All-Star softball tournaments kick-off at Ramstein

Anita Shorosky
Contributing Writer


***image1***The Majors’ All-Stars District Softball Tournament is today through Sunday at the Ramstein American High School softball fields. The Majors’ All-Stars are girls ages 11 and 12. The KMC Little League Organization is hosting the tournament for the second year in a row.

There are three teams competing for the chance to win the district tournament. They are from the KMC, Spangdahlem and Stuttgart.

Members of the KMC team include Vanessa Apodaca, Bryanna Arnold, Michaela Carlson, Gabrielle Cruz, Briana Day, Jasmine Dell, Meredith Gandy, Caroline Hamilton, Bianca Lopez, Miya Raymer, Allison Shelton and Sara Slabbekoorn. The manager is Chris Arnold and coaches are Leroy Apodaca and Joe Dell. Some of the players were on the team last year when they won the district and they are hoping to repeat as district champions this year.

Arnold’s team has been practicing for a couple of weeks, and he is confident the girls will be prepared for their opponents.

“We have a talented group of young ladies and it will take a total team effort to advance to the regionals,” said coach Arnold.

The winner of the district tournament advances to the regional tournament which will be held in Kutno, Poland, from July 1 to 5.

Not to be outdone by the younger softball All-Stars, there is another All-Star softball team in town. The Junior’s All-Star Softball Team is made of players 13 to 15 years of age. Members include Jessica Apodoca, Chelsi Brown, Kristan Burns, Natascha Fleming, Lauren Gough, Angela Hartford, Kaitlin Hines, Lindsey Jones, Mallory Jones, Ashley Ludwig, Mary Peterson, Rachel Seachris and Alyssa Smith. The manager is Steve Burns and coaches are Dave Jones and Jenniffer Leyva.

As of now, they are the only team in the district. If it stays that way, they will automatically advance to the regional tournament in Huizen, Netherlands, from Aug. 3 to 7.

The team is currently practicing on Saturday evenings until the season is over. Once that concludes, they will practice three hours a day, Monday through Friday.

“I am really excited about our team. We have strong pitching this season with veterans Jessica Apodaca and Lindsey Jones and additional help coming from newcomer Kristan Burns. If we hit like we are capable of, we have an excellent chance of going to the World Series,” said coach Burns.