NSA World Series Qualifer to be waged this weekend

The Shawnee Park Softball Complex in Cape Girardeau will be filled with activity this weekend as the facility hosts the National Softball Association World Series Qualifier for the fifth consecutive year.

A total of 42 female fast-pitch teams -- including about 15 local squads -- will participate in five divisions: women's, 18-under, 16-under, 14-under and 12-under. The top four finishers in each category earn berths in the NSA World Series later this summer in East Peoria, Ill.

There will be 112 games spread over three days, beginning today at 6 p.m. Action Saturday resumes at 8 a.m. and continues through the day, with the final games scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Play Sunday starts at 8 a.m., with championship-round games beginning at noon and concluding with the final title contests at 5:30 p.m.

Teams participating will be from Missouri, Illinois and Tennessee. All five fields at the Shawnee Softball Complex will be in use.

"It's going to be excellent softball," tournament director Terry Schnurbusch said. "It gets bigger and better all the time and more and more teams keep wanting to get in."