ASA Tournament Laser Nation by Invitation showcase tournament for 2011

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The Laser's did a fanatstic job running this event from my perspective. Mr. Beach was all over it at Whitehall. They did what they needed to do to keep games on time & to make sure they didn't have to drop games. No one likes 60 min drop dead games as it changes the dynamic, but that was what was needed b/c no one can control Mother Nature!!!

Thanks Lasers & we look forward to it next yr!!!

60 minute drop dead? We had 60 minute limits, but it was no new inning after 60 minutes. Even with the 60 min limits, we didn't have a game go less than 6 innings.

We had a rough start for the tourney with our field not being ready while others were playing, but the Laser organization did a fantastic job after that. Field were constantly lined and raked. They were dragged when possible. The umpires were fair and consistent and for the most part, unnoticed (a good thing).

Most importantly, the competition was great and I noticed a great deal of sportsmanship. This is our second year at the Laser Nation tourney and this one was better than the last. Hope to be back next year.

 

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The Lasers did a great job with this tournament.. Even though our team experience was shortened by some tough losses my girls were given the exposure to the coaches as was promised.

 

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60 minute drop dead? We had 60 minute limits, but it was no new inning after 60 minutes. Even with the 60 min limits, we didn't have a game go less than 6 innings.

We had a rough start for the tourney with our field not being ready while others were playing, but the Laser organization did a fantastic job after that. Field were constantly lined and raked. They were dragged when possible. The umpires were fair and consistent and for the most part, unnoticed (a good thing).

Most importantly, the competition was great and I noticed a great deal of sportsmanship. This is our second year at the Laser Nation tourney and this one was better than the last. Hope to be back next year.

Pool games at Whitehall went to 60 minute drop dead on Friday after the weather delays. It was 60 minute and finish the inning on Saturday afternoon after another weather delay.

 

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Great job to Tony and the Gold. Thanks for putting on a great tournament, I know you all worked your butts off!

 

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The plate ump we had for our Sunday morning game vs. The Hawks was outstanding. He was loud and in control the whole time. Kept the game moving and complimented players from both teams when they did well.

Yes he was and I'm glad it wasn't Gilbert... that guy was something else!!! :lmao:

 

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I must pass along very similar posts to how the fields were in our 12u setting. Always dragged, never a mess, always relined, and the umpires were very good for the exception of one who was consistent but not sure we was fully "there". Amazing teams, awesome experience, and I'd sign up year after year if welcomed! Thanks to Lasers Gray for doing all you did and I can't brag enough about the tournament!!!!

 

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All I can say is "WOW". This was the first time our girls got to see so many great 12U teams. We had the pleasure of competing with the Nitro, Laser Red, Team Michigan, Tennessee Elite and the Hawks all in one weekend. As far as a coaching pov, I learned so many different coaching tactics and methoods. Also, I need to say "Nice job" to the Nitro DJ. Loved the mixture of tunes. Never thought I would hear Safety Dance between innings of a softball game.
The fields were in great shape for every game, not one issue with an umpire. A big THANK YOU to the Lasers for a great weekend. Hope to see all these teams in the future.
Don Gilanyi
Thunder Elite 12U

 

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Is there a list of college coaches that attended?

 

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We saw Kentucky, Arkansas, Kent State, Akron

 

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My Take on Laser Nation Tournament

I saw a lot of really good teams this past weekend. As with ANY tournament, there were some weaker teams that may have been outplayed but they all played very hard. Sometimes you get funky matchups too and this can cause skewed results.

Anyway, I spent all weekend venturing from park to park to watch 16 & 18u games. This in itself seemed a little "off" to me and would cause me to think about the hassle if I were a college coach. Of course we aren't talking miles apart but it is cumbersome to have to keep a schedule by your side to figure out which park you need to be at to see the girls you are looking for. I never did see one coach @ John Bishop fields 7 or 8. As a matter of fact, I never saw many college coaches after pool play was completed.
The list of coaches I did see are as follows:
Arkansas
Kentucky
Cleveland State
Kent State
Ashland
Otterbein
Urbana
I'm sure there were more but those are the ones I saw. I think Pennsbury, Pa probably took the majority of coaches this past weekend and probably had a negative effect on both Lasers and Compuware.

