Season Finale Rally
City softball league crowns tourney champs, awards players in memory of former CC star
By John Burbridge
sports@charlescitypress.com
CHARLES CITY — In the Minor League championship game of the Charles City Girls’ Softball League Tournament, the Cambrex Comets jumped out to a 10-1 lead after the first two innings against the PnK Comettes.
But 10 runs weren’t going to win this game.
Sure enough, the PnK Comettes showed why they were the league’s regular-season champs as they rallied back and had the bases loaded with the tying and winning runs aboard in the final inning. But the Cambrex Comets held on and won, 14-12.
To paraphrase the late, great Chicago Cubs broadcaster Jack Brickhouse, “Exhale, Cambrex Comets fans.”
During the season-finale tournament held Sunday at the softball diamonds within Sportsmen’s Park, the Cambrex Comets — despite their 11-2 overall record — were the only tournament champions who weren’t the regular-season champs.
In the preceding Pixie League championship game, Prichard Law Office capped an undefeated season with a 14-0 win over DFS/USA.
And T-ball League regular-season champs Dairy Queen ended up atop the three-team tourney bracket over runner-up First Citizens National Bank and third-place finisher McDonald’s.
At the conclusion of each championship game, a player from each respective division was awarded the Sandra Kay Schmidt Memorial Award.
Sandra was a four-year varsity pitcher for Charles City, and helped lead the “Comettes” to the school’s first appearance in the state tournament in 1975.
She later coached local youth softball. In 1981, Sandra was killed in an automobile accident.
The annual award goes to the player who best displays good attitude, desire and determination to play one’s best unselfishly while giving moral support to teammates and coaches. All-star ability is not a requirement, but a player may only receive the award once.
Candidates are chosen by opposing coaches who are not allowed to nominate their own players.
From the pool of candidates, the league board picks one players for each division.
This year’s recipients were Avery Wohlers (T-ball), Anya Ruzicka (Pixie) and Toni Malloy (Minor).
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