For four seasons, Jeff Kennedy prepared for long trips to take a softball team to a national tournament.
This time Kennedy and his Lil Rebels-Jeff players won't have to travel very far.
The team begins play today in the USA/ASA 18-under Class A national championships at Majestic Park. A field of 140 fastpitch teams, including five from Las Vegas, will play in the tournament, which concludes Sunday. Nearly every state is represented.
"The last four years, we've been on the road," said Kennedy, who has taken teams to nationals in Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois and Texas. "Being on our home turf and playing in the heat here will be an advantage. A lot of teams will be dropping in this heat. They're just not used to it."
Kennedy's squad will be joined by Las Vegas Blast, Lil Rebels-White, Las Vegas Rage-Kelly and Las Vegas Rage-Silver in a field that will showcase some of the best young players in the country.
"We're getting the best of the best here," Kennedy said. "It's like the NCAA Tournament. It's a real step up."
Kennedy's team includes seven area high school graduates, most of whom plan to play college softball.
Among that group are Sierra Vista graduate Tayler Aleman, a UNLV signee, Durango graduate D.J. Richardson (San Diego), Silverado alum Mikayla Thielges (Cal State Northridge), Shadow Ridge product Britney Cato (Winston Salem State), Spring Valley graduate Jasmine Wilson (Mississippi Valley State) and Arbor View alum Chelsea Venable (Feather River Community College).
Richardson missed much of her senior season at Durango with a shoulder injury, but recently was cleared to play.
"We like our chances," Kennedy said. "We feel like we can have some success."
The 18-under nationals in softball are akin to the recently completed AAU basketball tournaments. Each team is an all-star squad, chosen from the best players in their area.
"It's the highest level of play in ASA, the highest level of nationals," said tournament director Sally Commerford, the driving force in bringing the tournament here. Las Vegas hosted the 10-under and 12-under nationals last year.
Commerford outbid presentations from 13 cities in 2006 to bring the tournament to Las Vegas.
"This is huge," Commerford said. "You really have to campaign to get it. It's almost like a presidential election."
How competitive is it? Las Vegas won't be permitted to bid on the tournament again for seven years.
"This is probably the only chance people here will get to see softball at this level," Commerford said. "Because we're hosting, we get more teams in the field. Nevada normally gets only one berth. Our association is too small to get a fill-in berth. We'll never get five teams in again.."
Each team will play two pool games today and Tuesday with double-elimination bracket play starting Wednesday. Games begin at 8 a.m. each day.
Contact reporter Bartt Davis at bdavis@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5230.
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