Larry Wolfe
Yes, despite the sizzling weather and the absence of many of our Canadian and other snowbird players, there is a Summer Senior Softball Season. Approximately 40 of our guys brave the heat to participate in the Summer League. We have three Sun Lakes teams, plus one team from Robson Ranch who compete in a 21-week season that began in early May and wraps up on Sept. 21. Each team plays 21 doubleheaders for a total 42-game season, playing each opponent 14 times.
Sun Lakes team managers are Gary Hillabolt, Dave Kratz, and Larry Maggard. Randy Peterson manages the Robson Ranchers. League play is on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning at 7:30 a.m. The Field of Dreams is also open for batting and fielding practice on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8 a.m. If you’re interested in joining our program, come on down to the field on any of those days and ask to talk to Gary Hillabolt or Dennis LePore.
It’s been a tough few weeks for our softball family. First, Randy Rothenbuehler unexpectedly passed away. He was a longtime player, scorekeeper, and umpire in our program. A few days later, Patti Entwistle, wife of Jim Entwistle, another longtime member, and our chief statistician, succumbed to a long-term illness. Lastly, Wilbur “Will” Caton also passed after a long struggle. Will was one of our best pitchers in the ‘90s and early 2000s, both in league play and on our travel teams. Our condolences go out to all the families and friends of Randy, Patti, and Will.
If you’re looking for the monthly Softball Player Profile article, you can stop now. Yours truly is taking a summer hiatus. The profile series will return in the fall. In the meantime, look for our annual stats feature in next month’s Splash.