. Maybe Nicholson and his old friend Josh Horowitz can catch a game together?

Reese wearing a Gameface protective mask.

The Oscar winner has revealed she has been secretly planning the untitled Jim Brooks film for the past two years – and its great fun.

“It’s a movie with Jim Brooks and Paul Rudd and Bill Murray. I don’t know what the title is. I really have been making a movie with Jim Brooks for about two years now and one day we’ll start filming and it will be fantastic!

“We haven’t shot the movie yet. I play a professional softball player.”

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – The “windmill” motion used in fast-pitch softball puts pitchers at risk for injuries to the biceps muscle, a new study suggests.

Softball pitching has traditionally been seen as less stressful to the arm than the overhand pitching used in baseball. However, recent studies have suggested that college and professional softball pitchers run a high risk of chronic shoulder pain.

The new study, published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine, suggests that strain placed on the biceps muscle, which connects with tendons in the shoulder, may be to blame.

“The conventional belief has been that the underhand throwing motion of softball places little stress on the arm,” senior researcher Dr. Nikhil Verma, a sports medicine specialist at Rush University in Chicago, said in a written statement. “But that is not the case.”

Understanding how pitchers’ shoulder pain originates may help doctors and trainers develop better ways of preventing and treating it, according to Verma and his colleagues.

For their study, the researchers analyzed the pitching motions of seven college and professional softball players. They used a technique called surface electromyography, which uses electrodes placed on the skin, to collect information on muscle firing patterns during each pitch.

The women perform both standard windmill pitches — where the arm whips in a full circle ending with an underhand pitch to the plate — and overhand pitches like those used in baseball.

Verma’s team found that compared with the overhand pitch, the windmill variety produced a much greater force in the biceps. The muscle was maximally contracted as the pitcher’s arm swooped downward, just before releasing the ball.

“The greatest impact is on the biceps, as the muscle first accelerates the arm and then puts on the brakes, after transferring force to the ball,” Verma explained.

The findings help explain why shoulder pain — and, in particular, pain in the front of the shoulder — is so common in softball pitchers, according to the researchers.

“This study helps explain the etiology of that shoulder pain,” Verma said, “and may help doctors devise better treatment and prevention strategies.”

Allentown, Pa- The Philadelphia Force is sad to announce the retirement of several players. Retiring from the game they love are players Raquel “Rocky” Spencer, Kellie Wilkerson, Savannah Long, Jenna Hall, Ashley Smith, Kristen Miller, and Sharonda McDonald. The Force thanks these players for all of their contributions both on and off the field for both the team and the NPF.

“This year will be an exciting one for the Philadelphia Force, however it will be without several players who have either retired or taken the year off for one reason or another. Notably, we will not have Kellie Wilkerson, Ashley Smith, Jenna Hall, Sharonda McDonald or Rocky Spencer,” stated Tom Kleinman, owner/GM of the Philadelphia Force.

Kleinman continues to state, “All four have retired from active playing. We wish Kellie and Jenna good fortune as they are both Assistant Coaches for NCAA Division I schools. Rocky has entered Graduate school in Colorado and Ashley Smith graduated from the Univ. Of Michigan Engineering program and is starting a great job in Colorado. They will all be missed.”

Rocky Spencer just ended her fourth year in the NPF after joining the Force as a utility player in 2007. She saw 12 at bats during the 2008 season, ending with a .083 batting average and .167 slugging percent.

Kellie Wilkerson ended the 2008 season as the league leader in batting average with an average of .407 (46-for-113). Tied for eighth in the league with 22 RBIs and lead the Force with a .549 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .492. Wilkerson was a NPF All-Star in 2008 and All-NPF selection at first base in 2007.

Jenna Hall leaves after 3 seasons in the NPF splitting time for the Force between first base and designated player in 2008. Hall ended the season with a .217 batting average with 19 RBIs in 115 at bats. She set personal season bests with 26 hits, 15 RBIs, and 3 homeruns in 111 at-bats in 2007.

