KELSO KLASSIC FAST-PITCH SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT THIS WEEKEND

Fast-pitch softball lovers should make plans to be in Kelso this weekend because the 11th annual Kelso Klassic Invitational Tournament figures to once again offer plenty of excitement and entertainment.

The tourney, sponsored by the Kelso Kwik Stop in Kelso and Drury Lodge in Cape Girardeau, will be held Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Kelso City Park.

Once again, an extremely competitive field will assemble as 16 teams from a tri-state area compete in what has become arguably the premier fast-pitch softball tournament in Missouri.

Heading up the tournament field is Bonutti Orthopedics from Strasburg, Ill., the two-time defending champion. Bonutti was 61-27 in 1994, won four regular-season tournaments, finished runnerup in the rugged Illinois AA state tourney and made it all the way to the Major Nationals before being eliminated.

Virtually everybody from that squad is back, including Bob Schlechte, the Klassic record-holder for most hits in a tournament with 13 in 1992. He is also the all-time leader in hits with 42. The pitching staff is headed by Alan Meinhart, last year's Most Valuable Pitcher.

The Pinckneyville, Ill., Celtics will be making their 11th Klassic appearance. They won titles in 1986 and 1987 while finishing second in 1985 and 1993. The club went 52-20 last year and finished fourth in the Illinois AA State Tournament.

Veteran hurler Bob Keith leads the Celtics. He holds virtually every pitching record in the Klassic, including most wins (16), strikeouts (172), innings pitched (143) and most complete-game shutouts (8).

St. Louis Midwest GMC returns to make another run at the title that has eluded the squad so far. The club was 56-16 last year and should be better this season with the return of New Zealand pitcher Russell Cooper, one of the world's top hurlers. Cooper played on last year's ISC World Champion team from Green Bay, Wis.

The Peoria, Ill., Merchants will be making their first appearance in Kelso and should be a contender. The squad was 48-18 in 1994, finishing fourth in Illinois Class A and third in the Midwest Regional.

The Memphis Pomen return after missing the last several Kelso tourneys, but they should be a factor.

The New Haven Cubs return for another shot at the title after several strong showings in the past. The Cubs were 40-24 last year and are the three-time defending Missouri Class A state champions.

B&H Drilling of Hermann will be back again after putting together a 51-24 season in 1994.

Bud Light of Kelso, one of the tournament co-hosts, is also a top contender this year. Bud is deep in pitching with six experienced hurlers, led by Jeff Schott. Also on the mound will be veterans Ron LeGrand, Nate Crowden and Doug Dirnberger.

Offensively, Bud's order is solid with Jeff Reinagel, Russell Burger, Paul Lynch and Larry Eftink leading the way. Bud won the 1991 tournament with virtually the same lineup. The squad was 34-26 last year playing a tough schedule and participated in the Class A National Tournament for the third time in four years.

Another co-host is Kohlfeld Distributing of Kelso. Kohlfeld opened some eyes last year by finishing third in the Klassic and beating some solid teams in the process.

Kohlfeld goes with a three-man pitching rotation, led by Mike Essner, Randy Horrell and Rick Duncan. The offense is headed by Darrell Dannenmueller, Ken Drury, Derrick Heisserer and Keith Ressel.

The Carbondale Eagles are another strong team from southern Illinois. The squad was 55-21 last year competing in Illinois Class AA.

The other co-host is Kelso Supply, also from Kelso. This young club will be playing in its first-ever Klassic. The pitching is handled by Rodney Dock, Dean Heuring and Tom Jansen. Offensive leaders are Mike Leible, Eric Beardslee, Greg Rubel and Trey Davis.

The Press Box from Mt. Vernon, Ill., will be making its first appearance in Kelso.

Other entries are the Benton, Ill., Merchants; Mueth's Tavern from Smithton, Ill.; the Belleville, Ill., Stallions; and Biggie's of St. Louis.

Four first-round games kick off the action Friday night. At 8 o'clock, Kohlfeld Distributing will play the Press Box and Bonutti Orthopedics will take on Mueth's Tavern. At 9:30, it's Bud Light vs. St. Louis Biggie's and the New Haven Cubs vs. Kelso Supply.

Play resumes Saturday at 9 a.m. with the Peoria Merchants facing Memphis Pomen and the Pinckneyville Celtics taking on the Belleville Stallions. Then, at 10:30 a.m., the first round concludes with B&H Drilling playing the Carbondale Eagles and Midwest GMC facing the Benton Merchants.

Action continues all day Saturday on two fields, with winner's bracket semifinals at 7:30 and 9 p.m.

Sunday's schedule begins at 9 a.m., with the winner's bracket final at noon and the championship round at 3 p.m. and, if needed, 4:30 p.m.