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The first Little League teams from Jourdanton were chartered in 1957. The Board of Directors during this first charter year were:
- President: C. W. McAllister
- Vice President: Nolan Brown
- Secretary: Charlie Belicek, Jr.
- Treasurer: E. W. Morris
- Player Agent: Paul Breitkreutz
The Jourdanton Little League began with four teams:
- Braves, Eugene Harrison (Mgr.), Martin Abstract Co. (Sponsor)
- Giants, Henry Schorsch (Mgr.), Alvin’s Garage (Sponsor)
- Red Sox, Pete Schorsch (Mgr.), Jourdanton Bank (Sponsor)
- Yankees, Danny Matocha (Mgr.), Morris & Winters Wholesale Oil Agents (Sponsor)
Vicki (Simmons) Martinez successfully incorporated softball into the local league in 1987, the 30th year anniversary of Jourdanton Little League.
Since the first chartered Little League team has entered competition, five District 21 Titles have been won:
- 1994 - Jose Gomez: 9 & 10-Year-Old Softball
- 2002 - Jeffrey Korus: 9 & 10-Year-Old Baseball
- 2007 - Tricia Taylor: 9 & 10-Year-Old Softball
- 2008 - David Soward: 9 & 10-Year-Old Baseball
- 2008 - Tricia Taylor: 10 & 11-Year-Old Softball
In July of 2008, nine of the same players from the previous year’s District Championship team and two new-comers took the Sectional championship and advanced their way all the way to the Texas West Little League Tournament in Waco, Texas. This 10 & 11-Year-Old Softball team beat the Midway/Waco team to stay in the winner’s bracket. Midway battled back to the championship finale and during the game, the JLL team was within 1 pitch of bringing home a State Championship Title when the Midway team forced a double-header after an 8 inning game. The teams played 14 innings of softball that day and JLL ended up with a Runner-Up position.
The highest award any member of the Jourdanton Little League has ever received was the Little League Volunteer of the Year Award. This was done in 2004 by Mrs. Rebecca Alviso. The Little League Volunteer of the Year Award was instituted to honor individuals who give selflessly of their time and efforts for the benefit of the children in their communities. These individuals have contributed a spirited and dedicated commitment to the ideals and goals of Little League Baseball. This award was designed to provide local leagues the opportunity to honor a deserving individual with this prestigious distinction. The Little League Volunteer of the Year Award Program was established in 1989 as a vehicle for recognizing the selfless efforts of one million volunteers at the grass-roots level of Little League Baseball and each year. Each year, only one individual receives the honor of being named the Little league Volunteer of the Year. -excerpts taken from the Little League ® Baseball and Softball 2004 Media Guide and www.littleleague.org.
The Jourdanton Little League has only had two homes in its history. The first playing fields were located where the Jourdanton High School softball field is located now. This block of land was covered in mesquite trees when Little League fever struck Jourdanton. Henry Schorsch and Paul Breitkreutz were instrumental in carrying out most of the work to ready the playing fields. The original playing field also had sunken dugouts that filled up with water when it rained and had to be pumped out from time to time.
The second home to Jourdanton Little League is where the North Field is now. The South Field originally belonged to the Lions Club for adult play. When the Atascosa Savings and Loan was shut down in the 1980's by the government, the city of Jourdanton took over the property and the South Field was made into a softball field only. It was then later used for both baseball and softball and this year, was turned back into a softball field only.
Where will the Jourdanton Little League be in the future? The Jourdanton Little League leases 10 acres from Atascosa County on a yearly basis. The property is located south of Quail Nest Drive and is currently used as practice fields for many teams.
In the past few years, there have been many ideas to develop this property to one day use it as a new and modern sports complex for Jourdanton Little League. This will not be possible without the continued support of the league’s members, the City of Jourdanton, the citizens of our community and Atascosa County. Wouldn’t the original founders be proud to see this daunting task accomplished?
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