Ashley Smith ends her third year as a catcher with the Force with a .184 batting average, two runs, and nine hits. During the 2007 season, Smith set a career high in at bats with 72. One of her highlights was when she beat the Michigan Ice with an eighth-inning walk-off single on August 8, 2007

Sharonda McDonald was drafted by the Force in 2007 as an outfielder. She was named a 2008 NPF All-Star and was a 2007 All-NPF selection. Had a batting average of .299 at the end of the 2008 season. McDonald stole a club-high 16 bases and was tied for most runs scored with 26. In the June 18th game against New England, she went 3-4 with three stolen bases and two runs scored.

“We will also miss Savannah Long and Kristen Miller who have elected for one reason or another not to play this year,” says Kleinman.
Savannah Long was drafted eighth overall by the Force in 2008 as an infielder after earning many accolades during her senior year at Oklahoma, including Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. Seeing 109 at bats in her rookie season, she averaged .248 with a slugging percent of .321.

Kristen Miller joined the Force in 2008 as a catcher for her rookie season in the NPF after graduating from Arizona State, where she was second on the team in home runs (16) and boasted a .636 slugging percentage. In her one season with the Force, she had 75 at bats for a batting average of .187, with 14 hits, including one homerun, and 4 RBIs with 3 runs scored.

Members of a Victoria girls softball team have been awarded $1,000 each “for injury to their dignity, feelings and self-respect” because they were being discriminated against, the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal ruled.

The Beacon Hill Little League major girls softball team filed a complaint with the tribunal after national Little League organizers funded the travel costs of the winning boys baseball team during a 2005 tournament but not the winning girls softball team.

In a ruling released Monday, the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal said Hawkins’s complaint was “justified.”

“The impact of the policy on the team gives rise to a prima facie case of sex-based discrimination that impedes the team’s full and free participation in the social and cultural life of British Columbia,” the ruling said.

Coach Bill Hawkins says Little League’s tournament policy discriminated against girls playing softball in comparison with boys playing baseball by excluding the girls from a travel fund. (CBC)

On July 24, 2005, the winning boys team in a baseball divisional championship held in Victoria were provided with a travel package, including airplane tickets, for the team to attend the national championship in Ontario.

The following day, the winning girls team in the corresponding softball divisional championship, also held in Victoria, were not given the same travel expenses. Both teams were playing at the Beacon Hill Little League’s “major” level, for players as old as 12 years of age.

To attend the national championship in Ontario, the girls team had to raise about $20,000 for travel expenses in five days, the ruling said.

The girls team did go to the national championship and won, and then went on to represent Canada at the world championship, after an anonymous donor paid the travel expenses.

Little League Canada has denied any discrimination against the girls softball team based on their sexes.

But the tribunal ruled the league’s tournament policy never resulted in boys baseball teams being excluded from getting travel funds.

“Little League’s conduct showed disregard for the impact the [tournament] policy might have had on female softball players,” the ruling said.

“The above-noted conduct supports an inference that sex was a factor in Little League’s adoption of the policy that adversely affected only females and with respect to this complaint adversely affected the [Beacon Hill] team.”

Besides awarding $1,000 each to the girls team’s 13 members, the tribunal also ordered that Little League cease the discriminatory practice and refrain from undertaking any similar courses of action in the future.

A Hanover Park man who threatened a youth softball umpire and spit on a deputy sheriff was sentenced today to 5 days in jail and ordered to take anger-management classes.
Michael Beck, 47, of the 1600 block of Arlington Drive in Hanover Park pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of battery and assault and was sentenced by DuPage County Judge Peter Dockery to 5 days in the jail’s work-release program. He also was put on 2 years’ probation, ordered to perform 40 hours of public service and write letters of apology to the umpire and sheriff’s deputy.

