From 
Nice feature story on Chris Delarwelle, at the Green Bay Gazette,The Gazette has been a standout in covering the game.
Fastpitch softball: Circle Tap’s Delarwelle is still a boy of summer
By Aaron Wallender
Press-Gazette correspondent
DENMARK — Chris Delarwelle spends much of his time in the classroom or grading tests these days, but he’s not ready to give up his favorite pastime.
Delarwelle, who teaches eighth-grade math at Denmark Middle School, also plays for the world-ranked Circle Tap fastpitch softball team, which hosts its seventh annual Boys of Summer tournament beginning today.
“I’m about as local as you get on our team,” Delarwelle said. “I teach in the town I play for, so it’s neat, because a lot of the kids come out. It gives me something to talk about with them when they watch me play, and they can pick on me a little bit. It’s fun to do that.”
After shining as a baseball player at Southern Door High School and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Delarwalle spent a couple of years in the Minnesota Twins’ organization. When the Twins released him in 1993, Delarwalle thought his playing days were over.
Delarwelle initially had no interest in playing fastpitch softball, but his brother talked him into trying the sport and joining the Denmark Dukes.
A few teams and 15 years later, Delarwelle still is swinging.
“It kind of blossomed from (playing with the Dukes). It was fun; it was something to do on weekends,” Delarwelle said. “After you played ball your whole life, then you have weekends to yourself, you’re not quite sure what to do. It was a good outlet for me, and it was very competitive, and I enjoyed it.”
The transition from baseball to softball was not a smooth one, Delarwelle said. He struggled immensely at the plate for a few years and considered giving up the game. But during a three-season stint with The Farm of Madison, Delarwelle won two world titles and learned a lot from his teammates.
“You’re going to fail a lot of times in this game,” said Delarwelle, who mostly plays as a designated hitter with occasional appearances in left field and at first base for Circle Tap. “The pitchers are throwing from 42 feet by the time they land and replant, and they’re throwing in the 70s (mph) and sometimes into the 80s. In relation to baseball, that’s coming in at about 110, so it’s a reaction game.”
Delarwelle, 39 and in his sixth season with Circle Tap, isn’t sure how many years he has left. However, he’s competitive and loves his team, which has nine players on its roster from the Green Bay and Fox Valley area.
“My sponsor, Darren Derricks, has really given us a chance — the guys who started 10 to 15 years ago. He’s given the local guys a chance to play, and you can see that on our roster,” Delarwelle said. “We’ve got a couple guys from Denmark; we’ve got a couple from the Fox Valley area. No one does that in the state of Wisconsin except for Derricks.
“Darren’s really been good about letting local talent play for him and taking us all over the United States to play in tournaments and things like that. We’re all good friends, and it makes it a little bit easier to travel with families and things like that when your close friends are on the team. It’s been a lot of fun.”
The Boys of Summer 16-team tourney features many of the top-ranked teams in the world, and coming out on top will be no easy task for Circle Tap. Delarwelle said the team is focused on making it to Sunday’s championship round first, then worrying about winning the title.
The task will be slightly easier because the tournament’s five-time defending champion — County Materials of Marathon — disbanded before this season.
“As a team, we have high hopes to get to Sunday, and once you get to Sunday, anything can happen,” Delarwelle said. “It’s a pretty even playing field right now, now that County has left, and I think it will be a great tournament, because there are 16 quality teams coming in. I think fans will get their money’s worth this year.”
The tournament begins today with round-robin pool play. There are four teams in each pool, and the top two from each pool will advance to the playoff round. Games are at Circle Tap and Denmark Memorial Park.