Boys playing in Little League Softball World Series ~ girls play baseball, why not boys play softball
fastpitchCrAzY99
We played Arizona twice in the Senior League World Series, losing 4-2 and
3-1. They have a good team and very supportive group of parents that
followed them all along the way.
The Arizona "boys" are very good athletes , but for that matter so were
their girls.
This was our first trip to the World Series and our girls were placed in a
very awkward set of cicumstances.
A boycott was proposed by the Florida coach and all but the Canadian coach
the other team with a male player) agreed that this was the proper course
of action needed "to save Little League Girl's Softball"
After meeting with our girls we too decided to honor the boycott
But on game day ( We drew Arizona in our first game) We decided to play . We
decided this because our girls wanted to play in the Senior League World
Series. An honor which they worked all summer for.
It did not matter if they won or lost, it just mattered that they be
rewarded for all of their hard work.
Their reward: A chance to compete for the Senior League World series
Championship.
And we did and we are proud of it.
We are proud of our accomplishments this year and we are determined not to
let politics spoil our "special summer"
We have no solutions for the problems facing the "girls" program in LL
softball.
We just know that we played more games than any other team in the Senior
League World Series because we did not "girlcott", and next year we plan on
competing again. if there are boys playing we will adapt,adjust, and do the
best we can
This is the overwhelming sentiment of the girls softball players from
Jeffersontown, Kentucky Little League Senior All Stars
Kentucky District 2 champions
Cental Regional Champions
Coachk
glori...@mindspring.com
www.eteamz.com/jtdiamonds
"Vince Muehe" <vmu...@isd.net> wrote in message
news:399f1345....@news.isd.net...
> Peanuts, Pennants and Protests
>
> Here's a couple of articles from ABC News and Associated Press that
> highlight a little of the "other side" of the issue. Some argue girls
> need to compete with boys...
>
> --Vince
>
>
> Little League Softball World Series Goes Coed
>
> Aug. 19 For the first time in the 26-year
> history of the girls' Little League Softball World
> Series, a team with boys won the championship
> game but only after the opposing team from
> the Philippines forfeited.
>
> A coed team from Eloy, Ariz., playing with five
> male starters was to play against the all-girl Far East
> team in the championship game today at Vanderberg Park
> in Kalamazoo, Mich. And lots of parents and coaches
> weren't happy.
>
> "What they've done today is turn something a good
> thing that was for girls into a bad thing," said Mary
> Doyle, coach of a team from Inverness, Fla."And now
> it's gotten ugly."
>
> But the coach of the Arizona team, which also has
> seven female players, says he had to recruit boys for the
> team because only a handful of girls showed up for the
> tryouts.
>
> Boys Allowed
>
> The rules have allowed boys to play girls' softball since
> 1996, but some parents want the rules changed.
>
> "These little girls need a place to play,' says Wendy
> Malik, a parent of a Little Leaguer. "And next year there's
> going to be eight boys here. And the year after there's
> going to be 12. And then there's going to be no girls."
>
> The Arizona team had lost only one game in the
> tournament - to the same all-girls team from the
> Philippines that it met in the final. The team from overseas
> won 3-2 Tuesday night.
>
> Another team had forfeited its game against Arizona.
> On Friday, the team from Florida refused to play Arizona
> in the semifinal in protest. The gesture left players on both
> sides disappointed.
>
> "I hate giving in to boys, it makes me sick," said
> Brittney Doyle, a player for the Florida team that played
> against an all-girl team from Jeffersontown, Ky., today for
> third place.
>
> "The girls probably want to play us, but it's up to their
> coaches," said Arizona player Martin Juarez. "And if
> they're not going to give their girls a chance to play then
> it's their loss.
>
> Injuries Inevitable?
>
> Softball coaches say that while girls can beat boys at
> softball, boys in the 14- to 16-year-old age group tend to
> be bigger and stronger than girls, giving them an unfair
> advantage on the field and putting female players at risk of
> injury.
>
> "Winning is nothing compared to a girl's career," said
> Pete Maggiore, manager of the Florida team.
>
> But Amy Love, who was one of the first to play when
> Little League Baseball changed its rules to allow girls to
> play back in 1974, says safety is just an excuse.