Beck was attending his daughter’s softball game July 13 at Sunset Park near Downers Grove when he “became angry with the calls and responded with gestures and obscenities,” Assistant State’s Atty. Louisa Nuckolls said.

After threatening the umpire with physical harm, someone at the game called police. When the deputy arrived and Beck refused to cooperate, he was arrested, Nuckolls said. “He cocked his head and spit saliva and sunflower seeds on the deputy, and when he was told to stop, he did it a second time.”

Beck had been charged with felony aggravated battery and faced up to 7 years in prison but accepted a plea agreement with a lesser sentence and apologized to Dockery.

For any of you that have a website, My Space Page, Facebook Page, Or blog we have created a Fastpitch News Widget for you. This wil allow you to show your viewers the freshest news for the world of fastpitch softball. You can see the actual News Widget below.

To get your own copy of our fastpitch softball news widget for your personal site, or page go to http://www.widgetbox.com/widget/fastpitchus. and look on the top right where it says get widget. I am sure you can figure it out from there. I hope you enjoy it.

By KANDACE MCCOY

MT. VERNON — Though the issue of wearing safety headgear for softball pitchers and corner players has been a topic within the Illinois High School Association for the past few years, there will be no change in IHSA softball rules for the upcoming season, according to Kurt Gibson, an IHSA assistant executive director.

“We follow National Federation of State High School Associations playing rules,” Gibson said. “They write the rules. We don’t deviate from them.”

Gibson confirmed he had received a letter written by Mt. Vernon Township High School junior hurler Alisha Capps regarding an injury she sustained July 27, when she was hit in the face during summer league play. Capps sent letters to both the IHSA and the NFSHSA asking the organizations to make it mandatory for pitchers and corner infield players to wear protective face masks.

“This particular issue in question is a topic that has been discussed for the past three to five years,” Gibson acknowledged. “Right now there’s nothing preventing anyone playing from wearing a protective face mask.”

Gibson added that there are currently no safety standards in softball for headgear other than for the catcher and batter, and there currently is not a standard for any other position.

“I don’t see where the rules committee will mandate that equipment is worn,” he said during a phone interview last week. And though Gibson said he is aware that the NFSHSA is “continuing to look at headgear,” other considerations are also being made, such as moving back pitching distance and slowing down the softball and bat exit speed ratios.

“There are a lot of things in play here in trying to protect players,” he asserted. “I am not unsympathetic with the Capps [family]. I’m hopeful in time there will be something in place, but I can assure you there won’t be anything [rules] in place for the upcoming season.”

Mary Struckoff, assistant director and liaison to the softball rules committee of the NFSHSA, confirmed that “defensive headgear is permissible” under the NFSHSA code, but not required. “We don’t have enough data regarding [softball] injuries. We do have injury surveillance in place. Softball is one of the sports where the fewest injuries are sustained, and we are gathering information and statistics. If Illinois wants to propose mandatory protective headgear for infielders, they are welcome to do that and the committee will consider it.”

Alisha’s mother, Leslie, expressed her disappointed with Gibson’s comments. “It makes me mad,” she said. “There was a girl from Carbondale a few years ago [who got hurt], and she still has seizures. This isn’t about Alisha, but about other kids. If [the IHSA] would have seen [the injury] happen, they probably would change their mind [about the rules].”

As a result of her injury, Alisha has endured two different surgeries to help restructure her jaw, and since there wasn’t enough bone intact for the placement of metal plates, a titanium screen wire was inserted into the right side of her face. Alisha’s body is now rejecting the metal wire, and she has been experiencing “a lot of headaches,” Leslie said.

Alisha will be undergoing another surgery on Dec. 2.

“We’re ready for all of this to get over with and for her to heal up,” Leslie added.

Locally, though, organizations are taking notice of the potential injuries to pitchers and corner infield players. Christi Porter, softball director with the Jefferson County Sports Authority, said pitchers will be required to wear protective gear. Each team will be provided with three face masks for corner players for optional use.

