Breaking barriers

Angel Chase (pictured), 14, bats for Grady Middle School in a game against West Briar Middle School. The eighth grader is the only girl on the boys’ baseball team at Grady. She is also the only girl in Grady’s history to play on the boys’ baseball team for all three middle-school years. In sixth grade, Angel made the team but didn’t start out with much playing time. She attended every practice and developed into an accomplished player and is now a consistent base hitter with a great batting average. In addition to baseball, Angel also plays soccer, volleyball and basketball, and runs track and cross country. Grady coaches named her Athlete of the Year at the annual sports ceremony.

Editor’s note: Send your best high-resolution photos and behind-the-scenes stories about young local athletes, in both team and individual sports, to SportzBuzz, Jr. at [email protected]. Include all contact info, names, ages, grades and schools. Featured athletes must live in Buzz-circulation neighborhoods. Items will be published on a space-available basis.