Cape Summer Classic makes strong debut

Haylie Clover came to the Cape Summer Classic to see the Southeast Missouri State football team. But the 13-year-old never thought she would beat the players in a home run derby.

"I think that they're big strong football players. They should be better at sports," Clover said. "It was really fun to see the football players, but beating them was even better."

Clover, a member of the Cape Girardeau Boys and Girls Club, hit two home runs to win the girls home run derby at the event, which began Friday and continues through today, at Arena Park.

Five of the 10 Southeast players who participated in Redhawks-only derby did not hit a home run.

"Well, the coach in me has come out, and we're going to have to do a lot more work in practice," Southeast coach Tom Matukewicz joked about his team's lack of Wiffle ball skills. "But seriously, it really is for a great cause. We're no different than anybody else. We're part of Cape Girardeau and we're trying to make sure we're out and doing our part."

Residents of Cape Girardeau raised $1,350 for charity in the inaugural Wiffle ball tournament.

"I think it's going great, better than I would have expected," Cape Summer Classic coordinator and Cape Girardeau native David Unterreiner said. "The support from the community and for everyone that has come out has really made this happen."

Along with sponsors US Bank and Notre Dame Regional High School, Unterreiner partnered with K103's Country Cares for St. Jude Kids Radiothon and the Boys and Girls Club of Cape Girardeau to give back.

For 16 years, Unterreiner ran another Wiffle Ball tournament called Whackfest, which was played in backyards around Cape and became popular in the area. However, the tournament got to the point where it became too big and backyards were not sufficient enough to hold the event.

This time around, Unterreiner is taking a different approach to make the Cape Summer Classic bigger and better.

"Whackfest was such a backyard sport," Unterreiner said. "With this one, it really took the community and our sponsors to make this become a public event that anyone and everyone could be a part of."

The eight-team, double-elimination event kicked off with a welcome night Friday. Teams that already had registered got a chance to take the field and practice before the tournament began Saturday and members of the community were invited out to enjoy food and beverages provided by Kohlfield Distributing. A total of about 70 people were in attendance.

On Saturday, the teams participated in pool play in preparation for today's bracket play.

The highlight Saturday was the home run derbies.

Local children shagged balls in the outfield as the 10 Redhawks players took their turns.

Redhawks cornerback Reggie Jennings hit a combined five home runs in two rounds to win the "Battle for the Brick" award. Jennings enjoyed the victory and danced around his teammates with his brick trophy, but said he wasn't there to win.

"It means a lot to work with these kids and to come here and give support to the community," Jennings said. "We want their support during the season, so we've got to come out during the summertime and even during the season to show that we do support them. It feels really good to be that example for these young kids and show them that they can do something positive with their lives."

In a separate home run derby that was open to the public, children and adults could donate $10 to the Boys and Girls Club for a bucket of balls and got 10 outs to hit as many home runs as possible.

Unterreiner said 100 percent of the money raised in the home run derby will go to the Boys and Girls Club.

Jeff Jernigan, executive director of the Boys and Girls Club of Cape Girardeau, said the money will be used to fund educational activities after school and summer camp programs.

While Clover won the girls division, Drake Mills, a 14 year old who plays for Cape Freshmen Legion Post 63, won the boys division with a combined 19 home runs in two rounds.

"After three practice rounds I was getting better every time," said Mills, who will be a freshman at Central next month. "I found that if I just swung hard, the wind would carry it out and it got me the win."

Mills' first-place prize was a $100 gift card to Academy Sports.

David Baker, who finished third in the derby, married in to the Unterreiner family 27 years ago and said Wiffle ball has been a family tradition for a long time.

"I've been playing with them for almost three decades and it never gets old," Baker said. "It creates that kind of family atmosphere. It can be competitive, but at the end of the day you're having fun."

Baker, along with his sons, Christian and Sebastian, traveled from St. Louis to attend the Summer Classic.

"It's easy for us to make up a reason to come down here and just have fun playing Wiffle ball," Baker said. "Even for my kids, they may be the youngest ones here, but everyone is treating them the same and making them work hard. They're not getting any free passes, and we like it that way. We'll be coming back for the next one and for years to come, hopefully."

Unterreiner said the Cape Summer Classic will be an ongoing project that will improve year by year.

"We want to get bigger, we want to raise more money and we want more teams involved," Unterrreiner said. "Next year we'll have more support from businesses and the community, and it will grow and keep going. The goal is to fill up Arena Park, and I believe we can do that."