Here’s the pitch … Paul Laney Tournament helping others through softball

The annual Paul Laney Tournament will slide into Winesburg Park and a host of associated softball diamonds around the area July 25-26, where action-packed softball will collide with food, live music, fundraisers and more to raise funds to help those in need.

In a community where softball is as big-time as it gets, this tournament has captured the hearts and imaginations of fans from near and far.

“Not many places have this kind of love and passion for softball like we have here,” committee member Bryan Beachy said.

Featuring 42 men’s open teams, 16 women’s teams and sixteen 16U teams, the tournament takes place on 10 area softball fields, with round robin play taking place at each field on Friday as seven teams at each location battle to claim the top spot and qualify for the big final day of play at Winesburg Park.

On Saturday six teams will battle for the right to be called champion, with the 16U final taking place at 2 p.m., the women’s final at 3 p.m. and the Men’s Final 6 at 4 p.m., where the six top teams will slug their way to the evening’s final.

One addition to this year’s slate of activity will be the Friday King Seat Battle, a twist that will see each of the 12 winner’s bracket finalists in the men’s open division play their winner’s bracket final game at Winesburg Park.

The idea arose not from the organizers, but from fans who wanted a chance to see more top teams play in one location.

“We are trying to make these games as meaningful as possible,” Beachy said. “This idea really came at the request of fans who asked us if we could bring more teams to the central location in Winesburg. We really got bombarded by people who wanted to watch as many great teams play as possible, and they weren’t able to do it with all the different locations, so we decided to bring the winner’s bracket finals to Winesburg Friday night.”

Once that takes place, play will return to each individual location to usher forth the six individual tournament champions.

All the men’s action will start Friday, July 25 at 8 a.m. at fields throughout the area including Gospel Haven, Killbuck Park, Miller Field, Oasis #2, The Pier and Winesburg Park. The women’s play will begin at 8 a.m. at Em & Em Field and Oasis #1 while the 16U games will begin at 7 a.m. at Faith Christian and Legacy Christian.

While softball will rule the roost and draw thousands of fans, this event isn’t limited to just the action on the fields.

“We’ve worked hard to make this a very family-friendly event that is entertaining in as many ways as possible,” Beachy said. “We try hard to find fun, fresh ways to keep things new and interesting.”

There is a lineup of live musical performances at Winesburg Park. Friday, July 25 will feature Rhinestone at 6 p.m., County Line at 7:15 p.m. and Broadway at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, July 26 will see Conrad Fisher take center stage at 12:30 p.m., Matt & Nimmy at 1:45 p.m. and Country Road Ramblers at 3 p.m.

“The music will take place in left field of the secondary field at Winesburg Park,” committee member Joe Yoder said. “It is a nice bit of background for the softball, and it’s a great lineup for those who want to hear some great music.”

In addition, there will be plenty of food for the masses, with a dozen food trucks on location at Winesburg.

There also will be entertainment for the kids including a candy drop by helicopter that will take place Saturday at 7 p.m. in center field on the main field.

Fundraisers include the raffles and drawings.

The general raffle will feature items such as the grand-prize 26-foot Starcraft camper. Additionally, prizes include a 2025 Hisun Stryker 750 UTV, a Toro walk-behind mower, a patio set, a hunting blind, a $1,500 Charm Merchant gift card, a custom poly grill cabinet with Kamado Joe grill and more.

There also is a women’s raffle, with the grand prize being a garden shed, along with a $2,000 Dutch Craft Furniture gift card, a Cutco knife and plenty of other items.

Tickets for both raffles are $10 each, six for $50 or 50 for $400.

Then there is the 50/50 raffle, which last year had the winning ticket bring the winner more than $50,000. Tickets are $1 each, 30 for $25 or 200 for $100.

Tickets for the raffles are available by calling 330-260-5796 or online at www.laneytourney.com.