The top four seeds from the 3A-1 and 3A-4 conferences will battle in Harrison in the Region 1 Tournament that will decide the top four teams in both baseball and softball who will advance to next week’s state tournament in Ashdown. It is time for post-season play that will eventually determine the Class 3A state champions in both baseball and softball. The state baseball final will be held at Baum-Walker Stadium on the campus of the University of Arkansas. The state softball final will also be held at the University of Arkansas at Bogle Park.
The softball teams that will represent the 3A-4 conference in this week’s regional tournament are Booneville, Paris, Hackett, and Charleston. From the 3A-1, the softball teams who will battle the 3A-4 teams will be the host school, Valley Springs, Elkins, Lincoln, and West Fork.
On the baseball side of the regional, the 3A-4 will be represented by Danville, Paris, Booneville, and Charleston. From the 3A-1, the top four seeds in the regional from that conference are Elkins, Greenland, West Fork, and Lincoln.
Thursday’s first round games in the regional baseball brackets are:
Charleston vs. Elkins, 10 a.m.
Paris vs. West Fork, 12:30 p.m.
Danville vs. Greenland, 3 p.m.
Booneville vs. Lincoln, 5:30 p.m.
The Scorebook Live 3A baseball Region 1 brackets can be accessed by clicking on this link:
https://scorebooklive.com/arkansas/baseball/tournaments/2021-arkansas-baseball-3a-region-1-bracket
In the regional softball brackets, Thursday’s schedule of first round games are:
Charleston vs. Valley Springs, 10 a.m.
Paris vs. Lincoln, 12:30 p.m.
Booneville vs. Elkins, 3 p.m.
West Fork vs. Hackett, 5:30 p.m.
The Scorebook Live 3A Region 1 softball tournament brackets can be accessed by clicking on this link: https://scorebooklive.com/arkansas/softball/tournaments/2021-arkansas-softball-3a-region-1-bracket
Although the Valley Springs school district is the host school for the tournament, the games will be played in Harrison at the Equity Bank Baseball / Softball Complex. Both the softball and baseball tournament games will run concurrently, and weather permitting, the tournament will run from Thursday through Saturday afternoon.
Fans from all schools and beyond can keep up with the outcomes of all the baseball and softball regional tournament games on Scorebook Live. A copy of both brackets is included below and will automatically update with the outcomes of each game.
The primary objective of every team in the regional tournaments will be to win their first games. Not only do they advance to the regional semi-final with a first round win, but a first round win also guarantees the winners a berth in next week’s state tournaments. A win or two beyond the first round in regional will give the teams going to state a higher seed and a more favorable path to a possible state championship. So, it is expected that every team will throw their best pitchers in an effort to secure that all-important win in the first round. It all leads up to a lot of excitement for each team and their communities and fans, and Resident Press will be there to report all of the latest developments in the tournament. RP will provide a short update on Friday and Saturday mornings to announce the results of the first and second round games, and a full recap of the tournament will be published on Monday night following the tournament. Photos from the Harrison tournament will be posted on Facebook at Paris Eagles Sports by Monday night, as well.
For the players, coaches, and their fans, it all boils down to Thursday for the 16 teams from districts 3A-1 and 3A-4 in the regional baseball and softball tournaments. Half of these teams will live to see another day in the pursuit of their dreams of a state championship, and half will experience the let down of having their seasons come to a sudden end. It is the nature of sports, and, in my opinion, it is why sports can teach valuable lessons that translate to everyday life.
Resident Press wishes all of our teams the best of luck, and, as I have said all season, I will see you at the ballpark!
