AMERICUS — The 2009 Kiwanis Baseball Tournament will throw out the first pitch 4 p.m. Friday when Sumter County takes on Marion County in 12-and-under action.
The tournament, which will have three age divisions, features teams from Sumter, Marion, Macon and Schley Counties, as well as teams from Leesburg, Moultrie, Baconton and Grady County.
Tournament Coordinator and Kiwanis Vice President Charlene Pennymon expects a big turnout.
“We’re excited; it’s going to be a fantastic tournament,” said Pennymon, who is scheduled to be the Kiwanis’ first female president in October. “The teams are excited about coming, and we have a really good mix of teams.”
Last year’s tournament turned out to be a disappointment as it was scheduled the same weekend as another regional tournament. Pennymon said they made to sure to avoid the same conflict this year.
“It hurt us as far as our teams go,” she said. “This year we started earlier and worked with each team’s coordinator to make sure we coordinate a good weekend so all the teams could come to our tournament.”
Kiwanis added the 8-and-under division after eliminating the 14-and-under class. Pennymon said as kids got older, travel teams were more of the norm, so they wanted to get more kids involved at an early age.
“It gives the younger kids a good feel for team play and teamwork,” she said. “They’re learning to enjoy sports. I think it helps them be well-rounded as far as playing together and seeing some competition and looking forward to winning something.”
The 8-and-under and 10-and-under divisions will have pool play before entering into a single-elimination tournament.
For 12-and-under, the teams will have pool play and the top two teams in each pool will play in the semifinals and finals. Teams receive three points for wins, one for a tie (there are time limits) and none for a loss. A team receives an extra point if it wins by the mercy rule, and a team that loses by that margin will be deducted a point.
There are also no pitch counts/limits.
Admission for kids 12-and-under is $3 for a day and $5 for a weekend; for adults, it is $7 and $15, respectively.
“One hundred percent of the profits are returned back into the community to help with other projects we have going on,” said Pennymon. “We can’t wait to meet everyone and play some good ball.”
Local Sports
Related Photos
Kiwanis Baseball Classic set for weekend
- Local Sports
-
-
Pope visits Phoebe Sumter Medical Center
Americus native Leonard Pope made his first visit to the new Phoebe Sumter Medical Center, which opened on December 16, 2011. The 183,000 square foot, 76-bed facility replaces the old hospital that was destroyed by an EF3 tornado on March 1, 2007.
-
Lady Hurricanes win record-breaking game
The record-breaking 2011-2012 season for the Georgia Southwestern Lady Hurricanes continued Monday evening with an individual milestone being passed. Jessica Bivins would score her 1,000th point of her college career as the Lady Hurricanes won their NCAA Division II record 15th game as they downed the visiting Lady Cougars of Columbus State (12-9, 7-5 PBC) by a score of 77-65.
-
Led by senior Jacorbi Denmark, the Marion County boys win in thrilling fashion
The Marion County Eagles boys basketball team was flying high at the conclusion of Tuesday night’s game against the Patriots of Greenville High School. In a game mostly dominated by the Eagles, it took a last second shot to sink the hopes of the visiting Patriots.
-
Three SGTC Jets ranked in latest NJCAA national poll
South Georgia Technical College’s Khiry White, Kentavious Clowers and Phillip Flowers were all ranked individually in the latest National Junior College Athletic Association’s (NJCAA) national basketball poll this week. White and Clowers have appeared in the rankings consistently throughout January, but this was the first time that Phillip Flowers had cracked the national polls for 2012.
-
Marion County Lady Eagles drop tough home game on senior night
The Marion County Lady Eagles basketball team dropped a heartbreaking game to Region 4-A foe Greenville High School on Tuesday night in Buena Vista. The Lady Eagles battled hard the entire game and either led or had a share of the lead at the end of each of the four regulation periods. Unfortunately for the Lady Eagles, the Lady Patriots of Greenville caught fire at the right time and won the contest in overtime by a score of 57-52.
-
Early struggles too much to overcome for GSW men against Columbus State
The Georgia Southwestern men's basketball team shot 25 percent from the floor and trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half on Monday against Columbus State in the Storm Dome, digging a hole too deep to escape and falling to the Cougars, 64-55.
-
Southland boys basketball end season on region tournament loss
The Southland Academy boys basketball team wrapped up their season with a region tournament loss to Westfield at ABAC on Tuesday night. Southland stayed in the game through the first two periods, and only trailed 17-22 at halftime. Unfortunately for the Raiders, Westfield caught fire in the second half and had extended their lead to 59-36 when the game ended.
One of the bright spots in the game for Southland was Senior guard Michael Miller. Miller scored 14 points for the Raiders while holding Westfield’s best player to only 12 points, most of which came in the fourth quarter. -
Brother-sister duo lead Schley County basketball teams to a doubleheader sweep
Basketball is a team sport that requires the entire team to play together to win, but two individual stars shone brightly on Tuesday night for the Schley County Wildcats and Lady Wildcats.
-
Sumter Gymnastics bring home first places
The Sumter County Gymnastics Academy team has entered its competition season for 2012. They attended two meets in January and brought home first places awards in both.
-
Lady Canes basketball wins big on the road
Three days after righting the ship with a 19-point victory over North Georgia, the Georgia Southwestern Lady Hurricanes earned their biggest conference victory since defeating Montevallo 101-57 two months earlier. Saturday's 72-47 victory over the Georgia College Bobcats (4-16, 2-9 PBC) put another notch in GSW's PBC belt.
- More Local Sports Headlines
-
Pope visits Phoebe Sumter Medical Center