“It isn’t until it hits home, until it’s someone you know that you think, ‘Oh my gosh, this could happen,’” Porter said.

Porter said during the fall grade school softball season, all pitchers wore the face masks.

You can see samples of face masks at www.FastpitchFacemasks.com

The Rotterdam Girls Softball League is trying to figure out what to do now that it is realized thousands of dollars is missing from its coffers, after the league‘s former treasurer allegedly siphoned off money throughout her two-year term.

The league and police are still trying to find out just how much money is gone.

The Albany County Sheriff’s Department says the Rotterdam Girls Softball League is out more than $8000 because its former treasurer used its money for herself.

Rae Lynch of Guilderland was charged with grand larceny after an audit of the books from the last two years turned up checked checks written for things the league normally would not write them for, including a $3100 check for her Albany County taxes.

Jackie O’Brien/President, Rotterdam Girls Softball League: “I was just sick to my stomach. I couldn’t believe that someone that we had entrusted had done this to us.”

League president Jackie O’Brien says they were starting to realize that bills were not being paid, and the records were not as detailed as they were when lynch started as treasurer in October 2006.

Craig Apple/Chief Deputy, Albany County Sheriffs Department: “Once we started looking into it, we could see how she was paying veterinarians. She was going to Home Depot and buying personal goods. She was paying her mortgage. She was obviously paying the taxes, and there were several others, a whole laundry list of different businesses in the area she was paying, using money that was not hers.”

Lynch appeared in Albany City Court on Wednesday.

She was not home when FOX23 News stopped there Thursday to get a comment.

Jackie O’Brien says this is a shame, but the league will move on.

Jackie O’Brien: “At this point I think we have enough to get our season started. I don’t think we’ll have a problem buying equipment. Will I buy as much equipment or get newer things? Probably not. We’ll try to see what we can get by with this year.”

Rae Lynch was released on her own recognizance.

The sheriff’s department says its investigation is continuing and they expect more charges to be filed.

Jackie O’Brien says some of the stolen money came from what was essentially a scholarship fund to help families cover the registration cost for their kids to join the league.

As you may know by now, I am always creating new websites for fastpitch softball players, and fans.

I enjoy softball, and I enjoy talking about softball. I actually enjoy it so much I created a store and website to sell softball equipment when their were no other softball stores around. You can find it at SoftballJunk.com. Then I started creating a network of softball related stores which are located at SportsJunk.com.

After creating the stores I went into creating new media sites for fastpitch softball. We have them all listed at FastpitchFans.com.

Now I have created a new site for softball. A site where players, coaches, and fans can get together and chat about the one thing they all have in common. You can find the site located at FastpitchChat.com.

By KANDACE MCCOY

The softball game played on July 27 started as any other travel team game for Mt. Vernon’s Alisha Capps. There was the routine infield chatter, the barking of umpires’ calls and quiet conversation by fans in the stands. However, normalcy abandoned the game in the fourth inning of a scoreless contest played during the U.S. Nationals at Florissant, Mo.

Capps, a 16-year-old hurler playing for the St. Louis Esprit 18-and-under travel team, stared down a Missouri Wicked Elite batter. “She was pitching pretty good that game,” recalled Capps’ father, Steven.

Capps hurled a curve ball — high and outside. “It was a pitch no one should have grabbed,” said her mother, Leslie. The Wicked Elite batter reached for and cracked the ball, hitting it approximately 125 miles per hour — right into Capps’ face.

“I knew when she fell down and didn’t jump back up something was wrong,” Leslie Capps said, trying to control her trembling voice. “I was screaming to call 911. I knew she was hurt bad — for her not to get up, she had to be hurt bad.”

And it was bad. Though Alisha raised her glove to try and catch the ball, she wasn’t able to get it up in time to protect herself, and the ball smashed nearly every bone on the right side of her face. “I didn’t know how she was,” Leslie said. “The ball came off so fast, and if you could’ve heard her hit — she turned around and fell on her stomach.”

