ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — HomeTrust Park will trade baseball for volleyball for a weekend in October as Asheville hosts a new grass volleyball tournament for youth and adult players.
The inaugural Asheville Grass Open is set for Oct. 2-4 at HomeTrust Park, home of the Asheville Tourists. Organizers say the tournament is expected to draw players from across the Southeast.
A welcome party and player check-in is planned for Thursday, Oct. 1, at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, followed by three days of competition at HomeTrust Park.
Competition begins Friday, Oct. 2, with RevCo co-ed quads. Saturday’s schedule features 4-on-4 co-ed competition for youths and adults, followed Sunday by 3-on-3 men’s and women’s divisions.
Adult divisions include Open, AA, A, BB and B for players 18 and older. Youth competition will include 18U, 16U, 14U and 12U divisions.
Advance registration costs $55 for Open-level adult players, $45 for other adult divisions and $35 for youth players. Regular registration increases to $60, $50 and $40, respectively. Organizers said payouts and prizes will be offered to adult division winners.
Spectators can attend for $5 per day or purchase a three-day wristband for $10.
The City of Asheville, Asheville Tourists, Harrah’s Cherokee Center — Asheville, and the Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission, along with local and national volleyball organizations, are organizing the tournament.
Tourists President Brian DeWine said events such as the Asheville Grass Open were part of the vision for expanding the ballpark’s use beyond baseball.
“HomeTrust Park was designed to be more than just a baseball stadium — it’s a community gathering place built to host unique events and create new experiences for Western North Carolina,” DeWine said in a news release. “The Asheville Grass Open is exactly the type of innovative event we envisioned when reimagining the ballpark.”
Chris Corl, general manager of Harrah’s Cherokee Center — Asheville, said the tournament also provides an opportunity to highlight the volleyball community that has developed in Western North Carolina.
“Local groups such as AVL Hoppers, an Asheville-based volleyball non-profit group, and Xcel Volleyball, recognized as a leader in Western North Carolina’s youth volleyball scene, have been building this scene for years, and this is the event to showcase that,” Corl said.
Other event partners and sponsors include New Belgium Brewing, Park & Sun Sports, Volleyball Life, 431 Sports, iHeartMedia Asheville and Mountain Madre.
Registration and additional event information are available at AshevilleGrassOpen.com.