Straughn softball set to host annual KLD tournament Friday and Saturday

Published 1:00 pm Wednesday, March 1, 2023

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Seven area softball teams will converge at Straughn High School for the annual Kirsten L. Dean Memorial Softball Tournament scheduled for Friday, March 3, and Saturday, March 4.

SHS holds this tournament every year in memory of Dean, who was a student and softball player for Straughn. Dean was involved in a car accident in April 2004 and passed away due to her injuries. The Lady Tiger softball program decided to honor Dean with a tournament at the school, which first began in the spring of 2005.

The 2023 tournament will begin with a round-robin format with all games at the Straughn High School softball field. Home and visiting teams will be decided by a coin flip. In addition to Straughn, six other teams will compete including local teams Florala and Red Level. Carroll-Ozark, Highland Home, McKenzie, and Zion Chapel complete the tournament field. A new champion will be crowned as three-time defending champion Andalusia is not participating this year.

There will be a 60-minute time limit for all round-robin games. Elimination games on Saturday will be 70 minutes finish the inning.

The round-robin schedule for Friday, March 3 is as follows:

  • Straughn vs. McKenzie, 2 p.m.
  • Straughn vs. Carroll-Ozark, 3:15 p.m.
  • Florala vs. Zion Chapel, 4:30 p.m.
  • Highland Home vs. Carroll, 5:45 p.m.
  • Red Level vs. Zion Chapel, 7 p.m

The round-robin schedule for Saturday, March 4 is as follows:

  • Florala vs. McKenzie, 8 a.m.
  • Red Level vs. Highland Home, 9:15 a.m.

Single-elimination bracket play will take place Saturday following round-robin action. Teams will be seeded 1 through 7 based on the following criteria in order: overall record, head-to-head, runs allowed, and runs scored. All bracket play games will be held at SHS.

The higher seed will be the designated home team for each single-elimination game, which is as follows:

  • Game 1 – Number four seed vs. number five seed, 10:30 a.m.
  • Game 2 – Number three seed vs. number six seed, Noon
  • Game 3 – Number two seed vs. number seven seed, 1:30 p.m.
  • Game 4 – Number one seed vs. Game 1 winner, 3 p.m.
  • Game 5 – Game 2 winner vs. Game 3 winner, 4:30 p.m.
  • Championship – Game 5 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 6 p.m.

Admission is set for $10 daily. Tournament passes, which are good for both days, are available for $15. Tickets will be available for purchase at the gate. For more information call the school office at 334-222-2511.