Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends meeting celebrities.
The Athletes Unlimited Softball League is back. More important to Chicago, the Chicago Bandits are back.
After a few years of AU Softball being played under fantasy-league type rules, AUSL debuted last year, bringing back traditional softball. Four teams played the season in Rosemont, including the Bandits, but none had a designated city affiliation. In the offseason, it was finally announced the Bandits would belong to Chicago, while the other three teams, plus two new teams, found their homes elsewhere.
Abby Ramirez played for the previous version of the Chicago Bandits. She also played in the first two seasons of AU. The Chicago-area native starred at the University of Michigan, before returning to Chicago to play pro ball. She currently is an assistant coach for DePaul.
That is where long time Bandits fan Chris saw her. The Blue Demons hosted the Dome Tournament in February. Of course, Chris had to get a picture with Abby. Despite retiring from active play about four years ago, Abby is still extremely popular with Chicago fans. Everyone loves Abby and rightly so.
Chris is very popular, too. He is well-known for taking hundreds of pictures at every game and also for his cowbell. A constant presence at all Bandits or AU games in Rosemont, Chris is part of the old guard. He goes back farther than me, but I am still part of the "Old Crusties" group with him, Tony, Kevin and a few others.
Go to auprosports.com for more info on the league and depaulbluedemons.com for more info on Abby and the Blue Demons. Check back here for my recurring coverage of both.
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