A total of 5 berths will be available this weekend at 3 qualifiers in Canada East and US West, with a 2-weekend qualifier getting underway in US Central.

Canada East
Ottawa – 1 berth
Innerkip – 3 berths

US West
Portland Rose Cup – 1 berth

US Central
Iowa – 1 berth (continues next weekend)

Tournaments to watch:
Mid-Atlantic Travel League Weekend 2

Courtesy of Brian Ree and his dad, Tom Ree, here is the schedule for this weekend’s Rose Cup Tournament in Portland, Oregon, as well as the Portland Classic, a B/C tournament taking place at the same locale, beautiful Delta Park in Portland.

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2009 Rose Cup
June 20/21 – Delta Park
ISC & ISC II Qualifier

Teams:
ISC #5 Midwest Stampede – Bondurant, IA
ISC #7 Vancouver Grey Sox – Vancouver, B.C.
ISC II #10 Columbia River Rockers – Portland, OR
ISC II #20 Innovative Communications – Salt Lake City, Utah

Saturday June 20th Schedule:
Columbia River Rockers vs Vancouver Grey Sox – 8:30am Jubitz Field
Innovative Communications vs Midwest Stampede – 8:30am Pepsi Field
Vancouver Grey Sox vs Innovative Communications -10:30am Jubitz Field
Columbia River Rockers vs Midwest Stampede 12:30pm – Jubitz Field
Columbia River Rockers vs Innovative Communications – 2:30pm Pepsi Field
Vancouver Grey Sox vs Midwest Stampede – 4:30pm Jubitz Field

Sunday June 21st Schedule:
#1 seed vs #4 seed – 9:00am Jubitz Field
#2 seed vs #3 seed – 9:00am Pepsi Field
Championship Game- 11:00am Jubitz Field

2009 Portland Classic
June 21/22 – Delta Park
B/C Division
Teams:
Group A
Cleon’s Auto – Seattle, WA
Pirates – Portland, OR
JRW & Associates – Yakima, WA

Group B
S/O Bandits – Medford, OR
R.C. Merchants – Portland, OR
Yakima Gamblers – Yakima, WA

Saturday June 20th Schedule:
Cleons vs JRW – 8:30am M&W Field
Cleons vs Pirates – 10:30am M&W Field
Pirates vs JRW – 12:30pm M&W Field
Bandits vs Merchants – 8:30am Budweiser Field
Gamblers vs Merchants – 10:30am Budweiser Field
Bandits vs Gamblers – 12:30pm Budweiser Field
——Cross Over Games—–
Cleons vs Bandits – 2:30pm Budweiser Field
JRW vs Merchants – 2:30pm M&W Field
Pirates vs Gamblers – 4:30pm

Sunday June 21st Schedule:
#4 seed vs #6 seed – 8:30am Budweiser Field
#3 seed vs #5 seed – 8:30am M&W Field
#1 seed vs 4/6 winner – 10:30am Budweiser Field
#2 seed vs 3/5 winner – 10:30am M&W Field
Championship Game – 12:30pm M&W Field

Below is the schedule for the Gil Read Memorial Tournament in Ottawa at Carlington Park. A berth in the 2009 ISC II Tournament of Champions is available to the winner.

Friday June 19
7:00 pm Gm 3 Quyon COMBAT Flyers vs Ottawa Blitz Main diamond
9:00 pm Gm 1 Fitzroy Harbour West Carlton Electric vs Stittsville 56ers Main

Saturday June 20
9:00 am Gm 4 Roebuck Intermediates vs Carp I4C Victory Main
11:00 am Gm 2 Ottawa Team Easton vs Napanee Express Midgets Main
12:00 pm Gm 7 Loser Gm 4 vs Loser Gm 1 Second diamond
1:00 pm Gm 5 Team Quebec vs Winner Gm 1 Main
2:00 pm Gm 6 Loser Gm 2 vs Loser Gm 3 Second
3:00 pm Gm 10 Winner Gm 3 vs Winner Gm 4 Main
5:00 pm Gm 9 Winner Gm 2 vs Winner Gm 5 Main
7:00 pm Gm 8 Winner Gm 6 vs Loser Gm 5 Main
7:00 pm Gm 11 Winner Gm 7 vs Loser Gm 10 Second
9:00 pm Gm 13 Winner Gm 9 vs Winner Gm 10 Main

Sunday June 21
9:00 am Gm 12 Winner Gm 8 vs Loser Gm 9 Main
11:00 am Gm 14 Winner Gm 11 vs Winner Gm 12 Main
1:00 pm Gm 15 Winner Gm 14 vs Loser Gm 13 Main
3:00 pm Gm 16 Winner Gm 13 vs Winner Gm 15 Main
5:00 pm if necessary Main

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Courtesy Southeast Missourian
Click link to read the story

Decatur Pride’s David Boys touches home plate before the tag by Nokomis catcher Jeremy Beasley during the fourth inning of the championship game Sunday at the Kelso Klassic in Kelso, Mo. Photo by Fred Lynch

Decatur Pride’s Cole Koester is congratulated by teammate Rick Minton after hitting an inside-the-park home run against Nokomis during the fourth inning of the championship game. Photo by Fred Lynch

Monday, June 15, 2009 ~ Updated 12:17 AM
By Marty Mishow ~ Southeast Missourian

KELSO — The combination of a talent-rich tournament favorite and a bone-tired opponent made for a lopsided Kelso Klassic final.

