2025 Windy City Classic tournament report!

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2025 Windy City Classic

Carol Stream, Illinois

May 30th – June 1st

WestPoint’s Filip Washington hits one over the trees against Ataraxis Saturday afternoon.

Windy City Team List

Windy City Video and Article Links

Windy City Results & Bracket Link

2025 Windy City Picture Album link

Windy City Archived Games link

Windy City Stats link

Windy City Link to BallClubz Boxscores

Windy City Link to BallClubz Team Stat Reports

Primetime vs Fishers condensed game link

I-55 Logistics vs I-57 Roofing condensed game link

Ataraxis vs I-57 Roofing condensed game link

Winner’s Final – WestPoint vs Ataraxis condensed game link

Fishers vs Legendz condensed game link

Loser’s Final – Fishers vs WestPoint condensed game link

Friday Night Recap

Comatose walks off Legendz.

The 2025 Windy City Classic was played at the McCaslin Park in Carol Stream, Illinois in West Chicago. They played on 4 – 300 foot fields with artificial turn infields and grass outfields used a very good batch of Dudley Pro-M balls. There were 14 teams from 10 different states and 9 of them were from the Conference USSSA. The double elimination tournament started at 5 PM Central time Friday and finished Saturday evening. The weather was cooler and less windy than normal. The 6 “play in” games started with a minor upset as non-conference ‘B’ team Comatose/S2N/Subway from Wisconsin scored 16 runs in the bottom of the 1st inning and ended up beating Legendz/Beloli/MSGA (OK-A) 32-31 on a walk off bases loaded 2 out single by Jordan Deboer. Deboer was 5-5 in the game as the last batter in the order and the three hitter for Comatose Brent Zomer was 5-5 with 4 homers and 9 RBI in the win. Kevin Miller and Jarred Vanderhoof were each 6-6 in the loss for Legendz. The #3 seed ATARAXIS/SONNYS/JBLNEWBREEDKOVALBAF (MD-AA) with Eric Keller on the mound beat ISI/Spiderz (IL-C) 32-22. Fishers/StoltzfusWelding/All Hustle (CT-B) after leading Scott Jacobs Northwoods Elite (WI-B) team 16-7 early, ended up winning just 26-17. 3rd baseman Andrew Stoltzfus was 5-5, hit for the cycle, and had 5 RBI and 4 runs scored. Primetime/Marucci/Ballhawk (GA-A) scored 12 in the bottom of the 1st, and 19 in the 2nd to beat a young Scott Routing (IN-C) team 31-11 without having to bat in the 4th. Rod Armour, Mike Williams, Ira Brown, Angel Ortega, and Alonzo Fields were all perfect on base in the game and Brown hit 3 HR and drove in 9 runs. I-57 Roofing / I-55 Logistics (MO-B) scored 18 runs in the top of the 1st against T’s 13 (NE-B) and cruised to a 33-15, 5 inning run rule win. They had 21 extra base hits led by Zach Macha, Nathan Jess, Joseph Dowlen, Jack Quick, Tanner Hudson, Jake Dobbleare, and Reid Kesel who were all either 4-5 or 5-5 in the game. And Anarchy/Rebel/TAFN/Midstate/PT (MI-B) beat Tafn/Trust/GoSports/Prime Threadz (MI-C) 26-20 in a game that was close the whole way. Both were Conference teams playing for the first time in 2025.

Fishers takes down Primetime.

I-57’s Laser Dave gives them the lead in the bottom of the 6th on a grand slam.

