A severe thunderstorm that swept through the St. Louis area Thursday evening forced the postponement of a Southwestern Illinois Swimming Association meet and an American Legion baseball game.
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The scheduled SWISA meet between Summers Port and Waterworks in Edwardsville was about to begin when lightning began to hit the area just after the 6 p.m. scheduled start time. The meet was delayed until the storms, which swept in from Calhoun and Jersey counties, began, forcing the postponement of the meet. A reschedule date has not been determined; Waterworks also lost a meet earlier in the season due to storms.
“It was a tough one to lose,” said Summers Port coach Nancy Miller, “but we saw the storms coming in and decided to call it off to give everyone a chance to get home while it was still light out.
“There's a lot of preparation that goes into these meets, both for the swimmers and the people who help run the meets, but you can't do much about the weather.”
A scheduled District 22 American Legion baseball game between the Metro East Bears and Belleville Hilgards was also postponed when the storms hit the Belleville area. The scheduled junior Legion game between Alton and Belleville was played, with Alton taking a 2-0 win over the Hilgards. Storm Coffman was the winning pitcher.
The SWISA relay meet is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday at Sunset Hills in Edwardsville, while the Alton junior Legionnaires host a pair of doubleheaders this weekend. Post 126 will take on Valmeyer Friday and Highland Sunday, both twin bills at Gordon Moore Park/Lloyd Hopkins Field; start time for both doubleheaders is 5:30 p.m. The Bears are scheduled to take part in a tournament in Festus, Mo., Saturday and Sunday.
