PAPILLION, Neb. — Four teams went a perfect 3-0 over the weekend at the fifth annual NFCA Kaiti Williams Memorial Leadoff Classic hosted by Papillion-LaVista South and Millard North High Schools at the Papillion Landing Softball Complex.
Due to excessive heat and humidity, the tournament was unable to continue after the first games on Saturday, which made separating the quartet of Gretna East, Millard West, Millard North and Papillion-LaVista to crown a tournament champion impossible. Among that group, Millard West and 2025 champion Millard North are both ranked in the latest GameChanger/NFCA Summer-Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll.
No. 17 Millard West (13-3) extended its unbeaten run to 10 games with victories over Pius X and Millard South on Friday and Bellevue West on Saturday.
Millard North (13-3), meanwhile, is unbeaten in its last eight games at this event, including going a perfect 5-0 last year. The 19th-ranked Mustangs defeated Grand Island and Piedmont on Friday, then dispatched No. 18 Elkhorn South in a matchup of ranked teams on Saturday.
Papillion-LaVista (12-4), last year’s tournament runner-up, defeated Nebraska City and two ranked teams — No. 20 Lincoln Southwest and No. 24 Rock Bridge — at this season’s event.
Gretna East (9-1) continued its strong start with triumphs over Marian, Beatrice and Gretna.
In all, 29 teams from four states competed at the two-day event, with five of those schools new to the tournament this season. Other participating schools were Bellevue East (Neb.), Blair (Neb.), Blue Springs South (Mo.), Elkhorn North (Neb.), Helias Catholic (Mo.), Legend (Colo.), Lincoln Southeast (Neb.), Lincoln Standing Bear (Neb.), Norris (Neb.), Westview (Neb.), Papillion-LaVista South (Neb.), Staley (Mo.) and Wayne (Neb.).
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