When Alisha’s father rushed onto the field to his daughter’s side, he saw her face covered in blood. “It was pouring out like it was pouring out of a glass,” he stammered. “There was a lot of blood. I pray no parent has to see their child like that when it’s so preventable,” Leslie added.

And the hit could have been prevented, Alisha believes, if she had been wearing a softball face mask. The mask, according to sports equipment company SoftballJunk.com is one of their hottest selling safety products. “If I had [the Fastpitch mask] on,” Alisha explained, “I would have been fine.”

As a result of her injury, Alisha suffered fractures which resulted in little to no solid bone remaining in the right side of her face. Her jaw was broken in two places, the bone along her eye socket had been shattered, and her cheek bone was crushed. “It pretty much shattered every bone,” Leslie Capps said. “It’s a miracle she didn’t lose any teeth.”

Alisha endured two different surgeries to help restructure her jaw, and since there wasn’t enough bone intact for the placement of metal plates, a titanium screen wire was inserted into the right side of her face — an internal device she will have for the rest of her life.

After a week’s stay in Cardinal Glennon Hospital in St. Louis, Alisha returned home with a crusade. “Two weeks after we were home, she said, ‘Mom, I can’t stand it, get your glove and let’s play catch,’” Leslie remembered. However, she said her daughter was determined to educate younger players about the importance of wearing the infrrlders face mask.

“She talked to a 12-and-under traveling team. She still had a black eye and her cheek was still swollen,” Leslie said, “and the jaw bar on her teeth was still on.” Once Alisha explained to the girls what happened to her, one mother came up and thanked Alisha for her concern.“She said, ‘Thanks for talking to them because my daughter didn’t want to wear [a fielders face mask] and now she would.”

Alisha is also drafting a letter to the Illinois High School Association and the Amateur Softball Association for consideration to mandate all infielders, including pitchers, wear fastpitch face guards.

St. Louis Esprit coach John Kieny, who started the organization in 1982, said in his 40 years as a coach as well as 20 years as a hockey trainer, he had never seen an injury like the one suffered by Alisha. “Alisha’s a good athlete, but she had no opportunity to react and deflect the ball,” he said.

He added that with the way bats are made and the strength in which players swing, he agrees with Alisha that there needs to be a mandatory requirement for pitchers and corner infielders to wear protective face masks. “I think bats have gotten too dangerous since they have gone to composition materials — it’s too much,” he said.

Mt. Vernon Township High School softball coach Steve Morris said he saw Alisha on the first day she returned from the hospital.

“She looked a lot better,” he said. “She’s lucky to be alive.”

Morris, who has a rule that all infielders wear a mouthpiece during games, says he wishes the IHSA would also pass a rule requiring infielders to wear mandatory protective gear. “I definitely think that as good as players are getting, and getting stronger, something has to be done,” he said.

Pitchers like Capps are “very vulnerable,” he continued, and even though coaches try to teach their players the proper fielding position, hits like the one Capps received aren’t expected.

“I’ve taught players to have their glove down and ready in field position. With first and third [bases], you want them to have gloves up and ready. I’d rather it go through their legs, than see [players] get hurt.”

Morris sent a report to the IHSA following Capps’ incident, but until the association creates a new rule mandating protective gear, he said enforcing players to wear safer equipment may be difficult.

“I have heard lots of discussion about coaches trying to enforce this,” he said. “I think it comes down to personal preference. … It’s pretty difficult to force [players] to do this if there’s not a rule to back you up.”

Word of Alisha’s incident hit the area not long after it happened.

“I heard about her accident at the beginning of school,” noted Woodlawn softball coach Eric Helbig. “I was surprised, but then again I wasn’t. You hear more and more about this kind of thing. Between the hardness of the balls, the new bats, and the better players, there’s unfortunately a lot more of this in baseball and softball. In softball, the pitcher’s only a little over 30 feet away at the end of a pitch, so it can be a scary situation. The same goes for third basemen who play in for the bunt.”

