It wasn’t the end result the Richmond 2000B Islanders were hoping for but nothing was going to take away from their special weekend.
The rep “B” girls team co-hosted the Richmond Girls Softball Association’s Third Annual Cat Wheatley Memorial Tournament.
The event was created in memory of Catherine Wheatley — a longtime RGSA player and coach — who passed away in April 2016 from injuries sustained in a car accident. She was just 22.
Wheatley was an assistant coach with the 2000B Islanders at the time and had worked with the majority of the players since they were six-years-old. To many, she was their role model too.
The team — along with co-hosts 1999B and 2001B Islanders — all wore special pink jerseys, along with socks and wristbands for the weekend to honour Wheatley, who had a passion for the colour.
The tournament featured 18 teams including out-of-town entries from Prince George, Kelowna and four from Vancouver Island.
After a second place finish a year ago, the 2000Bs had high expectations, especially sitting with an unbeaten record (8-0-0) at the top of the standings in the U19 Lower Mainland Division. However, the girls never could recover from a tough start and missed the podium this time.
The team entered the weekend knowing there is a good chance it won’t be back for one final appearance at the 2019 Wheatley tourney. With players heading in different directions after graduating in June, it very well could be their final season together in fastpitch.
“It’s kind of looking that way,” said Islanders head coach Troy Cooke. “That’s why the girls wanted to do well but unfortunately it just wasn’t to be. Still, Cat meant so much them and they made sure it was going to be special weekend in her honour.”
The RGSA paid tribute to Wheatley by re-numbering one of the London diamonds to #33 in her memory. The 2000B team also presented her family with a special shadowbox that included her jersey and batting gloves.
Seven RGSA players were recipients from the Cat Wheatley Scholarship Fund. They included: Sheetal Reddy (2000B), Jessica Porter (2000B), Kayla Davies (1999B), Kenzie Wrightson (1999B), Capri Hortsmann (2000B), Harper Gibson (2000B) and Morgan Glover (2000B).