At 6:45 PM the “Round of 8” began with Ataraxis using all 14 of their home runs in 4 innings against Comatose in a 40-12 run rule win. Josh Kirsten, Marc Wik, Adam Ussery, and Cabot Van Til were all 5-5 and Kirsten drove in 8 runs. Fishers beat Primetime 27-16 out homering them 12-9 and outscoring them 10-0 in a decisive 3rd inning. Michael Kelbaugh and Matthew Kauffman each had 4 hits in the win and the Fishers defense held down Primetime. At 8:30 PM the top two seeds began their tournament. #1 seed WestPoint (IN-AA) scored 10 in the bottom of the 1st, 7 in the 2nd, and 8 in the 3rd and left Anarchy on the field in the bottom of the 4th 27-6. Kyle Fisher was 4-4 with 3 HR, and Joey Kampfer, Kyle Johnson, and Steve Hendrickson were all 3-3 in the win. And the game of the night, Friday, was #2 seeded I-57 Roofing/AXE/SHIRTSandLOGOS/SA (IL-AA) vs their sponsors other Conference team I-57 Roofing / I-55 Logistics (MO-B) in a bit of a grudge match with players from both teams that knew each other very well. I57 Roofing scored 10 on 6 in the bottom of the 1st inning in a game with a 14 HR limit. I55 Logistics answered with a huge 21 runs on 11 homers in the top of the 2nd and added 9 more in the top of the 4th on a Quick grand slam to go up 30-16. In the bottom of the 4th I57 answered scoring 13 runs including a clutch grand slam by pitcher Mitch Carriger. In the bottom of the 5th I55 held I57 to just 1 run when left fielder Nate Jess who played for I57’s USSSA ‘A’ World Championship team in 2024 made a diving catch in foul territory and the center fielder got an assist throwing out Hathaway trying to take 2nd on a single. I55’s outfield was VERY quick to the ball. In the bottom of the 6th after another diving catch by Jess in left field, I57 made I55 pay dearly for 3 errors getting another clutch 2 run homer from Carriger and a Laser Dave Johnson grand slam to go up 36-32. In the top of the 7th with no homers left I55 managed just 3 runs making 3 straight outs to end the game after starting the inning with 3 straight doubles. Dave Johnson was 4-6 with 3 HR and 9 RBI, Jordan Spaulding 5-6, and Mitch Carriger 5-5 with 2 HR and 9 RBI in the comeback win. Nate Jess was 6-6 with 6 RBI and 5 runs scored in the loss against his old team.

Final 4 Recap

Semifinal #1 between Ataraxis and I-57 came down to a few close plays.

On a cool Saturday morning at 9:45 AM with the wind blowing out the semifinals were played. In a battle of ‘AA’ teams, Ataraxis jumped all over I-57 scoring 16 runs in the top of the 1st and they hit a line drive off pitcher Mitch Carriger’s hand which everyone thought was broken. He came out of the game an inning later and on Monday they found out the hand was a “burst sac” and not broken which is good news. I-57 slowly crept back in the game offensively scoring 15 in the first 3 innings and trailed 21-15 going into the top of the 4th. In that half inning a ball that popped out of an infielders glove led to 10 runs and a 14 run inning for Ataraxis even though they were out of home runs (14). In the bottom of the 5th I-57 started one of their patented comebacks scoring 14 runs on 4 homers to close the gap to 33-41. But the Ataraxis infield defense grew stronger as the game went on, I57 walked too many, and Ataraxis led 47-31 going into the bottom of the 7th where I-57 never gave up and scored 9 runs to make it respectable 47-42. Quincy Lattimore was 6-6 and Orlando Castillo 6-6 with 10 RBI in the win. David Yoder was 6-6 and Marcus Yoder drove in 8 runs in the loss for I-57. In the other semifinal WestPoint scored 17 in the top of the 1st against Fishers and never let Fishers score more than 3 runs in an inning in a 33-12, 5 inning run rule win. Leadoff hitter Filip Washington was on base 6-6, Tyler Cowles 5-5, Joey Kampfer 4-4, and Canaan Baum 5-5 in the win as they out homered Fishers 14-5.

Winner’s Final Recap

WestPoint’s Greg Popatak hits against Ataraxis in the winner’s final.

