A new league is taking the field

Clarksburg Sports Association gets ready for rookie season

Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2006

Click here to enlarge this photo Normand A. Bernache⁄Special to The Gazette Aidan Hunt fields a ball during the Clarksburg Sports Association’s baseball tryouts Saturday at Ovid Hazen Wells Park. Tryouts continue this Saturday in the park. Click here to enlarge this photo Normand A. Bernache⁄Special to The Gazette Youngsters take the field during the Clarksburg Sports Association’s spring baseball tryouts Saturday at Ovid Hazen Wells Park.

Davis, a former catcher for the Clemson University Tigers, stopped to show the young pitcher how to get better balance on his delivery.

Aidan put more of his body into his next throw and fired a fastball that earned cheers from a nearby crowd of parents.

He was among the 60 boys trying out for the new Clarksburg Sports Association on Saturday afternoon at Ovid Hazen Wells Recreational Park.

‘‘We like playing catch and having a fun time,” said Aidan, who played in the Germantown Athletic Club in past years.

Saturday was the Clarksburg Sports Association’s first of two scheduled tryouts for the spring baseball season for boys ages 8 through 14. The new league is forming with six teams made up of different age groups, each team with 11-15 players, according to baseball commissioner Neil Pfeiffer.

The association was started because the influx of people coming to Clarksburg created the need for a local youth sports organization, Pfeiffer said.

‘‘People have been waiting for a while,” said Kevin Hutto, executive director of the association. ‘‘We have demand and the timing is right for the new organization. It is good news for the people of Clarksburg.”

Some of the teams will compete with select teams in the Mid-Maryland Travel Association and others will play against select teams in the Montgomery County Baseball Association.

‘‘We are looking for players capable of competing at a higher level with good sportsmanship,” Pfeiffer said. ‘‘That will be a strong emphasis. Coaches are judged on how they develop kids and their relationships with the community and parents.”

Clarksburg High School baseball coach Will Gant will be involved in the program and help the volunteer coaches.

‘‘I’m excited to see it get up and running,” Gant said. ‘‘It will be a tremendous program.”

Clarksburg resident Corinne Parent watched her son Brendan, 8, play third base at the tryout. Her husband, Mike, will coach one of the teams.

Parent thinks the new league is needed to serve all the young families moving to Clarksburg.

‘‘It’s not always about winning,” she said. ‘‘A lot is about sportsmanship, how you take losing a game and attitudes. Having fun is important.

‘‘It makes well-rounded children and keep them out of trouble,” she added.

Not only Clarksburg residents are thrilled about the new league. Some of the youngsters at Saturday’s tryout came from other parts of the county.

Mark Furuyama of Rockville sat on the bench outside while his son Alan, 10, tried out for the Clarksburg club. His son has played for the Montgomery County Baseball Association.

‘‘I don’t want him to be stuck on one team,” Furuyama said. ‘‘I like him to play other kids and different positions. They are at an age where they play specialized positions, but to survive in the association you have to be well rounded.”

The Clarksburg Sports Association wants to expand to include golf and football. It is looking for someone to volunteer as the football commissioner.

But right now the focus is on building a successful baseball program.

Hutto said he was impressed with the turnout at the organization’s first day of tryouts.

‘‘The turnout was fantastic,” he said. ‘‘The community is ready and the demand is there. As the community shows, the demand is great. Clarksburg Sports Association will be able to handle those needs.”