The Macomb County Sheriff's team won the Division II Championship during the Sgt. Wouters/Officer Sawyers Memorial Law Enforcement Championship on Aug. 17 at Liberty Park in Sterling Heights. The SoCal Alliance, based in California, won the tournament in a game against the Wayne-Oakland Sheriff's team. Source photo by Debra Kaszubski

The SoCal Alliance, based out of Southern California, took first place in the tournament, defeating the local Wayne-Oakland Sheriff’s team.

“The teams represented here are some of the best police softball players in the country and I think that’s what brings them to this tournament,” said Sgt. Kevin Reese of the Sterling Heights Police Department, who served as tournament director. “This is a tough tournament, but it’s also a lot of fun.”

Opening ceremony highlights included inductions into the Police Softball Hall of Fame and a roll call of fallen police officers, whose family members were in attendance and received special recognition. The Sterling Heights Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 118 sponsored the tournament, which has taken place annually since 1995.

Although a sometimes sad, moving event, the tournament was also a time for players to unwind and spend time enjoying America’s favorite pastime.

“I’ve always loved this tournament and I’ve been coming to this tournament since 1998. The teams come from all over the country and the competition is unbelievable,” said Dan Spinelli, captain of the NYPD Blues team based out of New York and a Hall of Fame inductee.

Spinelli’s first baseman Phil McGovern added that the tournament serves as a much-needed respite.

“It’s a good release from all the pressures of the job,” McGovern said.

Del Pickney, coach of the SoCal Alliance and creator of policesoftball.com, said the tournament gives players a chance “to be like a kid again,” he said. “The game allows us to have fun and play a little. We spend time with our friends and don’t have to worry about our responsibilities.”

Former Sterling Heights Police Chief David Vinson served as coach of the Macomb County Sheriff’s team, who won the tournament’s Division II championship - its first. The team was comprised of officers from Macomb and Oakland counties, and included two officers older than the age of 60.

“This event is just a great time for a bunch of guys to get together and enjoy softball,” he said. “It’s just an added bonus when your team does well.”