Sports Editor
Kansas City is synonymous with mouth-watering barbecue, the sounds of silky jazz music, and added to the list this weekend will be some of the best prep softball in the nation.
Four of the top programs in Missouri – Blue Springs South, Blue Springs High School, Columbia’s Rock Bridge and Liberty North – along with Sooner State powerhouses Piedmont and Stillwater will converge on the Kansas City Royals’ $5 million Urban Youth Academy complex in downtown Kansas City for a two-day softball extravaganza.
Blue Springs South head coach Kristi Williams and Piedmont head coach Keith Coleman connected through the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and have been working on setting up an event like this one since 2019.
“We thought it would be really cool,” Williams said. “Everyone wants to know who the best teams are not only in their area, but from across different states.”
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better collection of teams playing anywhere in the United States this weekend. Blue Springs South is ranked No.1 in Missouri, Rock Bridge is ranked third, Liberty North is No. 7 and 20th-ranked Blue Springs High last weekend upset the No. 4 team in the state.
Piedmont has won the 5A state championship three of the last four seasons. Meanwhile, Blue Springs South has claimed the Class 5A Missouri state title thrice in the last seven seasons. In 2020, Rock Bridge won a 5A crown.
“I know how good the softball is in the Kansas City area, so we’re expecting to see some really good teams,” Coleman said. “I have a feeling that when we get there this weekend all four (Missouri teams) will probably be ranked in the Top 10.”
Elite events like this one are probably going to become more common, Coleman said. Next season, Piedmont plans to play in an NFCA tournament in Omaha, Neb., that could draw teams from as far away as Colorado, Texas and Georgia.
“Hopefully, we can get that worked out because the kids like it and it’s a great opportunity for us to be able to do some team activities that we don’t have a lot of chances to do during the fall,” Coleman said.
“Every time you play someone from a different area, it puts your team and your sport on the map a little bit more,” Williams added.
Piedmont in 2019 road tripped to the “Show Me State” for a similar event in the Kansas City area, but rain washed it out. Luckily, this weekend’s forecast looks more favorable. If the weather holds, Piedmont will have a chance to avenge last season’s 8-6 loss to the Jaguars, one of the Lady ‘Cats’ three setbacks during a 40-win season that culminated with a state title.
“I’m sure they want to beat us, but we just like to compete against each other because we know we’ll get good, quality competition,” Williams said.
PIEDMONT’S SCHEDULE
Friday 9/8: 10:00 am vs. Blue Springs South, Field 3 12:00 pm vs. Blue Springs, Field 3 Saturday 9/9: 10:30 am vs. Rock Bridge, Field 4 12:30 pm vs. Liberty North, Field 4
