STARKVILLE — Starkville’s Cornerstone Park is set to host the 82 Challenge Icebreaker baseball tournament this weekend despite the recent cold weather. Grand Slam Sports Mississippi Baseball & Fast Pitch Softball State Director Mike Narmour confirmed the tournament will go ahead on Saturday, hosting 18 teams across the 7U, 11U and 12U age groups.
“I sent out emails last week about the weather, giving teams an opportunity to pull out if they wanted to, but we ended up with 18 teams who wanted to play,” Narmour said. “The temps look a little better for Saturday now, if the sun is out and the wind isn’t blowing it won’t be too terrible, and most teams will be done by dark.”
Baseball and softball season may have already started in both high school and college athletics, but the winter weather has continued. Several high school games were postponed or canceled this week with temperatures dropping below freezing, but the weekend schedule will see teams play in the 50s while the sun is out.
“We used to start up there in March, February is always hit and miss weather-wise and with numbers playing,” Narmour said. “In March it explodes and everyone is playing, but there’s just a select few for this one. It’s not a bad thing having smaller events either.”
This is the first tournament of the calendar year, marking the beginning of youth travel ball. Since the park opened in 2023, Cornerstone has become a popular destination for Grand Slam and Dizzy Dean.
“It’s been fantastic, they’re great to work with and it’s an excellent facility,” Narmour said. “Starkville is a good location to host teams from Alabama and south Mississippi, and later this year we’ve got teams coming up there from Louisiana and Tennessee as well.”
In March, Cornerstone will host more than 40 teams at the 82 Challenge Round Tripper. After that, the 82 Challenge Rings tournament, set for April, currently has 107 teams signed up and will feature an appearance from TikTok baseball influencer Mark Paul.
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