Tag: softball

Sizzlin’ Summer Softball

Larry Wolfe As we anxiously (and hopefully) look forward to cooler temperatures and our fall softball season, quite a few brave souls play throughout the entire summer at the Field of Dreams. We have a recreational program that never shuts down, even during the sizzlin’ days of our Arizona summers. The field is open on…

Southwest Senior Softball Champs

Larry Wolfe Nineteen members of our Sun Lakes Senior Softball Association were on championship teams in the annual Southwest Tournament, sponsored by Senior Softball-USA. The tournament was held earlier this year, with over 250 teams from a dozen states participating. The event was conducted at eight different softball complexes in Las Vegas and surrounding communities.…

Record-Setting Year for Sun Lakes Softball

Larry Wolfe Ever since Henry Chadwick formulated the first box scores in 1859, baseball fans have had an infatuation with statistics about the sport. True fans know about Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak and the Babe’s original home run records of 60 in a season and 714 for his career, for many years baseball’s “unbreakable” records.…

Spooner PT Captures Sun Division Crown

The Champs: Front (kneeling, left to right): Jon Hendrikse, Paul Gayer, Bob Reed, and Rick Oien. Back (left to right): Sam Giordano, Tom Schneider, Dave Waibel, Randy Neumann, Marty Hobby, and Kelly Anderson

Larry Wolfe In the opening game of the Sun Division Softball Tournament, Manager Randy Neumann’s Spooner PT team cruised to an easy 19-7 victory over Manager Mike Gloyd’s Redeemed Team. Lead-off hitter Paul Gayer led the Therapists’ attack, going 4 for 4, while Tom Schneider and Dan Melosi hit long balls for the winners. Tom…

A-1 Golf Carts Win Spring Tourney

The Lakes Champs: Front (kneeling, left to right): Jim Entwistle, Joe Giesinger, Tim Loeffler, Jim Dunn, "Super Fan" Janet Rodgers, Vern Rodgers, and mascot Charlie; back (left to right): Larry Maggard, Mark Durben, Manny Verdusco, Bill McCoy, Doug Warwick, Jerry Smith, Bill Maxwell, and Joe Matra

Larry Wolfe The number one seeded A-1 Golf Carts team, managed by Vern Rodgers, fought their way back through the losers’ bracket to win the Lakes Division Spring Softball Tournament. Here’s a recap of the games: In the opener, the Young Realty Team, managed by Gary Hillabolt, beat Manager Ken Brenden’s Financial Planning squad 17-10.…

Softball Player Profile: Joe Commisto

Larry Wolfe From playing stickball in the streets and school parking lots in Queens, N.Y., as a youngster, to playing slow-pitch softball in our Sun Lakes Senior Softball League, Joe Commisto has usually had some type of bat in his hands. He played on many softball teams well into his 50s before taking a brief…

Lady Sluggers Complete Season

The 2021 Lady Sluggers: kneeling (left to right): Crissy Conners, Roseanne Kuefner, Ann Buckley, and Lynn Casey; back row (left to right): Coach Scott Steinmann, Suzy Steinmann, Ann Hegney, Sharon Bergan, Teresa Dorman, Manager Terry Finley, Sue Rodke, and Mary Alka

Larry Wolfe It was certainly a different type of season for our Lady Sluggers: The season started and ended earlier than scheduled due to COVID issues, the number of teams in the Valley of the Sun League was cut in half due to the fact the many of the teams had many snowbird and Canadian…

Softball Player Profile: Brad Wendt

Larry Wolfe Where’s Brad? He’s not here; he went away. I bet Brad Wendt heard a lot of those corny jokes as a youngster. But as an adult, he actually “went” to a lot of places and did a lot of different things. A native of Madison, Wisc., Brad graduated from Monona Grove High where…

Softball Winter League Wrap-up

A photo from the Sun Division championship game: Dave Martin is on base as first basemen. Dave Waibel awaits the next pitch. (Photo courtesy of Captured Moments Pictures)

Larry Wolfe Both of our Winter League Divisions ended up with two teams tied for the league lead. In the Lakes Division, Manager Vern Rodgers’ Brenden Financial Planners and Manager Tom Erpelding’s Core Photographers both finished with 11-7 records, one game ahead of Manager Gary Hillabolt’s Young Team Realtors. The Photographers started the season by…