CRANFORD, NJ – Every year, the summer all-star games for the Division 2 Parkway League highlight the best players in our area of New Jersey. But this year’s 8U All-Star Team had the privilege to honor the spirit and memory of an amazing athlete, teammate, and friend: Annabelle “Annie” Young. Keith Hoffman, the league’s commissioner, announced on Monday in front of a standing room only crowd at Cormier Field in Cranford that the game would now be known as the Annie Young Memorial All-Star Game going forward.
The Play for Annie mantra which started in Berkeley Heights by Heights Heat 8U softball coach Bret Sayre has spread across sports leagues throughout the state and even the nation. In the Parkway League alone, more than 1,400 players across over 100 teams are wearing “Play for Annie” patches on their jerseys and stickers on their helmets to commemorate Annie’s love of softball and of playing with her friends. Twenty of these girls lined the field at Monday’s dedication while Laura Young, Annie’s mother, addressed the crowd before the game.
