Area sports calendar 9/23/04

Basketball

Officials meeting: The Cape Girardeau Area Basketball Officials Association will meet 6 p.m. Wednesday at River Eagle Distributing.

Optimist basketball: The Jackson Optimist boys basketball program will begin its 55th year. Registration is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 9 at Main Street Fitness in Jackson. Program open to boys in grades 3 to 7. Forms also available to mail by Oct. 18 at the Chamber of Commerce, city and regional libraries and SEMO Specialties and Sports. Info: Ken Schaper, 204-7029, or Mike Cracraft, 243-8810.

Football

Punt, Pass and Kick: The Cape Girardeau NFL Punt, Pass and Kick competition will be 1-3 p.m. Sunday at the Cape Central Junior High School football field. The competition is open to boys and girls ages 8 to 15 as of Dec. 31, 2004. No entry fee; participants may register on the same day. No cleats. The top finishers in four age groups for each gender qualify for a sectional event Oct. 10 in Cape Girardeau with top performers eligible to compete in the St. Louis Rams championship. Info: Charlie Herbst, 334-3297.

Golf

Benefit tournament: The Community Counseling Center Foundation's fifth annual Benefit Golf Tournament will be 12:30 p.m. Oct. 8 at Cape Girardeau Country Club. The event is an 18-hole, four-person shamble to benefit the Community Counseling Center, a not-for-profit provider of mental health care. Fee is $100 per player. Info: Co-chairs John Harding or John Grimm, 335-3316, or Larry Essner at the Community Counseling Center, 334-1100.

Tourney benefits students: The alumni from the Southeast Missouri State Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation are sponsoring a golf tournament Saturday to benefit scholarships for students in the department. The tournament, open to anyone interested in playing, begins 8 a.m. at Cape Jaycee Municipal Golf Course. Four-person scramble will be flighted. Cost is $50 per person or $200 per team. Info: 651-2197 or visit the department's Web site: www5.semo.edu/health.

Saxony Golf Classic: Bent Creek Golf Club will host the fifth annual Saxony Golf Classic on Oct. 1. The four-person scramble will have shotgun starts at 7:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Proceeds benefit Saxony Lutheran High School. Field limited to 32 teams in each session. Info: Carol Sparkman, 334-3653.

CFS tournament: The inaugural CFS Golf Tournament, hosted by the Jackson Church of Christ, is scheduled for Oct. 9 at Cape Jaycee Municipal Golf Course. Shotgun start at 9 a.m. for the four-person scramble. Fee is $65 per person and $260 per team.

Running

Remembrance run: The Vicky Keller Remembrance Run is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Saturday. The 5.35-mile run will take place on the old RiverFest course, beginning and ending at the corner of Broadway and Main. Meal with awards ceremony follows the one-mile fun run/walk. Preregistration fee $15 for the 5.35-mile race; late registration is $19. Preregistration fee $12 for the one-mile run; late registration is $14. Proceeds to the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association. Info: Ron Keller. 334-1364, or Amber Wilson, 335-5189.

Half marathon: The 24th City of Roses Half Marathon is scheduled for Sunday. Power walk and noncompetitive runners start at 6 a.m., the rest of the field begins at 7 a.m. The event will begin and end at Arena Park but the new course includes a loop of downtown Cape Girardeau near the Emerson Memorial Bridge. A donation from the proceeds will be made by the Cape Road Runners to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Info: Chuck Dobbs, 243-1931, or Teri Baker, 334-4053.

Freedom of Speech run: The Southeast Missouri State University departments of communications and English will offer the second annual Freedom of Speech 5-kilometer run and one-mile walk Oct. 2. Both events begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Show Me Center south parking lot. Registration will open at 8 a.m. Pre-registration is $11.50 by Friday. Registration is $15 the day of the race. Children 12-and-under are free. Info and registration form: freespeechrun.org.

Softball

Players sought: The Heartland Pride Select girls softball program is seeking players to fill positions on 14-and-under, 16-and-under and possibly 18-and-under teams. Program is planning to play winter ball in St. Louis. Info: Terry McLard, 335-9109 or 335-1295 or terry_mclard@hotmail.com.

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