COEUR d'ALENE - Don Shove didn't join a softball team until he was 52 years old.

That's when his son, Donnie Jr., taught him the athletic art of underhand pitching - how to glide a ball over home plate, lob it accurately toward a distant target.

Don might've been middle-aged, but he fell in love with the challenging new game.

"He played softball for over 20 years," said Carlena Shove, Don's widow. "And he was a very good pitcher."

Sporting his trademark mustache, Don was a regular on local fields until he was 72 years old. Teammates always knew just how old he was getting - every season, his jersey number corresponded with his age.

Shove was 73 when cancer took his life on June 28, 2009. Not long after he passed, family and friends created a co-ed tournament for local softball teams.

"We had so much response, we had 21 teams that wanted to play," Carlena said.

The tourney was so well-received it became an annual event.

On Saturday and Sunday at Ramsey Park in Coeur d'Alene, 12 teams participated in the 2011 Donald A. Shove Memorial Tournament. Competing in two divisions on several fields, the players hit, threw and ran under hot July sunshine.

"It's a good tournament. It's well-organized," said Jeff Johnson of Post Falls.

His team, the Coeur d'Alene Catfish, won the tournament in 2010. They were 3-0 on Sunday afternoon, headed into their later games.

Winning was the goal, but players weren't taking the tournament too seriously.

"Super chill, really laid-back. Just a good time," Johnson said. "That's the Number 1 rule out here: Just have fun."

All around the park, the loud clang of aluminum bats announced every line drive and base hit. Cleats kicked up dust as runners scampered around the basepaths.

Out in the pitchers' circles, steely-eyed throwers tried to dial in strikes.

"It's too hot, but other than that it's been good," said Dana Calabretto of Rathdrum, a member of the Mountain View Bible Church squad. "We're doing all right. We've won two and lost two."

"I think it's a great idea," Calabretto said of the tournament. "(Remembering) someone who loved softball like all of us."

Don Shove was a lifelong North Idahoan. Born at his grandfather's sawmill in Upper Twin Lakes, he graduated from Rathdrum High School and later lived in Hayden Lake. He and Carlena had seven children.

During softball season, Don would team up with his many family members and play in the co-ed league. His sons - Cliff, Ken, Donnie, Larry, David and Duane - and daughter, Lorena, all played on Don's teams.

The grandchildren played ball, too.

Don would have enjoyed this weekend's tournament, Carlena said. The people, the games, the fine weather - it was right up his alley.

"We're really happy to be here," she said. "There's many, many memories of Don, and (softball) was one of the highlights of his life."

The Shove family assembled a strong team for this year's tourney.

"It's been going well. We won the first one today," said 20-year-old Becca Lee Shove, Don's granddaughter. "This year, our team and other teams in our division all have a chance of winning."

She crouched behind home plate on Sunday, catching pitches from Cliff. Donnie was the utility man, playing outfield, infield or anyplace else. Family friends Waylon Harness and Rex Clark brought two powerful bats to the lineup.

Their afternoon game started with a barrage of first-inning runs, and the Shoves were on a roll.

"We've had a very good turnout. Very good response," Carlena said of the successful tournament. "And people want us to keep doing it."