Nighthawks ready for ‘Spring Fling’

A youth baseball invasion is set to hit Fremont.

Starting Thursday, 58 teams throughout Nebraska and Iowa will travel to Fremont to participate in the USSSA sanctioned “Spring Fling” baseball tournament.

The tournament is only in its second year and yet it has already experienced tremendous growth. The field of participants has more than doubled from last year’s inaugural event.

“All 18 teams from last year came back for this year’s tournament because they enjoyed coming to Fremont and playing on our fields,” Fremont Nighthawks vice president John Edwards said.

Edwards believes that growth for this year’s event could partially be attributed to word of mouth from last year’s participants. The Fremont Nighthawks select teams have also made arrangements with teams they play throughout the season to help solidify a larger draw.

Another factor that may have contributed to the large turnout is that double points will be awarded for participants in the “Spring Fling.” Points are used to seed select teams for the USSSA state tournament and regional world series.

With 30 more teams in this year’s event, finding an appropriate number of venues became an important first step for tournament organizers. The Nighthawks board worked with Kim Koski of the Fremont Parks and Recreation Department and Arlington youth baseball coordinator Kelly Thompson to secure five different venues.

“They let us have pretty much every in field in Fremont for this weekend. Without that, it wouldn’t be possible,” Edwards said.

Venues for the tournament include Ronin Field, Clemmons Field, Christensen Field, Memorial Field and Arlington’s youth baseball/softball complex. There will be five separate tournaments with divisions according to age. Participants range from 9 to 14 years old.

All teams are guaranteed to play at least four games. The format consists of pool play prior to a single-elimination tournament. Weather permitting, most of the championship games will take place 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

The Fremont Nighthawks board has secured a large number of volunteers to help staff the event and manage the fields. Most of the umpiring crews are local with some coming in from Omaha.

“It takes a tremendous effort to pull this off, from parents of our in house and select teams to sponsors,” assistant tournament director Kurt Samson said. “A great deal of work has gone on behind the scenes to set this up. This is really a reflection of not just the Nighthawks board but the entire city of Fremont... This will be a great opportunity for the local businesses to enjoy the surplus of activity that is going on.”