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Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Lutz Softball

Lutz softball continues to fine-tune its offerings

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Following a successful spring campaign, Lutz Softball is gearing up for another season of fastpitch softball next month — with a number of recent additions and upgrades.

Formerly known as the Lutz Leaguerettes, the ages 4 to 18 recreational girls softball organization has expanded its fastpitch offerings since scrapping slowpitch play altogether a few years ago.

The league has introduced a five-on-five, infield-only 6U division to guide younger players through basic fundamentals, including the shift from T-ball to coaches’ fastpitch.

The Lutz Softball recreational fastpitch girls softball league featured about 200 players across 17 teams last spring. Those numbers are expected to remain steady in the fall season. (Courtesy of Jennifer Parry)

The new division had a test run last year for the first time — to beneficial results, said Jennifer Parry,  league president.

“It’s been pretty successful, so we’re going to do it again this season,” she said. “The girls that maybe have a shorter attention span, they stay more involved, they learn the basics of the game and hitting.”

The league also is finding ways to cater to more experienced players.

Lutz Softball implemented Xtreme Fastpitch divisions in conjunction with its parent program, Babe Ruth League, which is designed for higher-level players to have more organized competitive play against other Babe Ruth teams throughout Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties.

Parry said the Xtreme league “is for the girls that are either trying to get a little better for high school or that just are a little better than most, they can play there and kind of fine-tune some of those skills that they may not get to practice on a regular rec league.”

Introduced last year, Xtreme Fastpitch has helped “bridge the gap” between recreational and travel ball play as a more affordable option for families, the league president said.

She noted some former Lutz Softball players who previously left for travel leagues have since returned to participate in the league’s Xtreme divisions.

“It’s been pretty successful,” Parry said. “Travel ball really decimates rec ball, so it’s really kind of a step in the right direction to kind of keep girls locally, playing with the girls they go to school with and not put so much pressure on the parents to travel all over.

“We’ve had some girls that went to travel and where they might be girls that get more play in our Xtreme division, (but) in their travel team they don’t play or they maybe play one inning. “They’re all good players, but there’s just a difference in playing time and the community and who you’re playing with, friends with school,” she said.

Lutz Softball transitioned solely to fastpitch play in 2016. Dwindling registration figures forced the league to drop slowpitch, after 37 years. They were the last recreational league in the county to offer that style of the sport.

Parry acknowledged the drastic move to fastpitch has been challenging, particularly in terms of training players the methods of pitching and catching.

So, this season the league is offering free pitching lessons to all registered players, including clinics for beginners and advanced.

Parry put it like this: “It was a big change, especially for some of our older girls who had been pitching for a couple of years because the motion is different, and so we’re still trying to get through that transition. …I think still our biggest hurdle is just getting those girls trained in that area, because when you don’t have a pitcher or a catcher, those games can get really rough, because they’re just walking girls around. It was our biggest struggle in the transition and continues to be our biggest struggle.”

That aside, Parry said Lutz Softball’s registration numbers have been on the increase since the move to exclusively fastpitch.

The league is believed to be the county’s second-largest girls recreation softball league, behind FishHawk .

The Lutz league featured about 200 players and 17 teams in the spring — up from about 160 players a few years ago. Parry expects those numbers to remain steady for the upcoming fall season then “go up a little bit” next spring.

To generate more interest this season, the league is offering a $50 registration discount to families that bring new families and players to the league.

Said Parry, “We’re just trying to get some new families to our parks. We find that once they get there, they really enjoy it. We have a very family like atmosphere and try to include everybody.”

Performance-wise, Lutz Softball is coming off a spring season that saw three of its all-star teams compile strong showings in postseason play.

Its 8U team finished second in districts, third in regionals and fifth in states; 12U placed second at a Babe Ruth all-star warm-up tournament in FishHawk; and 16U won the FishHawk warm-up tournament and finished second at districts.

Besides on-the-field play, the league’s home base at Oscar Cooler Sports Complex in Lutz is witnessing a makeover. The county’s parks and recreation department recently leveled and re-sodded the complex’s three softball fields with Bermuda grass; side field bullpens, parking lights and a new playground are some other additions.

Said Parry, “This will be our first season playing on the new sod. It’s looking good. Gone are the days of dirt patches and things like that.”

Player registration closes Aug. 24 for the fall season. The season runs from September through November.

For more information, visit LutzSoftball.com, or email .

Published August 21, 2019

Super Saturday offers a swingin’ good time

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It might’ve been April Fool’s Day, but this softball event was no joke.

