Six Nations, One Ballfield: The Federation Brings International Fastpitch to St. John

The biggest softball tournament ever held in the U.S. Virgin Islands is under way on St. John.

The 2023 English Caribbean Amateur Softball Confederation (ECASC) Women's Fast-Pitch Tournament Qualifier runs March 1–5 at the National Park Ball Field in Cruz Bay. It is co-organized by ECASC and the USVI Softball Federation. The host Virgin Islands will be joined by Aruba, Curaçao, Jamaica, Sint Maarten and the British Virgin Islands. The winner earns a place at the 2023 Central American and Caribbean Games in El Salvador.

The tournament was originally set for Curaçao but was moved after COVID-related shutdowns, and the local federation stepped in despite a shortage of usable venues. "It wasn't an easy undertaking," said USVI Softball Federation director Jose Tony Rosario. "The only park that's open right now is the park in St. John."

That park got a major upgrade first. Rosario said the National Park Service "spent almost a million dollars fixing this park," and a crew led by Elroy Hill, St. John deputy commissioner of Sports, Parks and Recreation and chairman of the local softball federation, spent about five months getting the field ready. This is the first event held there since the renovation.

The opening ceremony drew officials from the Virgin Islands Olympic Committee, the Department of Sports, Parks and Recreation, the Department of Tourism and ECASC. Sports, Parks and Recreation Commissioner Calvert White praised the field work, and Tourism Commissioner Joe Boschulte invited the public to come out to the games.

Most players on the USVI Women's National Team play at the college level, and many arrived early to prepare. Rosario hopes the week will reach the next generation. "If we bring them home, we might have a bunch of young ladies in the audience," he said, who could want to be like the players.

"Everything is by the book," Rosario said of the tournament's adherence to Confederation rules. "The future is bright for women's softball in the Virgin Islands."

Curaçao won the tournament's first game, beating Aruba 7–1 in seven innings. The championship and bronze medal games are set for Sunday.