Fastball St. Albert is celebrating 25 years in the community and president Mike Kirk says the organization hopes to be around for at least another 25.
This weekend, June 15-17, the organization will mark two major milestones: the 15th anniversary of the annual FSA Invitational Tournament and the 25th anniversary of Fastball St. Albert.
Mayor Nolan Crouse joined the celebration by throwing out the first pitch at the opening ceremony Friday evening at Meadowview Diamonds. The fastball action continues today and Sunday with play beginning at 8:30 a.m. both days. Girls teams from U10 to U18 will compete in the tournament as well as U16 boys.
The FSA Invitational draws fastball teams from as near as Edmonton and as far away as Saskatoon. Kirk said teams travel to play in the annual invitational because it is so well run and features a high level of competition and nice facilities. Veteran tournament director Leanne Dunnigan has been leading the popular event for six years.
Six St. Albert Angels girls rep teams will be competing in the tournament. The rep league offers a more competitive level of play where the pitches are faster and teams travel to games outside the city and province.
Fastball St. Albert also has a city league consisting of co-ed teams and a more recreational style of play. All teams in this league from U8 to U16 play their games within St. Albert. The annual FSA City League tournament takes place June 22-24 at Meadowview Diamonds.
Kirk said that the hard work and dedication of the parents, volunteers, players and coaches is the reason why the organization has been a fixture in the St. Albert sports scene for a quarter century.
“Every parent who has a child who plays, they’re out there raking fields or pounding in bases and chalking lines,” he said.
Kirk became involved in the organization six years ago when his daughters began playing. He took over as president in November.
In addition to the parents who are team managers, fundraisers, groundskeepers and cheerleaders, the organization is also thankful for the continued support of both Softball Alberta for helping with coach and umpire development as well as the City of St. Albert.
“We have some good people at the city working with us to try and help us develop our fields and the program,” Kirk said.
Fastball St. Albert doesn’t have a dedicated home, but hopes to have its own facility in the near future.
This season Fastball St. Albert has about 225 registered players. With a number of sports like lacrosse, soccer and even summer hockey competing for kids’ attention, Fastball St. Albert has had a tough time attracting enough boys to fill their roster of teams, but the organization has a very strong female program.
“When our teams go to provincials, they do quite well and usually medal,” Kirk said.
The organization was known as St. Albert Softball until 2004 when the name was changed to Fastball St. Albert to better reflect the style of game. Fastball is the fast-pitch version of softball where pitchers can use a “windmill” underhand delivery, resulting in a faster pitch.
With the regular season unfolding in May and June, the outdoor fastball season is relatively brief, but teams register beginning in January and indoor training – including pitching camps and coaching clinics – takes place in the months leading up to the outdoor season.
