09/17/2026
A Message to the Families and Players of Amador County Girls Softball Association
Dear ACGSA Families and Players,
As we look ahead to the 2027 softball season, we want to take a moment to address recent softball news in Amador County and provide clarity about the role and future of the Amador County Girls Softball Association (ACGSA).
ACGSA has been a part of the Amador County community for more than 40 years. For over four decades, our organization has been dedicated to providing young female athletes in our community with the opportunity to learn, play, compete, and grow through the sport of softball.
Generations of Amador County players have come through ACGSA, and many have gone on to play at the travel and high school levels while others have returned to give back as coaches, umpires, and mentors.
Recently, Amador County West Little League (ACWLL) announced the creation of a new softball division for the upcoming 2027 season. ACGSA has no affiliation with ACWLL or its proposed softball division. We believe it is important that our families and players understand that ACGSA remains an independent organization with its own leadership, mission, rules, programs, and approach to developing young female athletes.
At the same time, as advocates for softball and young female athletes in Amador County, we applaud the announcement of dedicated softball fields at Howard Park in Ione. The development of additional softball facilities is something ACGSA has advocated for because our community's young female athletes deserve appropriate facilities in which to learn, compete, and grow.
We are, however, disappointed with the process through which the fields in Ione have come to fruition. ACGSA worked diligently to bring attention to the lack of dedicated softball facilities in Amador County and to identify that lack of facilities as an issue of representation and opportunity for our young female athletes. Those efforts contributed to the inclusion of dedicated softball fields in the Howard Park Master Plan.
Unfortunately, late in the planning process, ACGSA was undermined as a partner in the development of those fields. As a result, there is currently no clear path for ACGSA to establish a use agreement or secure access to the Howard Park softball fields. While we remain hopeful that this can be resolved constructively, we believe our families deserve to understand the circumstances surrounding the fields that ACGSA worked so hard to advocate for.
Our focus, however, remains firmly on the athletes.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, ACGSA developed a deliberate plan to rebuild our local softball community and restore the competitive readiness of our players. As part of that process, we made adjustments to USA Softball rules at the local level that allowed young players and families to reconnect with the game while we rebuilt participation and developed our program.
Over the past several seasons, we have carefully monitored the development and progress of our younger players. The resounding victory of our 14U squad at the All-Star Tournament hosted by ACGSA — which brought together competition from Calaveras, Tuolumne, and San Joaquin Counties — demonstrated just how far our players have come.
That success, along with the continued development we have seen throughout our program, has given us the confidence to make the final transition back to full adherence to USA Softball rules. This represents an important milestone in the development of ACGSA and the players we serve.
The strength of our program can also be seen in the athletes who have gone on to play at the high school level. Many of the players from both Amador High School and Argonaut High School who competed against one another for the 2026 CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI championship are ACGSA alumni. Some of those same athletes now give back to our organization by serving as umpires and mentors for the next generation of ACGSA players.
That is what ACGSA is about.
For more than 40 years, we have been a starting point for young softball players in Amador County. At the same time, we have proven to be a launching point for players who choose to advance their skills and softball careers through travel softball and high school competition.
Softball is not simply one division of our purpose. Softball is the entirety of our purpose.
Our sole focus is advocating for softball and the young female athletes of Amador County. We are committed to providing an environment where girls can learn the game, develop their skills, build confidence, compete, and ultimately decide for themselves how far they want to take their softball journey.
We will also continue to foster and strengthen our relationships with softball organizations in Tuolumne, Calaveras, and San Joaquin Counties. These relationships provide valuable opportunities for inter-league play and allow our players to experience competition beyond our local community while continuing to build the softball community throughout the region.
As we enter the 2027 season, our commitment has not changed. We will continue to advocate for dedicated softball facilities, develop our players, support our families, and create opportunities for young female athletes to play and grow in the sport they love.
We are proud of more than 40 years of ACGSA history, proud of the players who have come through our program, and excited about what lies ahead.
Thank you to all of our families, players, coaches, umpires, volunteers, and supporters for your continued dedication to softball and to the girls of Amador County.
Registration for the 2027 ACGSA season opens October 1, 2026.
We look forward to seeing everyone back on the field.
With appreciation,
Amador County Girls Softball Association
Advocating for softball and the young female athletes of Amador County
