The Great Smoky Mountain Journal
Tuesday, January 01, 2019 03:02 PM
Tri-Cities Softball Tourney Turns Ugly As Teams Brawl, Get Kicked Out Of Tourney
The brawl was caught on video in Kingsport. At times, it showed young players nearby as about a dozen parents got into it, many even throwing punches and kicking.
"It's bad that you see parents do that," Sarah King, a former high school softball player, said. "They go at each other when it's just a game."
Both teams at the game were from North Carolina and league officials said they've been kicked out of the tournament. They wouldn't say the names of the teams involved.
"They should support their kids and not embarrass their kids," King said. She usually sees parents getting too competitive and saw it first hand during one of her high school games years ago.
Two women got into it and King said it was an embarrassment to her and the rest of the team.
"Their anger just gets the best of them," she said. But that didn't stop her from playing a sport she loves. King now plays as an adult with the Knoxville Sports and Social Club.
She had a message for parents on the sideline, "get angry about it for a second and then let it go. Don't continue to let it soak."
Officials said both North Carolina teams were taken out of any future tournaments. Kingsport Police said no one was arrested as a result of the brawl.