by Shaun Knittel - SGN Staff Writer

Over the July 4 weekend, the Emerald City Softball Association (ECSA) hosted the 2010 Emerald City Classic - a Gay softball tournament consisting of 44 teams (18 from out of state) and over 600 players.

According to the tournament's officials, ECSA Open Division commissioner Jeff Card and tournament director Frank Pichinini, out-of-state teams came from Portland, Oregon; San Francisco and Los Angeles, California; Phoenix, Arizona; Austin, Texas; and Vancouver, British Columbia.

The tournament was held on 13 fields across four different softball complexes: North Seatac Park, Moshier Park, Underwood Memorial Park, and, for the first time in over a decade, a Seattle venue at Riverview Playfields in West Seattle.

"We were very pleased with the tournament," Card told SGN. "It was the second-largest weekend tournament we've ever organized, just a few teams fewer than our record in 2007."

Card says that tournaments like the Emerald City Classic give the ECSA great hope that the athletic organization is in the process of establishing "one of the premier Gay softball weekend tournaments in the country."

For 2010, ECSA offered a team entry fee of $50, in comparison to most travel tournament fees of $300 to $450. According to Card, they were able to offer the low entry fee due to the support of league sponsors, most notably Bud Light.

Local players interested in Gay softball can join the Fallball Season, which is less formal than the regular spring season. It's a six-week season, which begins after Labor Day and is designed to be a fun league where players of all skills play together on the same team. Details are available at www.seattlegaysoftball.com.

FINAL RESULTS
B Division
Portland Grind - Champions
Seattle Vendetta - 2nd Place
Seattle Dirty Dawgs - 3rd Place
Phoenix Trojans - 4th Place
Don Edmunds - B Division MVP
Vancouver Hellfish - Spirit Award
Seattle Shock - Sportsmanship award

C Division
San Francisco Bad Boys - Champions
Seattle SIN - 2nd Place
Seattle Squadron - 3rd Place
San Francisco Crush - 4th Place
Tony Valdez - C Division MVP
Austin Chaos - Spirit Award
LA Rough Trade - Sportsmanship Award

D Division
Seattle Avengers - Champions
Seattle Saints - 2nd Place
Seattle X-Wolves - 3rd Place
Seattle Dirty Dozen - 4th Place
John Ball - D Division MVP
Screaming Weenies - Spirit Award
Portland Swallows - Sportsmanship Award

Special Awards
Austin Chaos - Team that traveled the Furthest to Play in the ECC
Seattle Drillers - Best Uniform

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