Alpha Gamma Chi wins 10th softball intramural championship
Photos courtesy of Alpha Gamma Chi
On April 13, Alpha Gamma Chi won their 10th straight Lee University intramural softball championship. To finish the season, Chi took on Upsilon Xi in the final game of the semester, ending with a 17-14 victory to continue their five-year winning streak.
Christian Craig, senior marketing major, established the expectations for the team as they faced their opponents.
“We were for sure the underdogs,” said Craig. “The team that we did face in the championship, Upsilon [Xi], they were the better team and we didn't let that stop us.”
Craig believes softball is a “core value of Chi,” and the club’s history for intramural softball goes beyond the club’s winning streak.
In 1986, Alpha Gamma Chi broke the Guinness World Record for the world’s longest softball game, which lasted 100 hours with 20 players. On Oct. 30, 2005, the club hosted the world’s longest softball game fundraiser for Hurricane Katrina damage, breaking their own record with a 101 hour game and 424 innings.
Since the record-setting games, softball has been an integral part of Chi’s reputation. Eli Wilson, junior business administration major, says going into the playoffs with the club’s record motivated the team to uphold morale and continue the legacy with current members.
“I don't think I'll remember the scores, because I already don't, or anything that happened in the game, but I remember the way we treated people, the way we interacted with one another and just how fun it was to share it with the guys that are in right now,” said Wilson.
Chad Parks, an Alpha Gamma Chi alumni, emphasized the continuation of the club’s softball legacy.
“Chi has found a way to keep the softball legacy by winning these championships,” said Parks. “To see Chi win my whole time in Chi, and out [of the club], gives me and other alumni joy seeing a group of guys enjoy a program that has always been successful.”
Alpha Gamma Chi also dedicated their 10th championship victory to the late Jabe Wilhoit.
“This semester, [Jabe Wilhoit] would have been on the team and he would have beat Upsilon [Xi] with us,” said Craig “And he would have smiled with us on the field. But we know that he's going to be smiling with us and celebrating with us somewhere else.”
Wilson said Wilhoit’s impact reached beyond the club and into the community of Lee.
“He was one of the most inclusive people I think I've ever met in my life,” said Wilson. “He didn't let a single person walk by him without smiling and saying, ‘Hey’ and making someone's day better.”
Alpha Gamma Chi intends to continue to honor Wilhoit’s memory in their community by playing the game he was passionate about.
“He loved softball,” said Wilson. “Jabe would have wanted us to have fun, play our hearts out and just enjoy cutting up with the guys.”
The Alpha Gamma Chi team plans to continue their winning streak and to include new members in the history of intramural softball championships.
“I have so much trust in the people that [Alpha Gamma Chi] is going to get next semester, and who they're going to end up putting on the team and continuing the streak,” said Craig. “Chi is in a really good place right now. We have some really good guys that have a huge heart for the Lord, and they are competitive and just good athletes.”
