BY DAVE PEMBERTON
Clarkston News Sports Writer
Clarkston softball Coach Don Peters is considered by many to be a legend in the Michigan softball world.
Peters has over 500 career wins. He led Ortonville Brandon to a state title in 1994 and to the final four in 1995 and 1999. But what he might be known for most has nothing to do with coaching.
He is the creator of the biggest high school softball tournament in Michigan called the Michigan Stars Tournament.
Peters started the tournament back in 1992 with 36 teams at the Suburban Fields in Rochester. This weekend at Liberty Park in Sterling Heights, 48 teams will compete for eight different titles.
The amount of teams is not what makes the tournament special. The quality of the teams is. All the top teams from the state come to the Michigan Stars tournament for the competition.
This year’s tournament features three of the top four teams in Class A: No. 1 Regina, No. 2 Lakeland and No. 4 Milford.
Teams from Alpena, Imlay City, Flushing and Clio will also make the trip to Sterling Heights. Peters said the tournament turned out to be everything he wanted.
‘We started it for two reasons,? Peters said. ‘One, to promote fast-pitch softball and second, to give high school girls a large tournament experience. Not all girls can play travel softball and experience the big tournaments. We thought we could do that.
‘It was very popular the first year and we wanted it to be an on-going thing. The tournament became in such high demand we expanded it to 48 teams. We could increase it to more teams, but we don’t have the space.?
The tournament awards eight different trophies. Teams are placed into pools and the winner of each pool goes into the championship bracket.
Two second place teams recieve wild cards into the championship bracket based on their ERA. The rest of the teams are placed in brackets based on their finish in the pool.
Peters looks forward to taking Clarkston to the tournament this weekend. The Wolves face Warren Mott at 8:30 a.m. on May 6. Peters said as a coach he loves going to the tournament.
‘It’s nice to get a chance to play some tough competition and still be able to comeback on Sunday and have a shot at a championship,? Peter said. ‘The biggest thing is seeing a bunch of different teams and seeing how good you are. See how you match up with the good teams. Somewhere down the line in the tournament, you have to play a good team.?