However, coaches say that if players want to wear protective gear, they will be able to do so.

“I don’t require my pitchers or infielders to wear protective equipment, but I’m also not going to prevent them from it if they want to,” said Helbig. “I’d definitely say that it would be a good idea to wear protection at the younger levels and even in high school if you’re the type of pitcher that isn’t real overpowering. I don’t think we’ve faced a pitcher in high school that wore a mask, but I’ve seen them around, and I’m guessing we’ll see more of it. I think we’ll probably buy one for the team in case someone would feel more comfortable with one on and I’ll definitely pass on information as to where they can be bought.”

“I highly recommend [wearing a mask] to players on first and third base,” Morris “I’ve got a kid that plays third that has hands as quick as I’ve seen and she caught some vicious line drives — fortunately — last year.”

Kieny said he will be asking coaches in his organization to require players to wear the face mask. “I’m a convert because of Alisha,” he said. “No one will pitch for me without a mask.”

Even though Alisha will be submitting a letter to the IHSA, Helbig says he doesn’t believe the requirement of face masks is an issue at the moment. “Right now, I don’t think it’s that much of an issue that the IHSA or NFSHSA (National Federation of State High School Associations) needs to step in and require fielders to wear masks,” he said. “I think they might tinker with moving the pitching distance back first and see if that helps create a little more room between the pitcher and hitter.”

Alisha has a hard time digesting that philosophy. “It makes me mad that people think [the mask] is not worth it,” she said. But the high school junior knows that no matter where her crusade may lead, she has supporters behind her.

In fact, after Alisha was transported to the hospital following her injury, her Esprit team was behind 5-0 by the seventh inning. Fans then began to chant her name, and with that inspiration, the team came back and won the game, 7-6. “We still don’t know what’s in store for her future,” Leslie Capps said. “You can’t sleep when you picture your child hurt. I keep seeing her get hit with the ball over and over again.”

Yet Alisha says when she picks up a paper and sees a photograph of a player wearing a mask, she says to herself, “Good.” She does not want her pain to be in vain.

If you are looking for a facemask for your players, check www.FastpitchFaceguards.com.

CHARLESTON, S.C. -President George Bush and first lady Laura Bush are planning to greet a championship softball team during a brief visit to the South Carolina.

The President and First Lady will spend some time in Florida on Friday, then fly to Charleston where they will greet members of the Simpsonville Stars. The team from upstate South Carolina won the Little League Softball World Series in August.

After meeting the team, the president is to head to a reception sponsored by the Republican National Committee. The president is to return to Washington on Friday night.

Whether you’re a softball parent., or a softball coach with kids playing at the YMCA, or playing select ball there are a variety of online tools that can help you and your team. Here are the top 10 services for softball parents and coaches that allow you to manage your team’s schedule, notify players of news, upload and share player photos and statistics, and much more.

Many of these services are free, but there are a few high-quality services that require a monthly or one-time fee for a season. Each provides trial periods so you can test them out to see which works for you and your team.

10. TeamTexting only does one thing, but it does it extremely well. It’s totally free and lets you create a new email address that everyone on the team can use to share news and information instantly via text messaging or email. The format is TeamName@teamtexting.com. If you just need a way to keep everyone in the loop and don’t want to bother with getting everyone’s email address and creating a distribution list, then this is the answer.

9. RosterBot does slightly more than TeamTexting when it comes to communicating with your team. It uses email to poll each player and notifies you of the results.

8. Pinger isn’t geared specifically towards sports enthusiasts, but its group voice messaging feature makes it ideal for team captains to communicate with each member instantly. Pinger is free at this time and works on most mobile devices, but especially well with Blackberries thanks to a handy little application that plays back voice messages.

7. MyEZTeams basically does the same thing as RosterBot but adds message boards and Google Calendar integration.

6. TournamentBrackets.US offer brackets for both single and double elimination tournaments. The best part about then is they are free, just print whatever you need.