The competition at this tournament seemed to be pretty high at the 16 & 18U level but the majority of the teams were Ohio based programs. Some teams I had very little knowledge of performed quite well and I will be keeping an eye out for you at 16U States.

In the end it was two 94' teams battling it out and from what I saw they appeared to be the two best teams there this weekend - EMR & Ohio Sapphires. They were also in the same pool and I believe the Sapphires slid away with a 1 - 0 victory and then lost to EMR in the Winner's Bracket final 2 - 0. EMR won again in a very close game until EMR got a couple of clutch hits in the bottom of the 6th to secure a 6 - 1 victory. Two top knotch teams playing each other was really great to watch.

Tournament overall was well run and they took very good care of the fields. It did seem very strange that some age groups are talking of totally different game times than others. I've read where some games went to 55 minute drop dead to 60 min finish out the inning. I also know for a fact that some games @ John Bishop were reduced to 60 minutes but Community Park never moved off of the 75 minute original. Lot's of game can happen in an additional 15 minutes. They may want to make sure EVERYONE is on the same page next year.

In summation, good competition but IMO ASA States will be tougher especially if they were to let the pre-berths play as well. Lasers has the street cred regionally to pull in bigger names but it will take time. You can still get a couple of breathers from game to game unlike Compuware, Stingrays or Sparks.
I wish them all the luck and hope they blow Compuware off the map and bring another true showcase to Columbus but they'll have to fix the dual park issue for the 16U age group.

 

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All I can say is "WOW". This was the first time our girls got to see some many great 12U teams. We had the pleasure of competing with the Nitro, Laser Red, Team Michigan, Tennessee Elite and the Hawks all in one weekend. As far as a coaching pov, I learned so many different coaching tactics and methoods.
Don Gilanyi
Thunder Elite 12U

I thought we had a tough run of teams, you had a gauntlet ... again, great meeting you and your girls, we wish them all the best.

 

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Re: My Take on Laser Nation Tournament

I saw a lot of really good teams this past weekend. As with ANY tournament, there were some weaker teams that may have been outplayed but they all played very hard. Sometimes you get funky matchups too and this can cause skewed results.

Anyway, I spent all weekend venturing from park to park to watch 16 & 18u games. This in itself seemed a little "off" to me and would cause me to think about the hassle if I were a college coach. Of course we aren't talking miles apart but it is cumbersome to have to keep a schedule by your side to figure out which park you need to be at to see the girls you are looking for. I never did see one coach @ John Bishop fields 7 or 8. As a matter of fact, I never saw many college coaches after pool play was completed.
The list of coaches I did see are as follows:
Arkansas
Kentucky
Cleveland State
Kent State
Ashland
Otterbein
Urbana
I'm sure there were more but those are the ones I saw. I think Pennsbury, Pa probably took the majority of coaches this past weekend and probably had a negative effect on both Lasers and Compuware.

The competition at this tournament seemed to be pretty high at the 16 & 18U level but the majority of the teams were Ohio based programs. Some teams I had very little knowledge of performed quite well and I will be keeping an eye out for you at 16U States.

In the end it was two 94' teams battling it out and from what I saw they appeared to be the two best teams there this weekend - EMR & Ohio Sapphires. They were also in the same pool and I believe the Sapphires slid away with a 1 - 0 victory and then lost to EMR in the Winner's Bracket final 2 - 0. EMR won again in a very close game until EMR got a couple of clutch hits in the bottom of the 6th to secure a 6 - 1 victory. Two top knotch teams playing each other was really great to watch.

