GREAT FALLS — The COVID-19 pandemic ruined the spring softball season this year, but fans in Great Falls will have the chance to get their fix this weekend with a tournament hosted by Falls Fusion club team. Fifty-four teams from around the country will come to the Electric City.
University of Providence head coach Joey Egan coaches the under-18 team, and she said it’s welcome news for the players and coaches.
"Losing our season from the college perspective was tough. And I think everybody went into this kind of a low or kind of a depression about losing your season. And this has really brought me up," she said. "I think it's brought everybody up (who) lost their high school season. So now just being able to get these girls back on the field and do the game that they love has been a really great experience."
One player on the U18 team that did get a short season is Great Falls CMR graduate Madi Moore, whose freshman season at the University of North Dakota got cut short 24 games into the season. Moore hopes to bring extra experience to the Fusion.
"There were some points where we got down in our games and I think instead of getting down, we need to get up and stay up," Moore said. "And if we're facing younger teams or stuff like that, we need to stay at our level. We stay who we are, we stay as Falls Fusion the whole time."
No one on this team is taking softball for granted, especially since COVID-19 is still a threat. Egan said the Fusion board has worked with local health officials to make sure the Multi-Sport Plex is ready to go.
"We got rid of all the bleachers. So if you're coming, bring your own chair and hand sanitizer," Egan said. "We're wiping down dugouts, washing the balls, just doing the best we can to keep everybody safe and have fun play softball."
