Pretty Pitches players watch their teammates from the fence. (Henry Leasia / KHNS)
It wouldn’t be summer in Skagway without the annual Fourth of July softball tournament. This year thirteen co-ed teams from Skagway, Juneau and Whitehorse competed for cash prizes and bragging rights.
The origins of Skagway’s summer softball tournament are unclear, but it has been an annual tradition for over 20 years. People from around Southeast Alaska and the Yukon assemble co-ed teams each year for a friendly competition the weekend before the Fourth of July.
Adam Smith has been involved with organizing the last few tournaments. He recently took the helm as league commissioner this year. He said the event is the perfect opportunity for people to let loose and get away from the hustle and bustle of Skagway’s summer tourism industry.
But the tournament is especially popular for Whitehorse residents, who take time off at the start of July for Canada Day.
“Whitehorse, they kind of make the tournament because they always show up good. I think last year we had ten Whitehorse teams. This year we’re missing a Haines team. I think someone’s getting married in Haines, so they kind of took the team for that,” Smith said.
This year four teams represented for Skagway, one team came up on the ferry from Juneau, and eight teams came down from Whitehorse.
The lineup for each group is always varied. Some may only have 10 players on their roster, while others bring 20 people out to play. There is a wide range of ages and abilities as well.
“You got anywhere from someone at their first season up here, you know 18 years old fresh out of high school or whatever, all the way up to— there are people playing out there who are 50 plus. So it’s a pretty diverse group. You see it all. You see something you haven’t seen in a softball game almost every game, so it’s pretty entertaining,” Smith said.
Smith has been playing for Amak Towing the last few years. When asked how he’s feeling about his team this year, he played it cool.
“I think we’ll let our bats talk for us. But we’re excited to play,” Smith said.
On the first day, there is pool play to determine the seed for each team. After dividing teams into an A division and a B division, bracket play begins the following day for the double elimination tournament.
Beau Damien is the captain of the Pretty Pitches, a team out of Juneau. He first started playing in this tournament 11 years ago, when he was 16. He said that this year he was looking for redemption after a tough loss to Amak.
“They crushed our dreams a few years back, so you know we’ve got to come back at them. We know the Jays from Whitehorse are a really good team. They’re typically their top team in Whitehorse, so we’ve got to come ready to play against them,” Damien said.
After a weekend of competitive play, the Pretty Pitches emerged victorious from the A division tournament, and the Padres out of Whitehorse won the B division.
