Marquette teammates watch as Hannah Bulinski, right, reaches home plate in a game against Ironwood during the Spring Swing softball tournament held in the Superior Dome in April 2015. (Journal file photo)

Spring Swing schedule

At Superior Dome, Marquette

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Friday

Field No. 1: 12:30 p.m., Negaunee vs. Kingsford; 2 p.m., Gladstone vs. Norway; 3:30 p.m., Newberry vs. Kingsford; 5 p.m., Rapid River vs. Norway; 6:30 p.m., Marquette vs. Gladstone; 8 p.m., Stephenson vs. Houghton; 9:30 p.m., Ishpeming vs. Calumet.

Field No. 2: 12:30 p.m., Marquette JV vs. Escanaba JV; 2 p.m., Negaunee JV vs. Escanaba JV; 3:30 p.m., Westwood vs. Ironwood; 5 p.m., Munising vs. Marquette JV; 6:30 p.m., Hancock vs. Escanaba JV; 8 p.m., Ironwood vs. Gladstone JV; 9:30 p.m., Superior Central vs. Lake Linden-Hubbell.

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Saturday

Field No. 1: 8:30 a.m., Negaunee vs. Hancock; 10 a.m., Westwood vs. Calumet; 11:30 a.m., Ishpeming vs. Newberry; 1 p.m., Calumet vs. Kingsford; 2:30 p.m., Ishpeming vs. Hancock; 4 p.m., Marquette vs. Rapid River; 5:30 p.m., Marquette vs. Norway; 7 p.m., Rapid River vs. Gladstone; 8:30 p.m., Marquette vs. Westwood.

Field No. 2: 8:30 a.m., Newberry vs. Houghton; 10 a.m., Superior Central vs. Ironwood; 11:30 a.m., Munising vs. Houghton; 1 p.m., Negaunee vs. Stephenson; 2:30 p.m., Munising vs. Lake Linden-Hubbell; 4 p.m., Superior Central vs. Stephenson; 5:30 p.m., Negaunee JV vs. Lake Linden-Hubbell; 7 p.m., Marquette JV vs. Gladstone JV; 8:30 p.m., Negaunee JV vs. Gladstone JV.

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MARQUETTE — Paul Seibert and his Marquette Senior High School varsity softball team should be tired by the end of the 15th annual Superior Dome Spring Swing.

As the event organizers along with parents, boosters and officials from MSHS, these people will put on a 32-game marathon inside the dome from early Friday afternoon through Saturday night.

And if that doesn’t tucker them out, how about a Saturday tripleheader for the Redettes to end the tourney? Marquette will play three games at 4 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Saturday.

Twenty-one teams — 17 varsity and four JV — are coming from all over the Upper Peninsula to get some early action on the diamond.

“The tournament allows teams to make early-season evaluations and guarantees them three games in perfect weather,” Seibert said on Tuesday, the day a spring snowstorm dumped close to 10 inches of wet snow in the Marquette County.

Because the three-game-per-team number doesn’t quite come out evenly, the Redettes added a fourth game to their total, playing at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

Two fields hold games starting at 12:30 p.m. Friday and 8:30 a.m. Saturday.

Because of the tight schedule, games are limited to 1 hour, 15 minutes on fields similar to outdoor diamonds. The main difference is the fast artificial surface.

With a later date for the tourney — last year’s was held the last weekend of March — it should prove more valuable for the entrants as they will attempt to get their outdoor seasons started soon after.

In addition to MSHS, varsity teams attending are Negaunee, Ishpeming, Westwood, Munising, Superior Central and Newberry from The Mining Journal coverage area, along with Gladstone, Rapid River, Norway, Kingsford, Stephenson, Houghton, Hancock, Calumet, Lake Linden-Hubbell and Ironwood.

JV squads are entered from Marquette, Negaunee, Gladstone and Escanaba.

Every team but one splits their games between the two days.

Daily admission is $5 for adults, $3 for students and free for children ages 10 and under. A concession stand will be available.

Steve Brownlee can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 252. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.