Softball tourney will open in Evans

High school fast-pitch fans will have a field day this week, as 16 softball teams will be competing in the Evans Invitational on Friday and Saturday at Patriots Park.

"It's good to see some competition from around the state," Evans coach Colette Cassedy said. "I wanted to have a 12-team event, but people just kept calling about playing in the tournament. We've got teams coming from everywhere."

Including the Lady Knights, local teams entered in the Evans Invitational are Lakeside, Harlem and Cross Creek. Among the visiting squads competing are prep powers Oconee County and Dacula.

Admission costs$6, which covers the entire tournament.

The tournament format will feature first-round pool play Friday and Saturday. When the second-round action begins at 11:45 a.m. Saturday, teams will be placed by first-round records in four medal pools.

Final standings in the Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze pools will be based on head to head play. The first tiebreaker is run-differential in the second round, and if needed, the final tiebreaker is a coin toss.

Evans has emerged as tournament champion the past two years, but with each team guaranteed six games this weekend, there will be a lot of winners in the Evans Invitational.

"Tournaments are a great way to prepare for region games, because they give the girls a chance to play in pressure situations," Lakeside coach Jay Matthews said.

Harlem coach Melissa Chase agrees that the Evans Invitational is a perfect way to get ready for the season's stretch run.

"It's a good thing for us, because we'll see some better pitching," Chase said. "In our region, we'll go from seeing a real good pitcher to a real weak pitcher, so it's hard to adjust from game to game. This tournament will give us some preparation for the kind of pitching we'll see in the (region and state) playoffs."

Evans Invitational

Format - Round 1-4 pools with four teams in each pool

Pool 1: 1. Harlem; 2. Statesboro; 3. Cross Creek; 4. Dacula.

Pool 2: 1. Groves; 2. Redan; 3. Northside; 4. Evans.

Pool 3: 1. South Effingham; 2. Jackson County; 3. Warner Robins; 4.

Lakeside.

Pool 4: 1. Burke County; 2. Elbert County; 3. Westside Macon; 4. Oconee County.

Game schedule

Round 1 - Friday

Pool 1: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 5 p.m. Purple Field; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 5 p.m. Maroon Field; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 8 p.m. Purple Field; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 8 p.m. Maroon Field.

Pool 2: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 6:30 p.m. Purple Field; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 6:30 p.m. Maroon Field; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 9:30 p.m. Purple field; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 9:30 p.m. Maroon Field.

Pool 3: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 6:30 p.m. Gray Field; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 6:30 p.m. Yellow Field; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 9:30 p.m. Gray Field; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 9:30 p.m. Yellow Field.

Pool 4: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 5 p.m. Gray Field; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 5 p.m. Yellow Field; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 8 p.m. Gray Field; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 8 p.m. Yellow Field.

Round 1 - Saturday

Pool 1: Nos. 1 vs. 3, 8 a.m. Gray; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 8 a.m. Yellow.

Pool 2: Nos. 1 vs. 3, 9:45 a.m. Gray; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 9:45 a.m. Yellow.

Pool 3: Nos. 1 vs. 3, 9:45 a.m. Purple; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 9:45 a.m. Maroon.

Pool 4: Nos. 1 vs. 3, 8 a.m. Purple; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 8 a.m. Maroon.

Round 2 - teams placed in medal pools based on first-round record

Platinum Pool: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 11:45 a.m. Gray; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 11:45 a.m. Yellow; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 3:15 p.m. Purple; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 3:15 Maroon; Nos. 1 vs. 3, 6:45 p.m. Purple; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 6:45 p.m. Maroon.

Gold Pool: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 1:30 p.m. Gray; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 1:30 p.m. Yellow; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 5 p.m. Purple; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 5 p.m. Maroon; Nos. 1 vs. 3, 8:30 p.m. Purple; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 8:30 p.m. Maroon.

Silver Pool: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 11:45 a.m. Purple; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 11:45 a.m. Maroon; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 3:15 p.m. Gray; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 3:15 p.m. Yellow; Nos. 1 vs. 3, 6:45 p.m. Gray; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 6:45 p.m. Yellow.

Bronze Pool: Nos. 1 vs. 2, 1:30 p.m. Purple; Nos. 3 vs. 4, 1:30 p.m. Maroon; Nos. 1 vs. 4, 5 p.m. Gray; Nos. 2 vs. 3, 5 p.m. Yellow; Nos. 1 vs. 3, 8:30 p.m. Gray; Nos. 2 vs. 4, 8:30 a.m. Yellow.