Soccer and baseball together?

Jun 21, 2008 (The Wilson Daily Times - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- G | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- As visitors to J. Burt Gillette Athletic Complex marveled at its pristine soccer fields at Friday, the vacant area some 300 yards to the east might some day draw the same type of praise.

Part of the US Youth Soccer Region III championships are being played in Wilson this week because of Gillette. With construction set to begin on a showcase youth baseball stadium and three other fields, big-time youth baseball tournaments may make Wilson a destination.

"It's neat to see that when you start building nice things like this, it goes into the next thing," said Director of Wilson Parks and Recreation David Lee. "We're going to end up with one of the best parks around. We've got a great soccer complex, one of the best playgrounds you can have and now we're going to have the best baseball complex."

Lee said that with completion of the baseball facility, there is a strong possibility for the Little League state tournament to come to Gillette.

That's great economic news for Wilson.

"The soccer complex is paying for itself with this tournament," Lee said in reference to the Region III championships.

It's not hard to imagine Gillette hosting both soccer and baseball tournaments at the same time.

"Yeah, that would be the ultimate weekend, wouldn't it?" Lee said. "I'm sure that's going to happen at some point in time."

A YEAR TOO LATE

Former Fike High School star and current Wake Forest University standout Sarah Winslow was among the spectators Friday at Gillette.

It was just a year ago that Winslow and her Capital Area Soccer League '87 Spartan Elite teammates won the ages 19-under (19U) girls Region III championship in Oklahoma City.

The team was denied in its quest for a national title in the national tournament in Dallas, ending Winslow's club soccer career.

But don't think Winslow hadn't thought about what it would be like to have been able to play for a regional title at Gillette.

"Yes! I'm so mad," she said with a smille. "When I found out (the regionals were coming to Wilson), I said, 'Of course! It's the year after I was here.'

"And they get to play at this complex which is one of the best places I've ever played."

FAVORABLE IMPRESSION

Out-of-state visitors Friday were understandably apprehensive about their teams playing in both Wilson and Raleigh.

However, Marc Bone, associated with the vaunted Dallas Solar team in Boys Under 19, was impressed, to say the least, with Gillette Complex on Friday.

"We had no clue about Wilson," he admitted. "Now, I wish we were playing all three (bracket) games here. I wish (Wilson) would host the entire regional."

The Dallas team frequently plays at Pizza Hut Park, home of the Dallas professional team.

The condition of the six Gillette fields especially impressed Bone.

"This setting is very similar to Little Rock," he noted.

The 2008 U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships will be played in Little Rock, Ark.

45 SCHOOLS REPRESENTED

High-profile club tournaments usually draw a sizable throng of college coaches and recruiters.

That's the case with the Southern Regional.

Through Friday's 4 p.m. matches at Gillette Complex, 45 college representatives, many of them from the NCAA Division I ranks, had registered.

The list:

American University, Auburn, Barton, Belmont, Charlotte, Elon University, Florida State, Georgia College and State, High Point, Iowa State, Meredith, Mississippi State, North Carolina State, Northwestern State, Oklahoma State and Mississippi.

Also, Southeastern Louisiana, Tennessee Tech, Texas Christian, Texas Tech, Alabama-Birmingham, Arkansas-Little Rock, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri-Columbia, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, UNC Wilmington, Oklahoma, South Carolina-Upstate, Winthrop and Army.

NATIONAL CELEBRITY

Among Friday's most prominent celebrities in attendance at the Southern Regional was Bruce Murray, now a coach in the Capital Area Soccer League.

However, Murray, who played at Clemson University, once ranked as the all-time leading scorer for the U.S. National team.

Murray scored the United States' only goal when it competed in Italy in 1990.

His record has since been broken twice.

BUSY, BUSY DAY

The first 36 Southern Regional matches contested at Gillette Complex on Friday kept the medical staff busy.

The staff, contracted through Professional Sports Medicine in Raleigh, consisted of Barton College's Randy Pridgen, Jamey Beacham and Heather Hartsell along with Methodist's Rachelle Bowman.

Pridgen, Barton's head athletic trainer, noted the staff treated a fractured ankle, a fractured clavical, four concussions, a face laceration, two knee injuries and one incident of heat illness.

In addition, Pridgen was certain the five athletic trainers wrapped 50-plus ankles.

Two players were transported to the emergency room and another to an orthopedic center.

"I knew it was going to be busy _ but not THAT busy," Pridgen exclaimed.

Pridgen lauded the organizational efforts of the Wilson Parks and Recreation Department and noted Wilson Medical Center provided the tent.

UNITY REAPS REWARDS

The Dallas Solar program is one of the attention-grabbers in U.S. Youth Soccer.

The players have remained together for seven or eight years and perhaps overlooked is the fact the unity was vital in most of them landing opportunities with NCAA Div. I schools.

Members of the 2008 Boys Under 19 team now play for Wake Forest, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Virginia, Xavier, St. Louis, Tulsa, Michigan, Wright State, UNC Wilmington, Harvard and Navy.

SOCCER JAIL

No doubt, Friday's onlookers at Gillette Complex spotted the Red Card Tent.

U.S. Youth Soccer is all business when it comes to sportsmanship and competitive conduct.

Thus, if a coach or player is assessed a red card during a match, he or she heads to the Red Card Tent or "soccer jail."

The carded individual remains in the tent for the remainder of the match and returns to serve his or her suspension for the next match.

The tent's contents are limited to a table and two chairs.

If two individuals are imprisoned simultaneously and they can't get along, one is moved to another Red Card Tent at the other end of the complex.

Tournament officials proudly reported no "official visitors" during Friday's matches.

But at one time, "soccer jail" was occupied by two of the City of Wilson's finest.

"Now, that would have been a good picture," said amused volunteer Keith Barnes.

To see more of The Wilson Daily Times or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wilsondaily.com/. Copyright (c) 2008, The Wilson Daily Times, N.C. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

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