1954/55 Elmvale Comets Narrative

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In the 1950’s not many competitive opportunities existed for women’s sport. In 1952, Alvin and
Marie Reynolds established the Elmvale Comets. When they first began to play, they primarily
went to smaller villages for competition like Happy Valley and Edgar. They were a force to be
reckoned with and soon sought the most competitive league available to them at the time, The
Barrie and District Ladies Softball League. At that time, there were no provincial or national
championships. After winning the BDLS, they were on to represent that league in the Simcoe
County Championship winning that title in 1954. In 1955, the team once again captured the
BDLS League Championship, both regular season and playoffs.

All the players hailed from the Elmvale areas and were in their late teen’s and early 20’s. Mr.
Reynolds, the team’s founder remained as President with Mel Barrett acting as Manager and
Cecil Tunney and Les McKay coaching those winning squads.

The only players who wore ball gloves were the catcher and first base. There were also no
lights at ball parks so many of the players had to be excused from work in order to travel the
long distances to neighbouring towns such as Barrie, Orillia and Newmarket. The team had
quite a following and often the stands were filled with cheering Elmvale fans.

The Elmvale Comets are very deserving of their spot in the Springwater Sports Hall of Fame as
not only did they win against teams from much larger centers but they also helped pave the
way for the many female sports teams that have followed in their pioneering footsteps. Their
contribution to Springwater Township’s sports history and women’s sport is significant and
should be remembered for generations to come!

 

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