The Record Newspapers - Hometown News For Orange County, Texas

The first annual “Slammin’ MS for the Z-Team ragball tournament will be June 15 at the Orange Crush Complex located at the old Wesco fields.

The tournament is to raise awareness of Multiple Sclerosis in honor of Stephanie Zimmerman, a former lady bear and 2005 Little Cypress-Mauriceville graduate. She was diagnosed with the disease in 2008.

Multiple Sclerosis ia a disease that interrupts the flow of information from the brain to the body. It is an unpredictable disease with symptoms ranging from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. More than 400,000 Americans are affected by MS.

This is the first tournament and is organized by a long time family friend, Johnny Trahan, which he has put together to raise money to contribute to the Z-Team’s fundraising efforts.

“We hope and expect it to be a huge success that many will want to participate in again,” Stephanie Zimmerman said.

The Z-Team is a group of Stephanie’s family and friends who have united to raise money to fund research as well as those dealing with MS. They completed their fourth annual 5K walk in Dallas in March.

The Z-Team will not have a team participating in the ragball tournament this year, but it is something Stephanie would like to do in the future.

“I love softball with a passion but it just didn’t happen this year,” Stephanie Zimmerman said. “ Hopefully this will turn into an annual thing and we will get a team in there. “

Up to 16 teams can sign up to participate in the ragball tourament which is played with tournament rules. The fee is $125 per team and each team must have a minimum of three girls. For $10 an unlimited homerun bracelet can be purchased. Teams supply their own balls. First and second place t-Shirts will be awarded. Other t-Shirts are available in pink or green. They can be purchased for $15 pre-sale or for $20 at the tournament.

If someone is interested in playing on a team, or they have only a partial team, they can contact the organizer as he may be able to put them together with others. One can also come on out to the fields on Saturday as sometimes there are teams that need players and they may be able to get on one of those teams.

Spectators are welcome to come watch the fun.

“It will be a fun day filled with good food and great people,” Stephanie Zimmerman said.

Proceeds will be donated to the MS Society in the name of the Z-Team. To join the Z-Team or make online donations, go to http://main.nationalmssociety.org/goto/zimm13.

For more information contact Johnny Trahan at 409-221-5833.