Kathy Waddilove

5/14/1981 to 1/17/2020

From the beginning, it was obvious Kathy had come to play.

Discovering softball for the first time in Lincoln Park, New Jersey, Kathy was that rare 5-year-old who could hit a ball in motion. She played catcher on her first team, then found community teams until her family moved to Nevada when she was nine. Living in a climate where she could play almost year-round, she became a Little League softball player.

To her parents, coaches and teammates, it was clear she’d found her passion. Her athletic skills increased as she grew (even though she never surpassed 5 feet tall!), leading her to be named starting catcher as a high school freshman on the Boulder City High School varsity team.

After her family moved two years later, Kathy was spotted by travel ball coaches while playing for the Green Valley High team.  It wasn’t long before she was invited to join Genesis, a travel team, and later the Las Vegas Rage.

While at a Colorado tournament with the Rage, she was recruited by Long Island University. There she became a stellar student-athlete. She excelled in academics and was especially remembered as the “math whiz”.

On the field at LIU, she was recognized as A line-drive hitter who, teammates say, could have played any position at LIU. She stayed loyal to her roots, playing catcher just as she had dreamed at 5 years old. Despite her small stature, she was so physically strong that teammates remember her as the lifting coach’s favorite player.

Friends, competitors and teammates describe her as “shy, so shy”, willing to help anyone, self-sufficient, generous, and sweet-natured. “She had a laugh you couldn’t forget,” one roommate recalls. Loyal, playful, full of fun and energy, Kathy had a memorable presence during games and she was awarded 1st Team NEC in 2003. She loved to make her teammates laugh by cheering for them in a deep voice that carried to every corner of the field.

After college, Kathy and a high school teammate were invited to play on an Australian team — an epic experience in a well-lived life that, though not long enough, was full of joys, excitement and success.

Her mother remembers that even as a tiny child, Kathy’s desire to “achieve in all ways” was unmistakable: “She wanted to do everything — especially whatever her brother Billy was doing!”

Kathy’s life both on and off the field was a testament to her grit, ambition, athleticism and team spirit. She not only excelled in the softball world but in every other aspect of life.  She will be remembered most of all for her strength of character, her warmth, caring nature, and for the love she inspired among all who were privileged to know her.