NFCA Juco Leadoff Classic

March 5th, 2008, 4:40 pm · Post a Comment · posted by Brad Milner

Twenty-four junior college softball teams will converge on Frank Brown Park this weekend for the NFCA Juco Leadoff Classic. The tournament is slated to run Friday through Sunday, but harsh weather could push the event back a bit.

This is the second time the NFCA has staged a major collegiate tournament in Panama City Beach. The first was in 2007 for the NCAA Division III Leadoff Classic. The NAIA Leadoff Classic is next year.

This is a major step in PCB trying to land the NJCAA national tournament. The city bid for the tournament a few years ago, but it was passed over for Plant City. The bid for the 2009-2011 NJCAA tournaments is upcoming, but Richard Sanders, director of sports marketing for the PCB Convention and Visitors Bureau, said on Wednesday that there were no immediate plans to bid again.

A big hangup for the selection committee was the lack of a larger airport in the area. Sanders said the new airport would help in showing the NJCAA that teams can come into Panama City without paying a high air fare.

The tentative plan is to put in another bid for the three-year deal to host the NFCA events. Sanders said the bidding process will be at the NFCA convention either this year or next year. Sanders is confident the NFCA will choose PCB again.

“This is another stepping stone to get these types of events under our belts,” Sanders said.

This weekend features six rounds of pool play. The teams will be seeded based on pool finish and run differential and placed in the Gold, Silver or Bronze brackets. Only the teams in the Gold Bracket, which includes the six pool winners and two at-large berths, are eligible for the title.

The field includes highly ranked teams in both Division I and II of the NJCAA, including defending Division I champion Chipola College and Gulf Coast Community College, which aims to build on a current four-game winning streak.

The Lady Commodores are 14-3 and will play two non-tournament games today at Joe Tom King Field. GC plays Chattanooga (Tenn.) State at 2 p.m. and Indian River at 6 p.m. Indian River and Chattanooga play at 4 p.m.

GC coach Susan Painter said this weekend’s competition will be a step above the quality the Lady Commodores encountered during their own tournament a few weeks back.

“Our tournament was a little taste of it,” Painter said. “This tournament has more seasoned teams, but that’s what we need to see.

“We’re targeting our Round 2, which is March 18 (the start of the Panhandle Conference schedule). We’re getting closer to being ready for that date.”

I will be covering the NFCA tournament over the weekend and will include additional information on my blog about the event due to space constraints in The News Herald print edition.

Here is the schedule of games. I’ll update if there are changes. Feel free to click on links for selected teams.

NFCA Junior College Leadoff Classic
All games played at Frank Brown Park in Panama City Beach
All times CST
Friday
Noon — Chipola vs. Meridian (Field 1); CCBC vs. Young Harris (Field 2); Chattanooga State vs. FCCJ (Field 3); Blinn vs. Central Alabama (Field 5); Georgia Perimeter vs. Chattahoochee Valley (Field 6); Aiken vs. Brevard (Field 7)
2:30 p.m. — Meridian vs. Navarro (Field 1); Young Harris vs. Mississippi Gulf Coast (Field 2); FCCJ vs. Parkland (Field 3); Central Alabama vs. Miami Dade (Field 5);
Chattahoochee Valley vs. Indian River (Field 6); Brevard vs. Wallace-Hanceville (Field 7)
5 p.m. — Southeastern vs. Chipola (Field 1); Mississippi Gulf Coast vs. Wallace-Dothan (Field 2); Parkland vs. Gulf Coast (Field 3); Miami Dade vs. Wenatchee (Field 5);
Indian River vs. Louisburg (Field 6); Wallace-Hanceville vs. Indian Hills (Field 7)
7:30 p.m. — Navarro vs. Southeastern (Field 1); Wallace-Dothan vs. CCBC (Field 2); Gulf Coast vs. Chattanooga State (Field 3); Wenatchee vs. Blinn (Field 5); Louisburg vs. Georgia Perimeter (Field 6); Indian Hills vs. Aiken (Field 7)
Saturday
10 a.m. — Chattahoochee Valley vs. Louisburg (Field 1); Brevard vs. Indian Hills (Field 2); Central Alabama vs. Wenatchee (Field 3); FCCJ vs. Gulf Coast (Field 5);
Meridian vs. Southeastern (Field 6); Young Harris vs. Wallace-Dothan (Field 7)
12:30 p.m. — Georgia Perimeter vs. Indian River (Field 1); Aiken vs. Wallace-Hanceville (Field 2); Blinn vs. Miami Dade (Field 3); Chattanooga State vs. Parkland (Field 5); Chipola vs. Navarro (Field 6); CCBC vs. Mississippi Gulf Coast (Field 7)