The winner’s final was then played at noon in near perfect weather. WestPoint got off to a slow start hitting a solo homer and then making 3 straight outs to start the game while Ataraxis jumped out to a 22-7 lead hitting 9 home runs. In the 3rd inning both teams scored 7 runs as Ataraxis used the last of their 14 home runs by hitting 3 straight solo’s. Then the Ataraxis defense behind pitcher Jon Dombrowski got out of a bases loaded jam in the top of the 4th. With Ataraxis out of homers the offense went to sleep scoring just 2 runs in the last 3 innings and they were unable to end the game by the run rule in the 4th, 5th, or 6th innings. WestPoint was equally sluggish with 9 home runs left to hit, they never truly mounted a comeback and Ataraxis defense by Adam Ussery, relief pitcher Eric Keller, and an assist from Josh Kirsten in center field held WestPoint in check and Ataraxis escaped with a 31-24 win while out homering WestPoint 14-9. WestPoint was down 7 with 5 to hit in the top of the 7th and scored zero…

New Ataraxis middle infield pickup Brian McBryde was aggressive to get the final out.

Loser’s Bracket Recap

Legendz hits against Fishers in the 4th place game.

The loser’s bracket played out all day long with Northwoods over on field # 3, scoring 12 runs in the top of the 7th to beat Scott Routing 24-23. Then they held I-57/I-55 to just 5 runs in a 26-5 win. And they beat TAFN 21-19 without having to bat in the bottom of the 7th after TAFN had just upset Comatose 36-32. Then Fishers dropped down and beat Northwoods 29-12, scoring 21 runs in the bottom of the 1st inning to win the top half of the loser’s bracket. In the bottom half of the loser’s bracket Legendz who lost their first game Friday night sent home ISI/Spiderz 33-16, Anarchy 37-24, and T’s 13 (who had murdered Primetime) 39-31 to put Legendz in the 4th place game late Saturday afternoon. And thus T’s 13 and Northwoods ended up tied for 5th. In the 4th place game, a tired Legendz team trailed Fishers 13-0 going into the bottom of the 2nd but scored 8 in the bottom of the 2nd, 10 in the 4th, and 10 more in the bottom of the 6th to make it interesting. But Fisher’s offense was on fire and they advanced to the loser’s final 46-31 in 7 innings with both teams hitting their limit of 12 HR. For Fishers Andrew Stoltzfus led the way the entire tournament and he went 6-7 with 3 HR, 9 RBI, and hit for the cycle, and Nate King was 7-7 with 3 HR in the win. In the loser’s final WestPoint who beat Fishers in the semifinals earlier in the day, had Fishers number scoring 20 runs in the top of the 2nd to go up 25-0 at one point. Fishers showed some life in the bottom of the 3rd scoring 13 runs but checked out in the last two innings, losing to WestPoint 42-14 in 5. WestPoint out homered them 14-4. Tyler Cowles was 6-6 and Steve Hendrickson 5-5 in the win.

In the loser’s bracket T’s 13 crushed Primetime first thing Saturday morning.

WestPoints Greg Popatak hits against Fishers in the loser’s final.

Championship Recap

The middle was open in the championship.

When the championship began and the sun went down, it cooled off into the low 50’s just like the Ataraxis offense. In the bottom of the 1st Steve Hendrickson hit a 2 out 3 run homer to put WestPoint up 9-1. In the top of the 2nd the WestPoint defense got a double play and a diving stop by Caanan Baum at 2nd base and they shut down Ataraxis holding them to just 2 runs in the first 4 innings? Meanwhile WestPoint scored in every inning of the game, had leads of 13-2 on an Adam Kaminski 3 run homer, and 15-2 after 4 innings. When Ataraxis answered with an 8 run top of the 5th, WestPoint responded with a 7 run inning and they left a listless Ataraxis team on the field in the bottom of the 6th 29-14 scoring 7 runs. Kyle Fisher and Greg Popatak were 5-5 win the win and WestPoint hit 11 home runs to force the “if” game.

The “if” game is under way on a chilly evening.

