National Softball Association World Series Fast Pitch Class

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National Softball Association World Series Fast Pitch Class “B” Opening
Ceremonies Set For This Coming Monday

Crown Point…The South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority and the City of Crown Point are
proud to announce that the National Softball Association World Series Fast Pitch Class “B” Opening
Ceremonies are set for this coming Monday, July 20, in downtown Crown Point from 5 to 9 p.m.
To allow for safety at the event venues, the historic downtown Courthouse Square and South Main
Street, from Hack Court to Walnut Street will be closed off from 3-10 p.m. Additionally the following
intersections will be blocked off from 3-10 p.m.: North and Main, East and Robinson, East and Clark, East and
231, East and Hack, East and Walnut, East and School. South and Main, South and Court, West and School,
West and Walnut, West and 231, West and Robinson, Court and North, Court and Robinson, Main and
Robinson, Hack and Main and Hack and Court. Please be aware of detoured and alternative routes.
The event will end at 9:15 p.m. and the public is encouraged to come to the downtown historic district
and partake in the festivities of the block party, which features vendors, DJ Wayne Para, limbo, face painting,
bean bag toss, jump rooms, Cross Point Church children’s activity tent, and so much more beginning to the
public at 6:30 p.m. Fireworks will take place at dusk and are best viewed from the West side of the Courthouse
Square. For more information on the event please contact Jennifer Burgess, director of parks and recreation at
(219) 661-2271.

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NSA World Series comes to Northwest Indiana
Steve Hanlon - steve.hanlon@nwi.com, (219) 933-4198 | Posted: Monday, July 20, 2009 12:00 am

GARY | Ariele Dailey spent five and a half hours in a car Sunday afternoon on her way to The Steel Yard in Gary. The 10-year-old from Paris, Ky., has had Northwest Indiana on her calendar since last August.

"That's when this team started practicing for this," said her father, Rick Dailey, the coach of the central Kentucky team.

"This is so exciting," Ariele Dailey said. "I haven't been to a baseball game in two years, and I've never been to the (NSA) World Series."

More than 1,100 softball players were at the RailCats game Sunday, the kickoff celebration for this week's National Softball Association World Series in Northwest Indiana.

More than 200 teams within five age groups will participate in the event, which will host its opening ceremony tonight on the Crown Point square. NSA vice president Bill Hunter said he expects between 10,000 and 15,000 visitors in the area this week.

"It's a softball tournament with a party," Hunter said. "We want to make it family time, because many of the people have taken their vacation to be at this event. And the softball's going to be pretty good, too."

The players will compete across Northwest Indiana:

• The 8- and 10-and-under age divisions will play in Crown Point.

• The 12-and-under division will compete at Michigan City's Patriot Park and LaPorte's Kesling Park.

• The 14-and-under division will play at Hidden Lake Park in Merrillville and in Crown Point.

• The 16-and-under division will play at Portage's Imagination Glen Park.

Teams and fans from Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Illinois and Missouri will be at these venues until the tournament concludes Friday.

At Sunday's RailCats game, there were pitching competitions, a home run-hitting contest and a base-running competition. There also was a Crazy Hair competition, of which the Duneland Flyers of Chesterton took full advantage.

The 14-and-under team used craft wire and Popsicle sticks to create hair that looked like palm trees -- including a lot of green dye on top, too.

"It took us a couple hours to get it to look like this," team member Paige Fossey said. "I don't know how long it will take to get it out."