Tournament overall was well run and they took very good care of the fields. It did seem very strange that some age groups are talking of totally different game times than others. I've read where some games went to 55 minute drop dead to 60 min finish out the inning. I also know for a fact that some games @ John Bishop were reduced to 60 minutes but Community Park never moved off of the 75 minute original. Lot's of game can happen in an additional 15 minutes. They may want to make sure EVERYONE is on the same page next year.

In summation, good competition but IMO ASA States will be tougher especially if they were to let the pre-berths play as well. Lasers has the street cred regionally to pull in bigger names but it will take time. You can still get a couple of breathers from game to game unlike Compuware, Stingrays or Sparks.
I wish them all the luck and hope they blow Compuware off the map and bring another true showcase to Columbus but they'll have to fix the dual park issue for the 16U age group.

Good question Run26, We only shorted games at parks that recieved rain and were delayed , could you imagine stopping all play just to keep all parks on the same schedule? All parks were with in a 5 mile radius however the weather was scattered to say the least. All parks played as much as possible in fact the 10u championship finished under the lights at 11:00 pm. We strive to let teams play as much as possible.

Thanks for your question,Tony

 

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So what teams actually made the championships? What teams won?

 

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Good tournament, enjoyed it! There were some very good Ohio teams present, and a few pretty strong OOS teams as well. Yeah, there were a few breathers, but even though we finished 2nd to EMR in the 16u, it was no easy cruise getting there. So all in all, very good competition, well run tournament with a few blips here and there, and will probably only get better with time .... happy with our choice to come to Laser Nation by Invitation after many years at Compuware. Thanks Lasers, from Ohio Sapphires 16u!

 

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Thank you Lasers........S.O. Cyclones 16U had an amazing time. We spent most of our time over at Whitehall (The place with the mile long staircase that looked liked the one ine the Exorcist movie We went 2-1 in pool and were a number one seed. We ended 4-3 and I believe in the top 16. Not bad for a team that just formed back in the fall. Sara Browning threw a perfect 5 inning run rule game for us to start bracket play. We were slowed down by a Hot firestix team out of Michigan and eventually sent home by the Madness. Congratz to all the teams, there were no weak spots anywhere. All the teams I saw there had alot of talent. Thanks again and we hope to do it again next year.
-Coach Brett
ps...nice job cyclones......I'm proud of you...together!) :cap:

 

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After a shaky start to tournament nice job rest of the way Laser's. Expect big things

next year. Only gripe would be please try to get some new balls saw some fields use

same ripped up balls all day even on Sunday.

 

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So what teams actually made the championships? What teams won?

10u Championship:
West Virginia TNT vs Thunder Elite
Thunder Elite won 4-3 in 1st game and 4-3 in 2nd game to win the Championship.

 

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10u Championship:
West Virginia TNT vs Thunder Elite
Thunder Elite won 4-3 in 1st game and 4-3 in 2nd game to win the Championship.

Congrats Thunder Elite!!! Great team, great coaches, and great parents.

 

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Thank you Lasers........S.O. Cyclones 16U had an amazing time. We spent most of our time over at Whitehall (The place with the mile long staircase that looked liked the one ine the Exorcist movie We went 2-1 in pool and were a number one seed. We ended 4-3 and I believe in the top 16. Not bad for a team that just formed back in the fall. Sara Browning threw a perfect 5 inning run rule game for us to start bracket play. We were slowed down by a Hot firestix team out of Michigan and eventually sent home by the Madness. Congratz to all the teams, there were no weak spots anywhere. All the teams I saw there had alot of talent. Thanks again and we hope to do it again next year.
-Coach Brett
ps...nice job cyclones......I'm proud of you...together!) :cap:

Way to go Sara!

 

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I saw earlier you could play 4 14u laser teams. I only read about 2, gold and black. Is there anywhere someone can go to see all the scores/results?
How did the ice and stingrays buckeye elite do?
Thanks

Ice placed 3rd. They lost 1-0 to Lasers Black in losers bracket final