EL CAJON, Calif. (KGTV) — Annabelle Ramos-Wilson is used to playing softball in the comfortable playing conditions of El Cajon and San Diego County.
But the player on the ten-and-under East County All-Stars is heading to Lancaster, LA County, on Friday for a USA Softball Southern California tournament.
“It’s going to be really hot up there, like about triple digits, like 115 to 112,” Ramos-Wilson said.
It’s something she’s not looking forward to.
The National Weather Service said the temperature is supposed to be 114 degrees in Lancaster on Friday and Saturday and 113 degrees on Sunday.
“Heat stroke, heat exhaustion is number one concern,” Maria Moore, Annabelle’s mother, said.
Moore said she worries about her daughter playing in this heat over the weekend.
“This is State (tournament) so they have to play at least two games no matter the weather. The girls don’t play well in this type of weather at all. It’s just extremely dangerous,” Moore said.
USA Softball Southern California told 10News it’s a double elimination tournament with teams having at least two games between Friday and Saturday.
If a team wins and moves on, they’ll have more games on those days and Sunday.
"But even as parents who have gone and watched our kids, we even feel hot and uncomfortable, and we're in the shade. So, I can't even imagine what these kids are feeling out there,” Moore said. “And they're trying to persevere and just push through. It's for the love of the game, and it's just not worth it when someone ends up in the hospital."
USA Softball Southern California told 10News it's taken action to address parents' concerns, including shorter game times, morning and evening games, and possibly water breaks during games and cooling stations.
“We understand that concern and review our schedule and make appropriate accommodations," USA Softball Southern California Commissioner Christina Drumm said. "This weekend, there are no games scheduled between 2-5 p.m. This allows our participants to not play during the hottest part of the day and reduces the number of games a team in the loser’s bracket has to play back to back to about two games.”
In addition, she said game times will be cut from 1 hour and 30 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes.
“I just really hope that they hear our concerns as parents…and to, you know, do something about it. Not just say they’re going to do something about it. Do something before something really bad happens,” Moore said.
