By Jason Wesseldyk
Sports Editor
OTSEGO—On Friday, April 29, Val Davis passed away following a battle with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, a rare brain disorder.
But family members and friends who knew and loved her are making sure they keep her memory alive.
That includes Chad Gant.
“She was a great person and I wanted to find some way to honor her,” said Gant, Davis’ nephew.
Out of that desire was born the Val Davis Memorial Softball Tournament, which was played at Otsego’s Memorial Park on Saturday, July 9.
A total of nine teams participated in the event, which donated all of its proceeds to Wings of Hope Hospice.
“It was amazing to see so many people come out and take part in this,” Gant said. “We’re planning to make this an annual thing.”
In addition to softball, the event included a raffle for items donated by area businesses and a Home Run Derby.
Among the items raffled off were a new bat, a drill, a rug and several restaurant gift cards.
“A lot of businesses were really generous with donating items for the raffle and we’re really grateful for that,” Gant said.
As for the action on the field, the first games began at 9 a.m. and lasted well into the evening.
The final out of the championship game, which Scared Hitless won by a 25-13 score, was recorded around 7:45 p.m.
“It was a long day, but it was a lot of fun,” Gant said.
The winning team was comprised primarily of local natives. Of the 10 players, seven graduated from Otsego, with one each from Allegan, Plainwell and Vicksburg.
Members of Scared Hitless were Lyndsey Banks (Otsego graduate), Molly Goldschmeding (Otsego), Sam Goldschmeding (Allegan), Matt Higgs (Otsego), Meggan Martinez (Plainwell), Brock Potter (Otsego), Nolan Potter (Otsego), Erika Schmitz (Vicksburg), Ben Sleeman (Otsego) and Harold Watkins (Otsego).
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