> "You're saying to those girls they are not good enough
> to compete with boys," said Love, who is now the
> publisher of Real Sports. "Twenty years ago, we'd been
> trying to break down these barriers, saying girls can
> compete with boys."
>
> Tournament director Bud Vanderberg said he'll take
> the issue to the Little League board of directors next week
> to make sure next year's softball world series is girls only.
>
> --ABC News
>
>
> Female Football Player Suits Up
>
> ELGIN, Ill. -- Opponents of Elgin High School's
> football team this fall may butt helmets with a rather
> unusual player: a girl.
>
> Fourteen-year-old freshman Adrianna Delhotal will
> take the field for the Elgin Maroons later this month,
> becoming the first girl to play football for either of the
> city's public high schools.
>
> The five-foot-seven, 170 pound Delhotal said she
> enjoys the physical nature of the sport and feels like one
> of the guys.
>
> "It's not like I'm fragile or anything," she said, referring
> to a number of bruises from this week's practices. "I have
> a good stance and I'm able to hit people hard. They treat
> me like I'm one of the rest of them."
>
> Still, she didn't like cutting 12 inches off her hair this
> summer so her helmet would fit correctly.
>
> Despite paying the $25 team fee and practicing all
> fall, a school rule limits her participation to only two
> games this season. Delhotal said she doesn't think it's
> fair but still plans to practice and dress for every game.
>
> One solution, she said, is a separate girls football
> team.
>
> "There are girls out there who actually want to play
> football," she said.
>
> When she was in seventh grade, Delhotal and a friend
> joked about playing football and a gym teacher
> encouraged the girls to try out. But Delhotal's mother told
> her to wait a year.
>
> She began playing football last year for her
> eighth-grade team.
>
> Delhotal doesn't plan to play the sport much longer.
> "When you get older, the guys keep getting bigger
> and bigger," she said. "I'm thinking I'll play freshman and
> sophomore year and then, when I'm a junior, join the
> pompom squad."
>
> She said she wants to take up kickboxing and karate
> this winter, and plans to play softball in the spring.
>
> The Associated Press
equa...@titleix.org
.c The Associated Press
By AMY FRANKLIN
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) - The Little League Softball World Series is in an
uproar this year because boys who joined a girls team are playing in what
has traditionally been an all-girls event.
Parents, teams and tournament officials say the five 16-year-old boys from
Arizona have an unfair physical advantage, and may even pose a danger to
girls. Some teams are threatening not to play the team, and the tournament
director himself is protesting.
``It looks like they stacked the deck. Those boys are huge,'' said Val
Maslauskas, a parent from a Massachusetts team whose players wore
mouthguards to protect themselves in a 10-2 loss to the Arizona team
Wednesday. ``We're trying for equality for these girls and this is not
equal.''
The crowd erupted in cheers when one of the boys was thrown out at second
base and booed at a collision between an Arizona boy and a Westfield girl
at first base.
``They made catches in the outfield that no girl could have gotten to,''
said Kelly Popko, who played third base for Westfield.
Little League Baseball Inc. made its softball and hardball divisions
non-gender specific in 1974 after losing lawsuits filed by boys demanding
to play softball, spokesman Lance Van Auken said Wednesday.
The first girl played in the Little League Baseball World Series in 1984.
The Arizona boys are the first to play in the softball series.
``Little League's preference is that the softball division be for girls,''
Van Auken said. ``It would be nice if there were a legal solution to it.''
Richie Reyes and four other boys signed up for the girls team after their
usual summer baseball league disbanded. He doesn't see what the fuss is
about and says the girls' team needed more players.
``We were all brought up to believe that an athlete's an athlete,'' he
said.
Four teams have indicated they won't play the team. A Philippines team had
originally threatened not to play, but players changed their minds and
wound up beating the boys-and-girls squad 3-2 Tuesday night.
Describing an ``undercurrent of unhappiness,'' tournament director Bud
Vanderberg said he will take the issue to the national Little League board
of directors next week.
``I will do what's in my power to change this to make sure it's all girls
playing in this tournament,'' he said.
