EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Imagine playing softball without the gift of your vision.

That's exactly what the SIUE softball team did recently in a promotional video for Beep Ball.

Members of the St. Louis Firing Squad Beep Ball introduced the Cougars to the game which is set up similar to softball and baseball. The ball beeps not only so blindfolded batters can hear it being throw but also for the fielder's so they can retrieve it. Once a ball is hit, runners advance to a padded base before a fielder is able to retrieve the ball.

"They explained the game to us, and we put the blindfolds on," said SIUE softball Head Coach Sandy Montgomery. "We tried it out and had the teams and spotters out there. It was extremely challenging."

Beep Ball was created in 1964 by Charles Fairbanks as a way to bring the game to the visually impaired. The first Beep Ball World Series was played in Denver, Colorado, in 1995. There has been a World Series in every year from 2000 to the present.

"It's a great opportunity for people who are visually impaired to still play a sport they love," said Montgomery. "For my kids, it was a definite challenge. When you take sight out of the picture, you have to use your other senses and trust others to direct you on how to field the ball that is hit to you and how to hit the ball."

For more information about Beep Ball or to play in MindsEye's Beep Ball Tournament, call 618-394-6444.