The YMCA of Burlington and Camden Counties WIFFLE Ball Tournament was held to help raise money for the programs they host, like “Camp No Worries,” which is a week long camp for kids that are battling cancer.  This was their first WIFFLE ball tournament (to our knowledge) and with the great turnout that they had, hopefully not the last!  The venue of choice for this tournament was Big League Dreams.  Big League Dreams is located in Medford, NJ and the best place around for indoor tournaments/leagues.  This was our first time experiencing a run the bases tournament, but we actually really enjoyed it!

Rules:
– Yellow and Ripken bats
– Unscuffed balls
– No walks
– 3 strikes (if you foul 3rd strike into strike zone, you’re out)
– 4 foul limit (if you foul 4 times, you’re out)
– Medium pitch
– Indoor tournament
– Can catch ball off the roof (if dropped, its a foul ball)
– Run the bases
– Pitcher’s poison
– Single elimination
– 4 to 5 players per team (only 4 play in the field, but everyone bats)
– 25 minute games
– $300 per team

There were 16 teams that signed up for the tournament and it made for a great time! Most of the teams were sponsored by their companies, but there were a couple self sponsored teams. The beginning games were loud and exciting because there were so many people watching. As the tournament drew on and teams were eliminated, the crowd died down. The games were still fun, but definitely no where near as loud as the first few games. There were a few players making comments about how quiet it got.  While the games were being played, the snack stand was open to help raise a few more bucks for the charity. There was also a silent auction going on in the lobby with all kinds of sports memorabilia. There was even a special guest appearance from the Philly Phanatic!! The tournament started at 5PM which made it tough for some teams to arrive on time, due to work, but the tournament director was pretty lenient with teams arriving by 6PM. The first round of the NFL draft was also taking place during the tournament so there was a pretty nice size crowd surrounding the TV as well.  With 16 teams and single elimination, you only needed to win 4 games to take the championship home.  The championship was played between Purcell and Way Too Beautiful.  Way Too Beautiful would end up winning the championship 7-0 and took home a 1st place trophy.  Things were wrapped up by 10PM.  This was definitely a really fun tournament and, although it was a little more expensive than most tournaments, the money went to a great cause! Hopefully this will not be the last time that the YMCA of Burlington and Camden Counties holds a WIFFLE ball tournament!