Mingo police-hosted kickball tourney gets muddy
VICTORS — Patrol Officer Ashley Close, left front, and Police Chief Willie McKenzie, right, posed with the winning team, the Bay Six Riff-Raffs, and their trophies.-- Christopher Dacanay
WIPE OUT — A portion of the kickball tournament participants — many covered in mud and all soaked with rain — posed for a photo following the final match.-- Christopher Dacanay
SLIP AND SLIDE — A player on the B-Team, surrounded by mud, wound up for a kick as Patrol Officer Ashley Close and Police Chief Willie McKenzie watched. -- Christopher Dacanay
VICTORS — Patrol Officer Ashley Close, left front, and Police Chief Willie McKenzie, right, posed with the winning team, the Bay Six Riff-Raffs, and their trophies.-- Christopher Dacanay
WIPE OUT — A portion of the kickball tournament participants — many covered in mud and all soaked with rain — posed for a photo following the final match.-- Christopher Dacanay
SLIP AND SLIDE — A player on the B-Team, surrounded by mud, wound up for a kick as Patrol Officer Ashley Close and Police Chief Willie McKenzie watched. -- Christopher Dacanay
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MINGO JUNCTION -- A community kickball tournament hosted by the Mingo Junction Police Department Saturday at the Mingo Junction baseball fields had participants slipping and sliding as the weather turned to rain.
In spite of the rain and mud on the play field, Chief Willie McKenzie said the community outreach event for the police department went very well.
"I was really impressed at the turnout," McKenzie said, "and to see everyone stick around while it was storming shows that they really love spending time with us (the police), getting to know us more and trusting the man and woman who are serving and protecting them."
The police department's two full-time officers, McKenzie and Patrol Officer Ashley Close, acted as referees and encouragement for the three teams that participated in the tournament. Each team needed at least seven players, with at least one adult and one child.
The first game in the tournament was between the B-Team and the Baby Yodas. The B-Team gained scoring momentum and won the match in the third inning because of the 10-point mercy rule.
Next up was a match between the Bay Six Riff-Raffs and the Baby Yodas. Although the Riff-Raffs gained a dominating lead and won the match, the Baby Yodas had their own small victory when their own Wyatt Roe scored their only run of the event.
Michael Herrick, Mingo Junction village council member, came to watch part of the match. Herrick, who said he played on the same ballfields 75 years ago, said it was important for him as a councilman to attend local events.
Rain began to pour down as the final match began between the Bay Six Riff-Raffs and the B-Team. Players began slipping and sliding around the ballfield, with many players wiping out and falling into pools of mud. Two different players on the B-Team wiped out but crawled their way to the base.
The final score, with the winner being the first team to 15 points, came to 15-1 -- a victory for the Bay Six Riff-Raffs. The winning team's members received trophies for the event, distributed by McKenzie.
The Most Valuable Player, judged by McKenzie and Close for his run-ins with the mid, was a member of the B-Team, who was awarded a Bluetooth speaker.
The concession stand was open during the games, courtesy of the Indian Creek Baseball Softball League. All proceeds were given as a monetary donation to support Landyn Strosnider, a fifth-grader at Bishop Mussio Elementary School who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in May.
McKenzie, who said his favorite part of the event was seeing how happy everyone was, said the motivation behind holding the event was the desire "to continue to build positive relationships between police and the community."
McKenzie and Close said the police department hopes to host another kickball game next year. For now, they are looking into other summer community event ideas, including possible movie nights or a fishing trip.