In the “if” game WestPoint, who lost the coin toss, scored 7 on 3 in the top of the 1st. In the bottom of the 2nd tournament Defensive MVP middle infielder Steve Hendrickson made a spectacular diving stop and throw to 1st and the pitching of tournament MVP Kyle Johnson pretty much shut down Ataraxis the entire game. Leading 19-8 going into the top of the 4th, WestPoint unloaded, scoring 19 runs on just 4 home runs and they beat Ataraxis 38-13 by the 20 run mercy rule in 4 innings! WestPoint who was “double dipped” the previous weekend by RoofX in Memphis, had “double dipped” Ataraxis in dominating fashion (2 run rule wins) to win the Windy City Classic! It was WestPoints first tournament win of the season and the 8th different winner in 9 Conference events this year.

The tournament was well run with solid umpiring, great weather, and good competition. The Pro-M ball which was made for 325 foot fields is still too much ball for the 300 foot fields but did make for crisp smash mouth softball. This years Pro-M would be the perfect ball the show field at the Smoky Mountain Classic. Simply keep them in a cooler behind home plate on the show field to keep them room temperature.

Long Bomber of the Week!

I-57’s Orlando Olivera gets the Long Bomber of the Week returning from a broken hand at the Hall of Fame Classic back in April. Honorable mention to Filip Washington, Josh Cardwell, Ben Young, Kevin Miller, and Marc Wik.

Windy City Results and Awards

MVP – WestPoint pitcher Kyle Johnson

Defensive MVP – WestPoint middle infielder Steve Hendrickson

Offensive MVP – Ataraxis outfielder Cabot Van Til

Team by Team Notes

1st Place – WestPoint

IN-AA Record 5-1

WestPoint breaks through the hard way, “double dipping” Ataraxis in the finals. They won easily until the winner’s final where they were unable to use their home run advantage to comeback against Ataraxis. So they dropped to the loser’s bracket and beat Fishers for the second time on the day and then run ruled Ataraxis…TWICE! Congratulations to Alisha and the entire team as they are now #1 in Conference points! WestPoint was led on offense by Tyler Cowles .893, Kyle Fisher .852, Filip Washington .833, Steve Hendrickson .840, and Joey Kampfer .821…WOW! That is a lot of hitters over .800. On defense KJ at pitcher was steady and behind him middle infielder Steve Hendrickson was making lots of plays and some great ones as well.

Kyle Fisher’s full body swing reminds me of Jason Branch.

2nd Place – Ataraxis/Sonny’s/JBL/Newbreed/Koval/BAF

MD-AA Record 4-2

Ataraxis did everything right until they didn’t. They had effortless offense and timely defense for the entire tournament until the championship where they forgot how to score and failed to redeem themselves in the “if” game. Dombrowski, Mooch, and Keller did the pitching. The offense was led by Cabot Van Til .880 and Marc Wik .828 with 12 doubles. Ataraxis will be missing some players this weekend in Utah but will add Jason Martel to the roster.

Ataraxis 3rd baseman Josh Cardwell makes a nice play.

3rd Place – Fishers/StoltzfusWelding/All Hustle

PA-B Record 4-2

Fishers brought their usual rangy brand of defense, speed, and line drive hitting…except when they played WestPoint. Another great finish, 3rd, and their offense was led by Andrew Stoltzfus .821 and he led the team in homers (8) and RBI (23) as well. If I recall at one point shortstop Matthew Kauffman made a diving stop in the 5-6 hole and still turned a 6-10-3 double play. Nate King robbed a homer in center and hit .731. Look for Fishers to enter into the top 2 in Maryland this coming weekend.

Drew Stoltzfus homers. He was .821 23-28 on the weekend.

4th Place – Legendz/Beloli/MSGA Sports

OK-A Record 4-2

Legendz lost by a run Friday night to Comatose and then played from 8 AM to like 4 pm Saturday digging out of that hole to finish 4th. Jarred Vanderhoof .853 paced the offense. Nathan McGray, leadoff hitter David Schwartz, utility man Kyle Slicker, outfielder Carlin Yoder, and 1st baseman Ben Young were all over .700 with Young leading the team in HR (11) and RBI (27).