Brian Sonntag

Born into a family of athletes and public servants, Brian Sonntag not only spent 40 years in public service but he also carved out a niche in Tacoma softball history as player and coach for several teams over a period of two decades, and later as administrator.

He played baseball in his days at Stadium High School, then attended University of Puget Sound. After beginning his softball playing career in slowpitch, he took a liking to modified fastpitch and was a key figure in "both getting it going and keeping it going" in Tacoma through the 1980s and '90s. "To me," he said, "modified was more like baseball than either slowpitch or fastpitch which is so controlled by pitching."

He played primarily first base and third base, and as coach he called the shots for Parkside Realty, Cheers West, Tacoma Towing and other teams. He also served as Tacoma's ASA player representative for modified fastpitch, attending meetings around the region. "It wasn't me, but the people there with me," Sonntag said of his small diamond accomplishments. "With modified fastpitch, just getting our leagues started and then seeing the substantial growth (about 40 teams at one point) was very satisfying. The top two or three Tacoma teams were competitive with any around the region."

Sonntag was busy elsewhere as well. He teamed with the late Bob Maguinez to coach a modified fastpitch women's program at Tacoma Community College in 1989, and also spent many hours coaching youth baseball and basketball teams. When his years as Pierce County and Washington state auditor came to an end, he took up umpiring high school softball and weekend tournaments. He also served a term as president of Western Washington Umpires Association.

All his other accomplishments are frosting on the cake, Sonntag said, adding: "The highlight for me was always the game."