The Air National Guard National Softball Tournament got into full swing Thursday at the Heritage Park Softball Complex in St Joseph. The 139th Airlfit Wing and the City of St. Joseph are hosting annual event, which boasts more than 500 players from 40 teams from 12 states. In all, they will play in more than 150 games. Organizers expected at least another 500 visitors from out of town to see the tournament.

We spoke with Master Sergeant Dane Glisan of the 175th Wing in Baltimore, Md. This is his 29th consecutive ANG Softball Tournament. Glisan returned from his latest deployement to Afghanistan last month.

“We wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Glisan said. “We love it, we live it, we breathe it, we eat it, it’s just the greatest thing in the world.”

“You would be surprised how many times I’ve deployed, and seen guys there or met guys there that I didn’t know were there, that I’ve played softball against for the last 29 years. They just showed up, walked over to me and said ‘hey Dave, what are you doing here, this is great.'”

Other activities include a silent auction of such items as an autographed Mickey Mantle baseball card, and a bat signed by Todd Helton.

The tournament concludes Sunday. Find more information on the tournament at their web site here.