More Softball & Cassie

Our daughter Cassie played softball from the time she was about 10 years old and was on coed teams, girls teams, both fast pitch and slow pitch.  Early on she played on teams where the girls were older but she more than held her own.  Barbara & Cassie played on the same church team in the Washington, DC area when they were about 15 and the team wound up with a 25-1 record.  That was a very good team to say the least.

I made it clear very early on that I didn't want her to play catcher on the fast pitch teams and the coaches agreed to my request.  One coach kept asking me if he could use her at catcher since she had the best arm on the team.  Nope!  No catching.  I showed up at one of her games being played during my working hours and found her catching.  I had some choice words for the coach and that didn't happen again.   You may ask why not catcher, well I didn't want her having broken fingers from foul balls and suffer with that later in life.  As the old saying goes, catcher masks, chest protectors and such are the "tools of ignorance".

She was very competitive and it showed on the playing field.  I think that was what made her such a good player.  In her prime she was one of the teams top home run hitters on the coed team, beating out almost all the guys.  She hit with power and ran the bases like a deer.

Cassie at bat with power to spare - 1983

Cassie playing 1st base 1983

The photo below was taken the night her all girls team won the championship of their league.  By this time she had been fighting health issues for many years, but she could still poke it out of the park.
  

 Larry Jr. and Cassie played on the same coed team for a number of years and were integral parts of the team.  This picture was taken after they won the league championship one year and Jr decided everyone needed to cool off.  He brought large coolers of ice water to the game and hid them until the team picture was taken.  Then, out came the ice water and I don't think I have ever seen Cassie move so fast.  In fact, she was a blur in the picture.

Coaching her bro at third base the same year as the picture above.  Gerry and I really enjoyed seeing them play softball together and the bond they had between them.   Cassie also served as team coach on a number of years and  was able to help of young players improve their games.  She knew the rules and wasn't afraid to challenge referees when they were wrong.  

What do I do, Sis?

Eventually age and her illness caught up to her and she had to hang up the cleats.  I think if she were able, she would still be out there playing softball on a team somewhere.  I am sure she still has her glove and some softballs in her basement

When Cassie was very young I taught her how to roll when hit and not put her hands out to brace the fall.  One day she came running down the hill in the backyard and wasn't paying attention to where she was in relation to our wood fence.  Too late she turned and saw the fence and in a flash she remembered my directions about not bracing her fall with her hands.  So, she lowered her arms and ran into the fence standing straight up and bounced back on her butt.  She was stunned and when I ran up to her, she said she didn't put up hands because I told her so.  I guess it was my fault.

Now she is a Baltimore Orioles baseball fan and follows them all the time.  She refuses to root for the Washington Nationals since the two previous Washington baseball teams moved out of Washington.  Don't get her mad at you, she doesn't forget.

Everything written above is true to the best of my recollection and I am sticking by what I wrote.

Hope you all had a nice day.