Shaker walks it off in first Casey O'Connor Memorial Baseball Cup Game

LATHAM, NY (NEWS10) -- Former CBA baseball coach and Shaker alum Casey O'Connor was a staple of the Capital Region baseball community. Last June, O'Connor tragically passed away at the age of 48 after a courageous battle with cancer. But O'Connor's impact lives on, and his legacy was celebrated Tuesday at the first annual Casey O'Connor Memorial Baseball Cup Game between CBA, where he coached, and Shaker, where he played high school baseball.

Shaker played host, retiring O'Connor's number 14 jersey. O'Connor graduated from Shaker and went on to play college baseball at Saint Rose. He coached CBA from 2011 up until last season, staying on with the team even after his diagnosis.

Both coaches, as well as O'Connor's former coach Ed Dopp, spoke on his behalf. O'Connor's family, including his wife Pamela, son Jake, and daughter Casey were presented with his number 14 jersey. Jake threw out the first pitch.

The O'Connor family knows Casey made a huge impact on those around him, but to see the two schools he loved come together to celebrate him in this way was something really special. "The impact that Casey had throughout the North Colonie community reaches far and wide," said Pamela. "He not only was president of North Colonie, he coached so many kids through rec and travel. Some of the kids on the Shaker team he even helped to teach, as well as the kids on CBA. The communities throughout everything the past two years have been really, really supportive and we just can't thank them enough. It just reminds us how special he was and how much he was loved, not just by us, but by everybody."

The game lived up to the name. Shaker walked it off in the 10th inning on a base hit from Brayden Ackley, as the Blue Bison took the inaugural Casey O'Connor Memorial Baseball Cup Game 3-2.