This dog belongs to Mackenzie Pavloff, of Lutz. The service dog, named Koda Bear, is a 5-year-old Pitbull-mix, who seems to like the sounds of the softball games at Oscar Cooler Youth Sports Complex. The pet’s owner said she played softball at the complex years ago.
(Fred Bellet)

It’s called Super Saturday, and it’s an annual fundraiser for Lutz Softball, a recreational fast-pitch league for girls ages 5 through 18.

On April 1, several hundred softball families gathered to cheer on more than 20 teams, soaking in the daylong festivities at the Oscar Cooler Youth Sports Complex.

Besides a full slate of softball matchups, there was plenty to keep attendees amused, from family friendly games and activities, to numerous vendors and countless raffles.

“This is probably the biggest Super Saturday we’ve ever held,” said Mike Cook, president of Lutz Softball Inc.

“Every year, it’s gotten bigger and bigger and bigger,” added event coordinator Jennifer Bommarito. “This is quite a bit bigger than it started out to be.”

Ten-year-old Sicily Jordan, of the visiting Wesley Chapel Pink Rockets, gets a hit against the Renegades during game action last Saturday at Oscar Cooler Youth Sports Complex.

Held each spring, Super Saturday is one of the league’s two major fundraisers. The other is Fall Festival, in October.

Amid softball rivalries and competition, Super Saturday gives young athletes a chance to unwind.

“This is actually like a fun day for them,” Bommarito said, “where they actually get to goof all a little bit…and not have to be so serious.”

Mike Bosworth, who has coached in the league since 2013, said the annual shindig also helps foster positive interactions among families.

“People are…competitive with one another, and when you do an event like this, it gets you to know other people, and it softens those relationships on the field,” he explained.

Other parents agreed.

After playing his Little League game, 5-year-old Wyatt Gingras, of Lutz, totes his favorite bat and backpack to watch Leaguerette softball and cool off with an icy beverage. Wyatt was with his grandfather, Scott Knoeppel, of Lutz, and spent the day enjoying the family fun event at Oscar Cooler Youth Sports Complex.

“I think it brings us closer,” said parent-coach Rainey Rosenberger.

“It’s just fun to get families together from the community,” parent Natalie Brown added.

Another parent, Maggie Mixon, believes the event has nearly become a Lutz tradition.

“It’s phenomenal — just to see the community come together, in the spirit of collaboration,” she said. “It’s just a good, old-fashioned, small-town gathering.”

Among the afternoon’s top highlights was the parents’ tournament — and it’s unlike any other.

A 16-inch blooper ball was used, bases were run in reverse, fathers batted with their non-dominant hand, and kids served as coaches.

“It’s fun and confusing — everything’s backwards,” Rosenberger said, smiling.
The sports complex’s ballyhooed concession stand was another draw.

From biscuits and gravy during early morning games, to mushroom Swiss burgers and buffalo chicken wraps, there’s never a shortage of tasty grub offerings.

Bosworth, whose wife, Alissa, is the concessions manager, said parents from other youth leagues — Brandon, Carrollwood, Wesley Chapel —can’t say enough about the ballpark’s spreads.

Bryan Bounds, of Gainesville, watches softball action with friend, Charlene Ierna, of Lutz. Ierna’s 15-year-old daughter, Emma Ierna, plays on the softball team called the Rebels. Ierna is also the team’s sponsor.

“The parents are always like, ‘You guys have got the best concession stand we’ve ever seen, anywhere,’” Bosworth said.

Super Saturday, meanwhile, couldn’t have come at a better time for the softball organization.

On March 8, two suspects burglarized the Oscar Cooler Sports Complex during early morning hours, causing losses in excess of $5,000.

“That (robbery) threw us for a loop tremendously,” Mike Cook said.

In wake of the incident, the league has received “overwhelming” community support, with donations from the likes of Home Depot, Walgreens, Lowe’s and Ford.

Over $1,920 has also been raised, via a GoFundMe page.

Lutz Softball, formerly known as the Lutz Leaguerettes, also has seen quite a transition since January 2016, when the organization announced it was offering a recreational fast-pitch league for the first time in its 37-year history.

Just six months later, its slow-pitch leagues were discontinued because of dwindling registration and an overwhelming preference for fast-pitch. The fast-pitch league now claims to have about 200 participants, the highest figure in several years.

Lutz Softball Inc., is a PONY (Protect Our Nation’s Youth) Softball affiliate.

Published April 5, 2017