The Decatur (Ill.) Pride swept to the championship in the 25th annual men’s fastpitch softball event.

Decatur went 5-0 in the 14-team tournament, capped by Sunday’s 8-0, five-inning run-rule victory over Nokomis (Ill.) Bud Light for the title.

“We played well and scored a lot of runs,” winning pitcher Brent Stevenson said.

Nokomis dropped its tournament opener Saturday morning, which made for a grueling weekend.

Bud Light continually staved off elimination with six straight wins, including four Sunday before running into the Pride’s buzz saw.

“They played a great tournament,” Stevenson said. “To come back out of the losers bracket, they showed a lot of courage. You have to tip your cap to them.”

The Pride were a national fastpitch power, winning several national titles, before disbanding in 2001. They started up a squad again this year, and were making their first Kelso Klassic appearance as a unit.

“A lot of our guys have been here before with different teams,” Stevenson said. “It’s a good, competitive tournament.”

Rick Heuring, assistant tournament director who founded the event 25 years ago, didn’t hesitate in rating the Pride pre-tourney favorites after scanning their roster.

“They turned out to be everything we thought they would be,” Heuring said. “They’re an outstanding team.”

Led by several outstanding pitchers, including New Zealand natives Stevenson and Jeremy Manley.

Manley, named the tournament’s most valuable pitcher, went 3-0 with two runs allowed and 36 strikeouts in 17 innings.

“It was an enjoyable weekend,” Manley said.

Manley, regarded among the nation’s top pitchers, is not a regular member of the Pride, but “they had some injuries so I just helped them out.”

The veteran Stevenson, also among the nation’s premier hurlers, was a mainstay on some of the Pride’s previous top squads.

Stevenson, who notched Decatur’s other two tournament wins by allowing just one run, fired a two-hitter and struck out five in Sunday’s championship.

David Boys got the Pride started with a two-run homer in the second inning. A six-run fourth inning highlighted by three home runs — from Greg Morganthaler, Cole Koester and Blake Martin — punctuated the romp.

The rest of the tournament was not nearly as easy for the Pride.

It started routinely enough with a pair of 5-1 wins, before Decatur snuck past Pete’s Blues of Mascoutah, Ill., 1-0 in nine innings.

Decatur began Sunday with a 2-1 victory over Black Gold of Hermann, Mo., in the winners bracket final to advance to the title round.

Nokomis completed its trek through the losers bracket with a 5-3 win over Black Gold, before Decatur ended Bud Light’s impressive run.

“We had another great tournament,” Heuring said.

Casey Spears of Nokomis was the most valuable player after setting a tournament record with 15 hits. He batted .577 with 10 runs scored and four RBIs.

The only local entry, host Kelso Fastpitch, went 1-2. The team lost to Decatur 5-1, beat Elkville (Ill.) 8-6 and was eliminated by Nokomis 4-3.

Tournament scoreboard after the jump
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No Sunday scores yet (watch this space), but we do have this link to some photos from the 25th Kelso Klassic, courtesy of the Southeast Missourian.


Decatur Pride defeats Nokomis Bud Light 8-0 June 14 in the Kelso Klassic fast pitch softball tournament at Kelso, Mo.

And, after the jump, a nice preview story from the Du Quoin Evening Call
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From Jeffery Profitt, Illinois forum

Friday night at the Kelso Klassic:
Decatur Pride 5, Kelso Fastpitch 1
Elkville 1, Belleville Stallions 0
Black Gold 10, Teutopolis KC 1
KC/Lee’s Sports Falcons 4, Altamont Home Center 3

Saturday:
St. Louis Invaders 8, Log Cabin 1
Oklahoma Seminole 2, Nokomis 1
Pete’s Blues 2, Elkville 1
Decatur Pride 5, St. Louis Invaders 1
Black Gold 6, Oklahoma Seminole 2
The Freight 2, KC/Lee’s Sports 0
KC/Lee’s Sports 11, Teutopolis KC 2
Log Cabin 10, Belleville Stallions 9
Kelso 8, Elkville 6
Nokomis 6, Altamont Home Center 5
KC/Lee’s Sports 4, Log Cabin 3 (Log Cabin out, 1-2)

Winners bracket semis:
Decatur Pride vs. Pete’s Blues and The Freight vs. Black Gold

Elimination games:
Kelso vs. Altamont (KC/Lee’s Sports vs. winner at 9 am Sunday)
Nokomis vs. Elkville (winner vs. Oklahoma at 11 p.m. approx.)

From Jeffery Profitt, Illinois Forum

Perfect weather and two very good games on field #2 to start the Kelso Klassic.

Elkville 1, Belleville Stallions 0 (8 inn.)
WP-Les Wood
LP-Michael Godar
RBI-3B by Nathan Hunter wins the game.

KC/Lee’s Sports Falcons 4,
Altamont Home Center 3
WP-Mark Radake (11K)
LP- Chris Guse
KC/Lee’s wins on Ricky Kasban’s hit in the last of the seventh.

Field #1
Decatur Pride 5,
Kelso 1
WP-Brent Stevenson
LP-Tom Jansen

As I left the park at midnight, Teutopolis KC led Black Gold 1-0 in the fifth.

And see the great story on the 25th Anniversary of the Kelso Klassic here on our brother blog, Morning Brief.