Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Prairie Grove Baseball Takes On Childhood Cancer
WOLVERINES DEFEAT TIGERS 12-7
PRAIRIE GROVE — Prairie Grove rolled out hospitality like a carpet and Bentonville West coach Chip Durham and his staff and players were in no hurry to leave.
Nor was anybody trying to usher them out of town, despite the fact they had just defeated Prairie Grove, 12-7, in the final game of the first Jarren Sorters Memorial Baseball Tournament Thursday evening at Rieff Park in Prairie Grove.
Instead, they sat down together with Prairie Grove coach Chris Mileham and the Tigers to eat a delicious meal featuring steak fajitas cooked by Shawn Fidler, father of Tiger senior Clay Fidler, who was assisted by another parent, Billy Don Cates, father of Tiger sophomore Drew Cates. These were among many volunteers, who helped put the three- day tournament on as a fundraiser for the Play4Jarren Foundation, established by Joey and Donna Sorters in memory of their son Jarren, who passed Aug. 11 from childhood cancer.
On Aug. 13, 2015, Jarren was diagnosed with Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Sarcoma with CIC DUX 4, an extremely rare but aggressive form of Sarcoma. This led to amputation of Jarren’s left leg two months later, cancer treatment and radiation therapy. He was learning to walk on a prosthetic device and planning to make a comeback when the cancer spread to his lungs.
According to its mission statement, Play4Jarren is a Christian-based non-profit organization intended to preserve and honor the legacy of Jarren Sorters. The foundation serves to provide community outreach and support for youth who face physical and medical adversities. Play4Jarren has two specific areas of focus: Childhood Cancer awareness and research, and youth development through athletics.
Mileham said when the idea to host the Jarren Sorters Memorial Baseball Tournament came up, it was a no-brainer. Mileham has high standards for hosting a tournament, but he didn’t hesitate, realizing the community would get behind him.
“Overall, the tournament ran very smooth,” Mileham said. “I could take zero credit for it. This community, how they support their athletics out here is second to none. This is my 16th year of coaching, this is by far the most supportive community I’ve ever coached in. The parents came together at the hospitality tent. The ladies, here at the gate, they sat here every day all day long on their spring break. The Prairie Grove community is very good to me, to say the least.”
Speaking for the Bentonville West baseball program, Durham said the Wolverines were happy to be included.
“First of all, we appreciate Coach Mileham for inviting us down here,” Durham said. “We hope the family has peace in their heart. We have a lot of respect for Coach Mileham and his program, everything that we do, playing here, bringing fans, having people buy concessions, to raise funds, we’re glad that we could help in that.”
Durham and his staff were raving about Clay Fidler, who played third base and was the leadoff hitter for Prairie Grove in the game. The wind was a factor holding up several well-hit balls by Prairie Grove, at least one of which was missed by the Wolverines as the wind made fielding tricky at times.
“If you hit like that, you won’t have any problems,” Durham told Mileham.
The visitors took a 3- 0 lead in their first at- bat on Will Jarrett’s 2-run double. Clay Fidler answered with a leadoff triple for the Tigers. Drew Cates singled to drive him in. Two outs later, Jon Hays plated a run with a double. Couper Allen was hit by a pitch. Then, Cole Speed’s RBI single tied the game at 3-3.
Jarrett went 3- for-3, scoring 4 runs for the Wolverines and drove in another run for a 4-3 West lead with a double in the third. West exploded for a 6-run fourth inning and added two more in the fifth for a 12-3 lead. Prairie Grove scored four runs in the sixth trying to get back in the game.
The leadoff man was hit by a pitch, followed by a walk. D.J. Pearson singled to load the bases and Speed got the crowd alive with a 2 RBI single. With runners at the corners, a fielder’s choice resulted in another Tiger run. Clay Fidler’s hit deep into right field earned him a double and brought in the final Tiger run for the 12-7 margin. Jason Gloeckler went 3-for-3 with 6 RBIs Thursday to lead West.
After the game, Jarrett recalled competing against Jarren Sorters.
“He always had a smile on his face, he always had a good attitude,” Jarrett said. “He was someone I loved to compete against.”
West sophomore Dakota McDonald came on in relief with one out in the fifth and pitched the rest of the game. McDonald paid tribute to Jarren Sorters, recalling they played together on a traveling team, the NWA Ghosts.
“Jarren was just our leader, he would push everybody,” McDonald said. “He would push everybody to do their best. He was always excited about the game, never looking ahead to the next game. It’s just an honor to be able to play for him. It’s like he’s hitting when I’m out there pitching.”