1 week Ago By Katie Ringer
JAMESTOWN — There is set to be a lot of traffic at the Hillcrest Softball Complex this summer. As of April 22, there are 20 mens slowpitch softball teams registered for the summer season compared to 17 teams a season ago. The league has gained a team from Valley City, another team of students from Jamestown High School and a team comprised of Pipstem Dam's construction crew.
ADVERTISEMENT "It's fun," third-year board president Nate Purcell said of why the league has seen growth. "It's competitive but it's still a sport that you can play with your friends at various levels. There are teams who are more competitive and go play in tournaments but at the end of the day, it is what it is meant to be — it's a rec sport.
You grab 10 of your buddies and you go play some softball. "It's slowpitch softball — everybody thinks they can do it and so they are willing to come out and try it," he said. "Sometimes they find that it is a little more challenging than it looks like it but being able to hit that big yellow ball 300 feet is really fun.
We have some good softball teams here in town that's for sure." Jamestown's Esto Dingus won the Rec 2 State Championship and took second at the 2024 McQuades Softball Tournament. The Carrington team that plays in Jamestown's league won the McQuades Rec 1 division.
Jamestown's Monday league is comprised of lower-ranked teams while Wednesdays boast a higher level of competition. The competitive season will begin on May 5 and 7 and will conclude July 28 and 30. The end-of-season tournament will be played the week of Aug.
4. Jamestown's women's league will play its games on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. As of April 22, there are 11 teams registered for the summer.
The co-ed season will begin on Aug. 14 and will run until Sept. 24.
"We're always welcoming in new teams for that," Purcell said of the co-ed league. "It's a lot more low-key, a lot more fun. It's not taken anywhere near as seriously.
It goes over well in other communities too so if there are people who want to start a team, we'd love to have them." The fun will not be limited to the week days this summer. ADVERTISEMENT "This year, we have a few tournaments that are coming to town," Purcell said.
Jamestown will host the Men's Rec 2 State Tournament Aug. 2-3. Purcell said he is expecting 30 teams to register for the tournament.
Jamestown is also set to host the Women's Rec 2 and Rec 4 State Tournaments Aug. 16-17. "If you figure you will have 30 teams and each team needs a minimum of 12 guys and if all those guys bring their families to town — that'll bring more than 1,000 people to town," Purcell said.
" It'll be good for Jamestown and good for business." If Jamestown wants teams to keep coming back, its facilities need some attention. "That place was probably built in the late 60s early 1970s," Purcell said of the Hillcrest Softball Complex.
"Amy Walters and Cory Genter have done a great job of getting them cleaned up in the last year or so but it's time to renovate. "If we want bigger state tournaments here, then we need bigger fields," he said. "Our fields are only 280 feet, for some of the bigger tournaments, they require the fields to be 300 feet.
Also, if we want tournaments with more teams, we need more than four fields." Purcell knows those updates will cost a pretty penny, so he came up with a solution. ADVERTISEMENT "What we decided to do was go out to local businesses and community members and basically sell banner ads and sponsorships to anyone who is looking to advertise their business on the field," Purcell said.
"All of the proceeds from that will go into a trust fund with the Parks and Rec which will then be used to kick start the renovation of the softball diamonds." Funds raised would help with field resurfacing costs and contribute toward updated dugouts, fencing and enhanced lighting for the evening games. New bleachers and a improved playground area are also on the list of things to improve.
The smallest ads, a 6-by-6-foot sign, would cost $550 per year. The largest, a 24-by-6-foot sign, would run upward of $1,850. "We've already sold a few ads so we're excited," Purcell said.
"We're hoping that takes off pretty quick. With our league teams, the Rec 2 and Rec 4 State Tournaments and the Annual Schafer Memorial Co-ed Tournament — that's some good exposure for local businesses. I think it's going to be a good thing for Jamestown softball.
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