AP-NY-08-16-00 1818EDT
equa...@titleix.org
.c The Associated Press
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) - An all-girls team from Florida forfeited its game
Friday against an Arizona team playing with five boys, putting the coed
team into the championship round of the Softball World Series.
The Arizona team will play a team from the Philippines on Saturday
afternoon in the championship round. The Florida team will play against a
Kentucky team Saturday for third place.
Arizona shortstop Richie Reyes said he doesn't understand why everyone has
gotten so riled up about his team's entry into the Big League Softball
World Series.
``Girls can do whatever they want, play football or baseball, but the
second a guy tries to do the same thing, it's a big deal,'' said Reyes, 16,
one of five boys playing for the Arizona squad.
In the southwestern United States, Reyes said, it's fairly common to find
softball teams like his that have boys on the team because there's a
shortage of girls to play.
But the Jeffersontown, Ky., team, whose loss Thursday was their second to
Arizona this week, feels differently about boys on the roster.
``The strength and the power that they have, it's not fair,'' Donna
Mullins, whose daughter plays for the Kentucky squad, told the Kalamazoo
Gazette. ``It would be different if they filled in their holes with the
boys and played their girls. They had three girls on the bench yesterday.''
AP-NY-08-18-00 1740EDT
Reid1boys
boy cant play softball?? it is soooooo hyocritical(i dont know if that spelling
is correct, oh wel)
at the same time, I would have forfeited a 16u game that had boys on it as I
dont think its right. I like the idea of telling the boys they can play, but
deep down hoping they would see its wrong. doesnt make much sense does it?? i
guess the difference is a girl that wants to play football cant play in a girls
league, as there are none that im aware of. while a boy can play baseball and
stay with the boys.
corey
cyar...@idt.net
girls softball team vs. boys baseball team due to serious injuries that usually
were the result of a (girl) pitcher standing 40 feet away and being hit in the
face/head by the male batter, who-- like it or not, according to the physiology
books , is more likely to have the build/muscles/weight etc. that can cause
these injuries (if he gets hold of a pitch). It's not hypocritical at
all--just physiology.
Sharon
sh...@my-deja.com
I'm wondering about the competitive level of the LL championship
softball teams vs. ASA championship teams at the same age level, and how
these LL badboys would fare against a hotshot 16-year-old ASA pitcher.
If those LL pitchers are lobbin' 'em in there, then they're going to get
hurt, no question. If the ball is zippin' by the plate at 60+mph,
however, different story.
David
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
Vince Muehe
This is a "damned if you - damned if don't" situation.
We, parents of female athletes, have fought long and hard to have our
daughers be able to play on boys baseball teams when there isn't a
girls team available. In Minnesota, girls played and still play on
boys' hockey teams. There are several female wrestlers -- wrestling
boys. There are football teams with girls on them. I'm sure the list
goes on and on. Girls on boys swimming teams? Diving teams? Rodeo?
Basketball? Soccer?
The Little League doesn't have to abide by any Title IX rules. So the
only law that may apply -- and it's a whopper -- is gender
discrimination.
The Little League is taking the "easy way out" by allowing the sport
to be gender neutral. One might wonder what the ASA would do if five
boys and seven girls from "middle of nowhere" decide they want to be a
team? There isn't an opportunity for the seven girls if the five
boys don't play and vice-versa.
-Vince Muehe
Vince Muehe
--Vince
Boys Allowed
tournament — to the same all-girls team from the
Injuries Inevitable?
Tournament director Bud Vanderberg said he’ll take
Jazzsoft
>of
>girls softball team vs. boys baseball team due to serious injuries that
>usually
>were the result of a (girl) pitcher standing 40 feet away and being hit in
>the
>face/head by the male batter, who-- like it or not, according to the
>physiology
>books , is more likely to have the build/muscles/weight etc. that can
>cause
>these injuries (if he gets hold of a pitch). It's not hypocritical at
>all--just physiology.
>
>Sharon
But its ok for girls to force their way on too boys teams without fear of
getting hurt.
I guess in the college game pitchers and corners are not at risk cause of the
gender factor.
Nope its hypocritical. Girls say I want I want I want and when the boys want to
play SOFTBALL then its go to baseball you sissy.
If boys want to play softball and there are not BOYS teams to play on they
should have the same rights a girls wanting to play male dominated sports.
