Some of the top high school softball talent in both the state and the nation converge on the Fortune Road Complex this week for the 33rd Roger Jones Kissimmee Klassic.
Games start at 2 p.m. Thursday. St. Cloud will take on Cooper City at 6 p.m., and Osceola meets Winter Springs at 8 p.m.
Quarterfinal and consolation games start at 10 a.m. Friday. Semifinal games for both brackets begin at 1 p.m. Saturday; with championship games last for 5 p.m. Saturday—weather permitting.
Osceola’s Blue features two top 10 nationally ranked teams: Doral Academy (14-0, No. 2 nationally per MaxPreps and Orange Beach, Ala. (16-1) is No. 10.
Montverde Academy (12-1, No. 3 in Florida), Coral Reef (11-2, No. 9), Hagerty (11-1, No. 20), will give the bracket highly ranked teams.
Doral is led by offensively by junior Anabella Abdullah, who is hitting .600 (24-for-40) with 25 runs scored and 27 RBIs in 14 games. Firebirds feature senior pitcher Meaghan Villazon (10-0, 0.12 ERA) who has allowed just one earned run with 104 strikeouts in 57 innings.
Orange Beach features pitcher senior K.G. Flavors (4-0, 0.58 ERA, hitting .667) and freshman M.K. McMullen (4-1, with a 0.98 ERA, 27Ks in 21 IP).
Intriguing first round games include East Ridge (13-2) hosting Coral Reef (11-2) in a match-up of top Class 7A Florida teams.
Osceola (9-3) is led by outstanding sophomores in Faith and Destiny Ferrer, Samantha Edwards, Pritti Rodriguez, and Tenley Dawson, of hitting .348 or higher entering the tournament; freshman Audrey Stewart is hitting .429 on the season.
“The Klassic has a longstanding reputation of attracting the top teams and players from the state and this year’s tournament is no different,” OHS Coach Miranda Watford said. “Of the more than 500 schools in Florida that play varsity softball, five top-20 teams in the state will be here, as well as the No. 1 team from Alabama. Ten of the 16 teams are ranked in the top 40 in the state.”
Although Watford knows the Kowboys are a longshot in the elite bracket, she says her team will benefit from the experience.
“There is no question that a tournament of this nature will build our mental toughness and resiliency,” the veteran coach said. “It will help us build a competitive edge moving forward.”
St. Cloud will play in the Gold Bracket that includes ranked teams Matanzas (10-1, No. 8 in 5A), Deltona (6-1, No. 12 in 4A), and Miami’s Florida Christian (9-3, No. 7 in 2A), Behind the strong pitching of junior Addison Felblinger, the Bulldogs are off to a solid 9-3 start this season. With a win Thursday night they’ll play at 6 p.m. Friday, or at 10 a.m. with a loss.
Lady Bulldogs dropped a tough 3-2 decision on Saturday to Centennial on Saturday in their tournament lead in. Behind the pitching of Felblinger, who retired 14 of the last 16 batters she faced, the Lady Dogs had a chance in the bottom of the seventh. Grace Cominskey walked and stole second – scoring on Madelis Reyes’ sharp single to right, with Reyes advancing to second on the throw home. But Savannah Barlow was ruled out when she ran into her own bunt attempt outside of the batter’s box and Felblinger’s line drive in the gap was run down by left fielder Kylie Coblentz to end the game.
Formerly called the Kissimmee Klassic, the tournament was renamed in 2019 in honor of co-founder Roger Jones, a long-time coach, administrator and youth sports mentor who passed away in 2018. Klassic MVP trophies are named after former Osceola coach George Co_ey, another co-founder of the event, who passed away in 2021.
Tickets to the tournament are $40 for an all-tournament, all-week pass or $15 for a on-eday pass. They can be purchased at the gate or in advance at https://kissimmeeklassic. hometownticketing.com/embed/all.
Thursday games: 2 p.m.: Hagerty vs. St. Thomas Aquinas, Coral Reef vs. East Ridge; Merritt Island vs. University, Deltona vs. Jensen Beach; 4 p.m.: Coral Springs vs. Orange Beach, Bartow vs. Oakleaf; Keystone Heights vs. Florida Christian, Matanzas vs. Okeechobee; 6 p.m.: St. Cloud vs. Cooper City, Canterbury vs. West Nassau; Doral vs. Eau Gallie, Somerset vs. Palm Beach Gardens; 8 p.m.: Winter Springs vs. Osceola, Viera vs. Montverde; Pembroke Pines vs. Dwyer, Palatka vs. Melbourne.
