Lee County hosts high school baseball tournament after West Palm Beach opts out

A premier high school sports tournament is underway in Southwest Florida. Teams from across the country are in the region to compete. It comes as a relief for many parents after changes were made ahead of the events.

Lee County is hosting the 2020 WWBA Freshman World Championships, and we visited Fort Myers High School Friday where some of the games are being played.

“I’ll be honest; the fact that this tournament is happening is a huge blessing because,” said Tia Smith, who traveled to Lee County for the tournament. “At one point, life has to continue please kids.”

The tournament was originally set for West Palm Beach, but, because of pandemic restrictions in South Florida, the tournament had to find a new location.

“I got an email a month ago the tournament has moved over to Fort Myers,” Smith said.

That was just enough time for players and their parents to make the necessary changes.

“It was a little hard to make travel adjustments, but we made them,” said James Nest, who traveled to the region to see the tournament. “We’ll do anything for kids.”

“It’s super important for children’s mental health and physical health, so these boys have careers to look forward to in college,” Smith said.

The tournament recommends fans wear masks and social distance, but we saw moms and dads sitting close together and cheering their children on without masks.

Although there are fans in the stands, the tournament does not offer food for sale, but the parents don’t seem to mind that.

“We feel it’s a safe environment,” Nesta said. “Or we wouldn’t bring our kids here if it wasn’t.”

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