5. Fastpitch.TV takes all the best fastpitch softball videos on YouTube and puts them in one place. No more looking trough tons of videos about nothing to find the few you are interested in looking at.

4. TeamPages is another full-feature team site with a free basic package and a couple of premium packages that remove ads and add more features.

3. RedZoneLeagues offers an impressive amount of features and it’s totally free. All of the standard features are available, including a calendar of games, player stats, photos and more.

2. eTeamz is a professional looking service that covers just about everything teams and even league organizers will ever need. They offer a free basic service that is extremely limited but it’ll be good enough to get your feet wet if you just want to test it out. You can even add video highlights of games in addition to player photos and statistics.

…and the number one tool?

1.TeamSnap is similar to eTeams in regards to all of the incredible features it offers but it edges them out simply because it’s currently free. Now, it won’t remain free for very long, but for the time being it’s offering all of the commercial grade options and features for free.

On any given day, you never know who might be watching you, or our sport for the first time. What kind of impression do you want to leave on them? Every time you step on the field you have an opportunity to represent the game with integrity and class and it starts by holding a high personal standard.

Believe it or not there is going to come a time when you begin to toy with the idea of hanging up the spikes. I’ve told you before, I’ve thought a lot about it but why is it so hard to walk away? Even after two decades of playing, many off-field conversations with teammates turn to softball, but the focus of the conversations are no longer about the fundamentals of the game, it’s turned to the ways in which we can leave a positive, lasting impression on the sport that has given us so many opportunities throughout our lives. It may sound like a corny explanation but it’s true. Like many of my teammates, I feel like I have a responsibility to make sure that I leave the sport better than I found it.

In light of the Olympic Games it is a good time to reflect on what we can do to make our sport better. Yes, we’re growing and gaining more exposure through television coverage and player marketing, but what can you, as an individual, do to make sure you are doing your part? We don’t exactly know the future of our sport in the Olympics but we do know that other opportunities will continue to come as long as we are aware that it is us, the players, that control the fate of softball. On that note, is the way you present yourself day in and day out good for our sport?

If someone were to watch you or your team for the first time, will you have left them wanting to come back for more? The intriguing part about softball has a lot to do with talent and skill of course, but it also has a lot to do with your excitement for what you do and your discipline on the field. Are you a good teammate? Are you a good student of the game? Do you give 100% on every play of every inning?

You know what one of my favorite things to watch is? When a batter hits a fly ball in the infield or shallow outfield, it’ll be caught 98% of the time, but she is busting it to get as far around the bases as possible before it is caught. How many times do you think you’ll sprint all the way to second base for no reason? On the other hand, do you want to be the one standing two feet outside the batter’s box when that 2% error happens? What if it’s a crucial situation for your team with a runner in scoring position and it could be the difference in winning or losing the ballgame? This type of unselfish hustle is good for the sport.

Now, on the other side of the spectrum, softball is so hard! Sometimes I get so frustrated after an at bat that I just want to come in, throw my helmet against the wall, and hit something! And I’m a very laid back, calm person ☺ It sounds like a good idea at the time, it might make me feel better for a second, but ultimately it solves nothing and it’s bad for the sport. Softball is supposed to be hard! If it wasn’t hard everyone would do it. I have found that when I am able to let things go, whether it’s an error, bad at bat, or missed call, I feel better and in turn, I perform better. More importantly, it’s a better reflection on the sport.

We could make an entire list of things that are “good for the sport” and “bad for the sport” but ultimately it’s up to you to make that call. Good rule of thumb: if you have to ask yourself, “is this good?” chances are you’re walking a fine line so be aware. I hope you all realize how lucky we are. Everyday we have an opportunity to do what we love so treat it as it is, a privilege and a gift. Make sure that everyday you are representing yourself and the sport with the utmost respect because you never know who is watching.