Not signed.
cyar...@idt.net
lacked enough players for a game due to a scheduling conflict with an important
academic exam. Instead of forfeiting he borrowed one of the (girl) softball
players, put her on first base and even let her hit. She did better than some
of the boys--made the plays, got a bon-a fide triple, (despite the boys on her
team telling her to move back in the box), and didn't fall apart when in her next
at bat the boys on the opposing team threw at her head .
No one objected to the girl playing because she was, being half the size of the
boys, hardly a physical threat. With the reverse situation --putting a boy with
the girls, and given that the boy, due to physiology would be a physical threat--
the situation would then in all liklihood become dangerous. (Visions of Mike
Tyson vs. a smaller stature lady boxer come to mind----- Would you let your
daughter fight Mike Tyson? )
Sharon
Mike Rowe
>
>This is a "damned if you - damned if don't" situation.
>
>We, parents of female athletes, have fought long and hard to have our
>daughers be able to play on boys baseball teams when there isn't a
>girls team available. In Minnesota, girls played and still play on
>boys' hockey teams. There are several female wrestlers -- wrestling
>boys. There are football teams with girls on them. I'm sure the list
>goes on and on. Girls on boys swimming teams? Diving teams? Rodeo?
>Basketball? Soccer?
>
>The Little League doesn't have to abide by any Title IX rules. So the
>only law that may apply -- and it's a whopper -- is gender
>discrimination.
>
>The Little League is taking the "easy way out" by allowing the sport
>to be gender neutral. One might wonder what the ASA would do if five
>boys and seven girls from "middle of nowhere" decide they want to be a
>team? There isn't an opportunity for the seven girls if the five
>boys don't play and vice-versa.
>
>-Vince Muehe
>
Hang on there, Vince. I'm no big fan of LL, but if you are going to make
accusations, make sure you know everything about the situation.
Little League Baseball, Inc. lost lawsuits in California and Vermont filed by
boys demanding to play softball. You cannot blame them for what happens in
this case. In the area the Arizona team comes from, there is no baseball
program for the boys to play. Would you waste your money to continually fight
lawsuits you don't have a chance to win?
The only way for LL to resolve this problem is to stick to their name LL
BASEBALL, Inc. and leave the softball to the softball organizations.
Of course, then they would be blasted for abandoning the young ladies.
Mike
Bruce Hanson
your suggestion of the little league girls just lobbin' 'em in, I was
disappointed. My daughter is a pitcher on a travel ball team, and early in
the season, one of the coaches from our local LL team called asking her to
pitch for them. (For as much time as she could give.) She decided it would
be fun to play for her city, knowing that going to Western Nationals for
travel ball would interfere with attending the World Series. She played
for both teams, and our Glendale LL team made it to Palmdale (Western
Regionals). This is where we heard about the Arizona team carrying five
boys. We were anxious to play them, but lost to a fabulous Oregon, Oak Park
team, one game away from the challenge. Oak Park Oregon lost to the AZ team
and off they went to the world series. My daughter pitched a fantastic
game, but some of the team had left for vacations, (something that happens
only in little league). This gave way to a weaker infield giving up errors
and unearned runs. (On radar, my daughter pitches at 59 mph.) Give the
girls in little league a little bit more credit. I only wished I could have
seen her pitch against the badboys.
Vince Muehe
<cyar...@idt.net> wrote:
Sharon:
And the girl didn't object to playing with the boys either did she?
Was she in harm's way? Is it only right to have girls play with the
boys if it is for the benefit of the boys -- as outlined in your post?
You state she played better than many of the boys. You seem to be
talking out of both sides: It's okay for girls to play with boys and
it's not okay for boys to play with girls. Well, let me tell you: if
girls are playing with boys, the boys are playing with girls at the
same time!
-Vince
Vince Muehe
the poorly stated last paragraph.
Personally, I think if parents of Little League softball are
successful in making softball and all girls sport with no male
participation, it will set the clock back 20-years. Little League
BASEBALL and every other sport that wants to be male only, would use a
decision to ban boys from softball to their benefit and girls will be
blocked from playing in what are traditionally male dominated sports.
