What a Summer!

What a Summer!

Contributed By Tim Fulton, Director of Sports Facilities, Evansville Sports Complex

With the August heat almost over, we take a few moments to reflect on the activity of the last couple of months.  It was a long summer filled with the cheers of youth teams participating in league and tournament games at Deaconess Sports Park and Goebel Soccer and Lacrosse Complex.  These welcomed cheers brought the feeling of normalcy back to the Evansville Sports Complex as we hosted larger than normal events nearly every weekend.  The Tournament Organizers have gotten increasingly creative in their offerings, but at the end of the day, people were just happy to be playing again.

June and July, being the busiest months of the season, presented new opportunities for events like the Vette City Showcase by USA Elite Select.  This event began with a player identification camp on Wednesday followed by showcase level softball games beginning on Thursday.  “The Vette City Summer Showcase is a unique event in that only the top four finishing teams out of their seven team pools advance to the Championship Bracket.  This makes for some very competitive pool play games as teams try to advance.” Said Lorenzo Walker, Tournament Director.  This event attracted teams from the Midwest as well as Collegiate Coaches who were looking to recruit players.  The event, hosted by One After 7 Events, was well received and plans to return in 2022.

The USSSA Great Lakes World Series took place in mid-July and attracted nearly 200 teams from around the Midwest as well.  Teams began to arrive on Sunday for the opening day activities on Monday.  Games were played Tuesday thru Sunday and were played at three facilities in the area.  In addition to the tournament, there was added value and excitement as the USSSA Pride professional women’s fastpitch team was also in town to play two games at Bosse Field.  These games were a combined effort between the Evansville Sports Corporation and the Evansville Convention and Visitors Bureau and were both well attended with the Wednesday night game drawing a near capacity crowd.  The USSSA Great Lakes World Series is set to return in 2022 with a more impactful announcement coming soon.  

Ready for Fall…

As we look forward to Fall, the busy season continues at the facilities.  As schools return, so do the Fall Sports.  Soccer Teams resume their practices to prepare for tournaments around the area, including Goebel Soccer and Lacrosse Complex where the Indiana Fire Junior South host their annual V.I.T. events.  The Junior Veteran’s Invitational Tournament is hosted at both Goebel Soccer and Lacrosse Complex and Price Park in September and the High School age VIT is hosted at Goebel in November.  These events have become an annual tradition in the area and attract teams from around the Midwest to the tri-state.  K.C. Bennett of Indiana Fire Juniors South had this to say, “The 20^th Annual Veterans Invitational Tournament will welcome 180 teams over two weekends from Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio and Indiana. Every year we look forward to hosting this event in honor and remembrance of our Veterans. We invite everyone in the community to drive through the park on November 6 to see the Veterans Luminary Celebration. The beautiful, creative and meaningful luminaries decorated by our players and their families honor the sacrifice of every soldier who has earned lasting gratitude for our freedom through their service to our country.”

Deaconess Sports Park also hosts many events in the Fall season kicking off with the USA Softball Men’s and Women’s Northern National events on Labor Day weekend.  These events run concurrently this year and attract teams from the midwestern states.  This year’s event will be the fifth time that this event has been held in the area and there is already a commitment for 2022 in place.  There are also multiple fastpitch showcase events scheduled for this Fall, so the facility will remain busy until early November.

Looking To the Future…

There are many changes coming to Evansville Sports Complex in the next few months.  The plan to replace the existing infields with modern synthetic surfaces is moving forward with construction planned to begin in November.  In addition to this, there are several facelift projects that will be taking place in the winter months.  The infield upgrade will keep the facility competitive in the ever-changing tournament market by providing almost guaranteed play for the teams.  With an increasingly competitive market where new facilities are being built nearly every year, it is important to stay ahead of the trends and initiate projects that keep you at the forefront.

“Since opening 2015, Deaconess Sports Park has hosted events that have contributed nearly $100 million in economic impact to the Evansville and Vanderburgh County area.  With the planned upgrades, we are ensuring that the facility will remain a viable and competitive venue for years to come.”, said Tim Fulton, Director of Sports Facilities.  

Once armed with the necessary tools for expansion and facility improvements, Double Play Sports will serve as the namesake of the tournament operations arm of Evansville Sports Complex.  The ESC Management Team is forming new and updated partnerships that will allow Double Play Sports to offer the highest quality events for high quality athletes.  All existing and future events operated explicitly by the ESC staff will fall under this department.

“With the combined tournament operations experience and national level partnerships, Double Play Sports will be the arm of Evansville Sports Complex that will operate high quality events for high quality athletes.  This will allow for an increased number of in-house events that attract athletes and teams from around the country to Evansville.  As always, our goal is to bring visitors to the tri-state area and we believe that Double Play Sports will be the catalyst for increased economic impact to the City of Evansville and Vanderburgh County.” Said Cate Simon, Program and Events Manager of Evansville Sports Complex.

*Deaconess Sports Park is owned and operated by the Evansville Vanderburgh County Convention and Visitors Bureau and was developed using Tourism Capital Improvement funding derived from lodging tax assessed to local hotels.  The facility aims to attract sports teams and visitors to the area where they will generate an economic impact for the local economy.