John P. Brackin - Freelance Writer - Articles - 2006 ACCC Softball Tournament

ACCC Softball Tournament a Success

Alabaster Newsletter, July 2006

Central Alabama Community College For four days in May, Veterans Park once again played host to the Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) fast-pitch softball tournament.

This was the second consecutive year that the ACCC gathered in Alabaster to determine its state champion, and once again, its participants and supporters were pleased with the event.

According to ACCC Commissioner Al Cox, the Parks & Recreation staff put on a great tournament, managing the fields through a rainy weekend, and even trumped the previous year’s efforts.

“The facilities are great. They’re better than last year. They’ve got three fields that fully comply with the NCAA, which are our standards also. The fences look great, the fields are skinned, they’ve been leveled. It’s just a beautiful playing surface,” he said.

As usual, the action on the field was stellar as well. Central Alabama Community College of Alexander City won the tournament by defeating defending champion Wallace State-Hanceville 8-1 in the finals.

Led by pitcher and tournament MVP Ashlee Gaskin, the Lady Trojans raced through the tournament, suffering no losses and outscoring opponents by a combined 25-7.

Gaskin, a freshman from Boaz, kept her nationally-ranked ERA intact, allowing only five earned runs in 24 innings pitched.

Twelve teams competed in the tournament, including Wallace State-Dothan, Bevill State-Sumiton, Shelton State, Bishop State, Faulkner State, L.B. Wallace, Southern Union, Chattahoochee Valley, Gadsden State, and Calhoun Community College.

Wallace-Hanceville was led by sophomore shortstop Rachel Fleming, whose league-leading .515 batting average placed her in the top ten in the nation. She entered the tournament on a 19-game hitting streak and was named First Team All-Tournament.

Central Alabama now moves on to the NJCAA National Championship tournament in Plant City, Fla.

Plans are already in place for the ACCC tournament to return to Alabaster for the next two years, and Cox said he looks forward to returning for some more great softball.

“The parks and the amenities are ideal. We have trainers here. We have security here. It’s just a perfect location, and we’re tickled to death to be here and glad we’ll be coming back for the next two years,” he said.