The Cassville Baseball Club hosted the inaugural Roaring River Shootout on Saturday, with 27 games spread across four fields and three Cassville teams winning tournament titles.
Shawn Trent, coach with the Cassville Baseball Club, said it was an enjoyable day for the teams, not only on the scoreboard, but with the area youth baseball community.
“Many of the coaches were appreciative of the opportunity to play close, not having to travel to Kansas City,” he said. “It was a very laid back atmosphere, which is what most of the coaches were looking for instead of driving for a two- or three-day tournament in Kansas City.
“Coaches commented on our facilities both at the high school and the Cassville City Park fields. They said they were really impressed with our town and how kept the fields were.”
That attraction of facilities may also lead to an increase in tourism.
“Coaches said they really enjoyed coming down, and many spent the night in Shell Knob or at Roaring River,” he said. “Some even stayed for all the other events and ate and shopped in town, which is something we had aimed for putting this on. We wanted outside folks to come see and spend their money here in our town. I had a lot of good feedback, and it seemed like those teams want to come back again next year.”
On the fields, Cassville’s 10U, 11U and 12U teams all brought home first-place.
“As far as the games, there was a lot of good baseball,” Trent said. “From 10-year-olds up to 14-year-olds, we had a lot of competition and some really close games. Good competition made it a great opportunity for the kids to improve. It was really cool to see all of our Cassville teams playing in the same tournament and doing well in those games.”
Full scores for Cassville Baseball Club teams include:
10U
Vs. Tribe, 16-9, W
Vs. Bullpen, 11-11, T
Vs. Eagles, 14-2, W
11U
Vs. PBA White, 18-2, W
Vs. Eldo Elite, 7-3, W
Vs. Blue Crew, 5-4, W
12U
Vs. Diamond Dogs, 9-1, W
Vs. Frontenac Bandits, 4-3, W
Vs. CJ Chaos, 12-0, W
14U
Vs. Strafford, 5-3, W
Vs. County Line Crushers, 11-16, L
Vs. Fox Sports White Sox, 2-10, L
