In February, ASA/USA Softball announced it would be launching a new event, the USA Softball Junior Olympic Cup, which kicks off next Monday July 26 and will run through Saturday, August 1.

On that day, 29 teams from all over the nation–California to Texas to Florida to Michigan–will participate in the first year event which will take place at the Big League Dreams complex in Chino Hills prior to the final day of championship action which will be at Mt. SAC in Walnut, Calif.

CLICK HERE to sign-up/log in to see all the JO Cup games starting Monday, July 26!

The JO Cup has several unique elements going for it, according to Event Director Chris Sebren:

• the JO Cup will be used by ASA/USA softball to evaluate players for the USA National teams including the Jr. National and the Women’s National teams
• the event has a prize pool of over $100,000 and the winner could receive close to $45,000
• the Top 12 finishers receiving a cash donation award back to their participating program
• the JO Cup overlaps the PGF 18U Nationals and has created a unique situation where teams had to select one event or the other if invited or qualified

The format is a straight-forward five-game guarantee including three pool play games and then double elimination. There will be a blind draw for pool and bracket play.

Scroll down below to see the list of all participating teams

So why are teams playing in this first year event?

“First, I like to see that there are many options, but the key for me is that ASA is the governing body of softball recognized by the U.S. Olympic committee,” Mark Griggs of the Wichita Mustangs explains. “If they’re the only governing body and play is coming back into the Olympics, the decision abilities will come back to ASA/USA Softball and their words and events will have more impact.  It’s not just about club ball, ASA/USA Softball will now make decisions based on what’s best for United State Olympic Softball.”

CLICK HERE to see the pool and bracket game schedules and results

Along those lines, Ken Eriksen, the USA Softball Women’s National Team Head Coach, says he and his staff will utilize the event to look at talent for deciding future elite teams to play internationally.

“What a great opportunity to have some of the best teams coming together to play in a tournament that has prestige and a prize,” Coach Eriksen said this week. “We will find out who the most competitive programs in the country are now!  The entire USA Softball Coaching Staff will be present also to evaluate these players for our future National Teams.”

Sebren says the JO Cup has been discussed over the last several years with input from travel coaches.

“We’ve received numerous requests to take the lead and establish a tournament that in addition to featuring these elite programs also helps to feed our National Team program,” Sebren says.

“As everyone knows, the potential for softball/baseball to be added to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Program is still an ongoing decision for the IOC. With the possibility of being reinstated into the Olympic Program, we want to ensure that our Women’s National Team Selection Committee has additional opportunities to identify more athletes who may not have been seen. With the success of the “Open Tryout” for the Junior Women’s National Team (in January), we believe this will provide another great opportunity for these athletes.”

One of the initial concerns by those in the softball community was the element of providing prize money to the top finishing teams.  Sebren says that was looked at, but the pros outweigh the cons.

“Obviously the pressure that athletes can feel from this concept is understandable,” he continues, “however the pressure that these athletes receive throughout their recruitment process is very similar. For us, the cash donation back to the participating programs isn’t the biggest ‘pro’ for the tournament, it’s the fact that these athletes have the opportunity to show what they’ve got to our Women’s National Team Selection Committee.”

“Only a portion of the money is going to be used to cover tournament expenses with the remaining going back to these programs. All dollars spent will be invested back into the event and those teams who participate, which will only help to grow the concept.”

The other surprise was the timing of the JO Cup, taking place the same week as the PGF 18U Nationals which also kicks off next Monday.  Sebren says the timing had more to do with following after the ASA GOLD events than competing with PGF.

“Several factors led to the decision to host the USA Softball JO Cup (next week),” the event director said. “Most importantly, the timing is based on our ASA/USA GOLD National Championships which is our highest level of JO Championship Play. We needed to schedule this event after our GOLD National Championship so that teams still had the opportunity to play both events.”

“This also gives athletes the opportunity to participate in both while being evaluated by our Women’s National Team Selection Committee at the two tournaments.”

“In addition, the school calendar across the country was taken into consideration.”

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Here’s the list of the 18U teams that will participate in the 1st even USA Softball JO Cup:

Team Name	Coach	Hometown
Aces Express	David McCorkle	Manvel, Texas
American Pastime Gold	Larry Farnworth	Upland, Calif.
California Raiders	Phil Bruder	Winchester, Calif.
DeMarini Athletics	Keith Householder	Tempe, Ariz.
Diamond Girls	Danielle Olsen	Tulsa, Okla.
East Cobb Bullets	Greg Schnute	Marietta, Ga.
Firecrackers DFW GOLD	Kim Tillett-Poole	Trenton, Texas
Gametime Stars	Rusty Fisher	Oklahoma City, Okla.
Gold Coast Hurricanes	Marty Cooper	Plantation, Fla.
Houston Power	Jeff Korioth	Bellville, Texas
Indiana Magic Gold	Kim Clay	Fort Wayne, Ind.
LA Voodoo	Jesse Barksdale	River Ridge, La.
Louisville Sluggers	Don Dobina	Boaz, Ky.
Michigan Finesse	Donny Dreher	Southfield, Mich.
New Lenox Lightning	Jim Abbott	New Lenox, Ill.
Ohio Outlaws	Dave Blashinsky	Ashtabula, Ohio
Rock Gold - Waye	Rick Waye	Southampton, Penn.
San Jose Sting	Bob Perales	San Jose, Calif.
Saint Louis Chaos	Evan Beatty	Saint Louis, Mo.
Storm - Shepherd	Jerry Shepherd	Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
Texas Blaze GoldÊ	JB Slimp	Round Rock, Texas
Texas Bombers	Scott Smith	New Braunfels, Texas
Texas Storm	Joe Wymer	Hockley, Texas
Texas Sudden Impact	Tim Dutton	Spring, Texas
Tulsa Shootout	Krystel Markwardt	Tulsa, Okla.
TXFC - May	Connie May	Spring, Texas
Wagner's/3N2 - Kiple	Reese Kiple	Safety Harbor, Fla.
Wichita Mustangs	Mark Griggs	Wichita, Kan.
3N2 Strike Zone	Don Ford	Fremont, Calif.