Last Thursday, I stepped onto my last USSSA softball field.

USSSA is the league I have played in since I was 12. To know that I will never compete as a USSSA athlete again is crazy. I will miss the variety of tournaments that they offer, and will always be thankful for their creative trophy designs.

I played my last game in front of a “blue” who was dressed in red and white.

The common nickname for umpires is Blue, and it is derived from the uniform they wear, a blue polo with grey or black dress pants. As crazy as it sounds, the umpires that I have played in front of my whole career have always worn various patterns of black, red, and white.

I sat on a bucket in a dugout, cheering alongside that group of girls for the last time.

There will be new teammates moving forward, but I have spent a lot of time with this set of girls. It feels weird to know that we will no longer be laughing and cheering together in the dugout as a whole.

I forced myself to down one last bottle of water for fear of dehydration.

Travel ball is hot. Yes, you need to stay hydrated during college softball (my next destination), but not in the same way that you do during summer ball. To be completely honest, there were days during my career where I could drink 15 bottles of water, not use the bathroom a single time, and still feel thirsty.

I put my catcher’s gear on and sweated through my jersey in the heat of July for the last time.

By the end of my last tournament, it wasn’t just my uniform that was wet. My catchers gear was soaked through! I really will miss putting on a 50 pound chest protector in the middle of July.

I made the last out of our last inning on the field in our last game of my last USSSA World Series.

Okay this was kinda cool. I joked after it happened that I didn’t know that you could make a buzzer beater in softball. We had about 50 seconds left in the game and were down three runs with one out, and bases loaded in the field when my pitcher had a grounder hit back to her and I was able to turn a double play, just in time to extend the game one more inning.

I hugged my pitcher to let her know that her last game was a gem.

I’m a sentimental catcher, and I love all of my pitchers dearly. I’ll never forget the look on her face when the game was over and the score sent us home. She really did throw a gem that day, all factors considered.

I shook the other team’s hand for the last time in my travel uniform.

USSA--The only place that you wish a team good luck instead of good game after a loss.

I cried, and I’m not sure I let enough tears out during our last team recap.

We all cried, and laughed at each other crying, and then cried some more. It wasn’t just my last travel game, but basically everyone else’s too.