Showcase home run for city
Softball competition to draw crowds, money
With close to 100 teams and about half as many coaches and scouts, the Two States Softball Showcase is set to bring even more business to Texarkana.
With a full slate of exhibitions at 18 local fields Saturday and Sunday, some of the best 15- to 19-yearold fastpitch players in the country will descend on the two Texarkanas and Wake Village. And where the talent goes, coaches, scouts and family entourages follow.
The exhibitions—about 400 of them—are free, but that won’t stop money from spilling into the local economy. It is estimated the showcase will bring a half a million dollars in economic activity to the Twin Cities this weekend.
Mike Malone, president and CEO of Texarkana Chamber of Commerce, said besides providing an economic boost, the Softball Showcase and similar events also elevate civic pride and perceptions of the community.
“When more people come to stay in our city, not only do they spend money here, but they see the city’s best side and take that word back to their homes. That word gets around, especially when those events come back for repeat performances,” he said.
This is the second year United States Specialty Sports Association has sanctioned this event for Texarkana, in large part because of last year’s success.
“These events help raise civic pride in our town,” Malone said, adding that Texarkana has always embraced sports, especially baseball. “We now have the Texarkana Twins, events like these and new sports traditions forming, as well as long-standing ones continuing. The Two States Softball Showcase will only add to that.”
It will also give competitive young women a centrally located forum to put their softball skills on display for college coaches and talent scouts around the country. Teams are coming from as far away as California.
Sandy Dickson, director of Twin City Sports and event organizer, said the Showcase is not a tournament. The event is intended to let the athletes demonstrate their softball abilities in game situations.
“We won’t be keeping score at these games,” Dickson said. “The point is not to compete. This is to provide a venue for these athletes to display their abilities and to let recruiters see the talent on display. This is for these scouts to think about the talent needs on their teams and who among these athletes might give them the skills they need.”
The first Softball Showcase sold out all the hotel rooms in the Twin Cities. This year, organizers have had to send some of the participants to hotels in surrounding cities.
“We had 30 total universities from all over the country participating last year,” Dickson said. “This year, it is 45, with a total of 90 teams.”
It is not just hotels that have dealt with the influx of teams.
Last year, the showcase used all the ballparks in the city limits. Like the hotels, this year’s level of participation exceeded Texarkana’s capacity, so they had to expand beyond the city limits.
“Wake Village stepped up with King’s Park and all its ballfields,” Dickson said.
The parks and recreation services of both Texarkanas also have been busy making sure their fields were ready to host the teams.
Mayor Ruth Penney-Bell credited the Arkansas-side Parks Superintendent Ross Cowling for the labor and attention he put toward getting the city’s ballfields ready.
“He was out there mowing the grass himself,” she said. “He is a baseball fan himself and wanted to be sure the Arkansas-side facilities were ready and represented the city well.”
Getting the parks ready was a “two-state deal from the beginning,” Cowling said. “We are proud to make sure the city is ready to showcase itself.”
The Texarkana, Ark., Advertising and Promotions Commission provided funding for the event, Cowling said.
Texas-side Mayor Bob Bruggeman praised both parks departments.
“The team staffs and event organizers had specific requirements for the teams and making this event happen,” he said. “Both departments worked closely with those staffs to get done what was needed. Also, our parks and recreation departments worked closely with each other to make sure everything was to standard.”
Dickson credits the hard work done last year for ensuring the event’s return to Texarkana. He said work has been going on for several months, using last year’s experience as a guide.
“We also consulted with the coaches and staff to get the details as to what they need,” Dickson said. “However, it was the job the city did last year that ensured they returned to Texarkana for this year’s performance. The word has gotten out, Texarkana is the place to come for this particular showcase.”
(Exhibitions will be played from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Grady T. Wallace Park, 3315 Leopard Drive, Texarkana, Texas; Hobo Jungle Park, 900 Dudley St., Texarkana, Ark.; William Karrh Memorial Park, 2102 S. Ann St., Texarkana, Texas; and Kings Park in Wake Village, Texas.)