Nobody thought that boys would want to participate in a girls sport,
but as the sports have become more "equalized" in competitive nature,
the boys are willing to play -- especially if they don't have other
options.
-Vince
Andy Anderson
looked silly in girl's uniforms and socks.
sh...@my-deja.com
Bruce,
Thanks for your response. We don't hear much from LL softball on this
NG, so it's good to see another perspective. I infer from your message
that until your daughter arrived on the scene from a travel team that
the pitching on the LL team was not too great, which was basically my
point. I haven't seen girls pitch against boys in softball, aside from
the few boys my pitcher daughter has whiffed after they made fun of her
"girlie, underhand" pitching style, so I was basically wondering out
loud about the LL situation.
As far as girls leaving for vacations at tournament time is concerned,
it doesn't only happen in LL, much to the chagrin of a few local coaches
who's teams made it to ASA Nationals. It makes you wonder where some of
these parents' heads are, or coaches signing on players who they know
won't be available in mid-August, but that's another topic altogether.
sh...@my-deja.com
I saw the picture and the accompanying article on the "coed team." Ditto
on the boys in girls' uniforms. And not one of them was wearing
Ringors, either.
Mike Rowe
>Nobody thought that boys would want to participate in a girls sport,
>but as the sports have become more "equalized" in competitive nature,
>the boys are willing to play -- especially if they don't have other
>options.
>
>-Vince
Vince,
Why is it that so many people think this is a "girl's game"?
You really need to get out and see the men play this game and I'm not talking
about slowpitch. If anything, it is sad that men's participation in the sport
is dwindling, just as it is in the women's game. The Modified game is a nice
interim, but just doesn't seem like the same game.
It is a good game and requires the top level of athleticism.
Mike
AMERKIWI
>interim, but just doesn't seem like the same game.
Modified is for people who are still wanting to bat .600 but, don't want to be
called a wimp for playing slow pitch.
Here in the east, Modified is killing fastpitch, especially among the men's
game.
Bill
HawkTeam98
>the
>boys, hardly a physical threat. With the reverse situation --putting a boy
>with
>the girls, and given that the boy, due to physiology would be a physical
>threat--
>the situation would then in all liklihood become dangerous. (Visions of
>Mike
>Tyson vs. a smaller stature lady boxer come to mind----- Would you let your
>daughter fight Mike Tyson? )
Good analogy.
Here's another: Nobody here seems to have any problem with a kid playing UP,
but I think everybody would agree that it would not be fair to let kids play
DOWN. Just because a talented 14yo can play in 16U doesn't mean that we should
allow 16yo's to play 14U.
Dave
Indiana Nighthawks
Mike Rowe
>be
>called a wimp for playing slow pitch.
>
>Here in the east, Modified is killing fastpitch, especially among the men's
>game.
>
>Bill
Sounds just like the kind of people that think only wimps play slowpitch. I
hope you know better than that.
Mike Rowe
DASA Deputy UIC
Delaware Softball Umpire Assn
NASO member
Terry Shaw
Mike Rowe wrote:
>
> >Modified is for people who are still wanting to bat .600 but, don't want to
> >be
> >called a wimp for playing slow pitch.
> >
> >Here in the east, Modified is killing fastpitch, especially among the men's
> >game.
> >
> >Bill
>
> Sounds just like the kind of people that think only wimps play slowpitch. I
> hope you know better than that.
>
I can't say wheteher he (Bill) knows better or not, but I can say GOOD
LUCK to Bill Hillhouse and the rest of the Men's Fastpitch Softball team
that will be representing the USA in South Africa during the Olympics.
May the Force be with you.
Terry Shaw
AMERKIWI
>hope you know better than that.
Quite the contrary. Many terrific ball players play slowpitch. I just wish
most of them would get off their .800 batting average egos and come TRY
fastpitch. I bet they'd LOVE it. And there are all different levels of F/P,
they don't have to jump into the ASA Major or ISC World.
MentalTossFlycoon
an early age and becomes proficient? 70+ mph at age 14 is very possibly
from a physically mature male. We have had quite a few 90+ baseball
pitchers at that age in the area in the last few years, no reason to believe
they wouldn't do similar things in softball given proper instruction.
--
Jon N.
"HawkTeam98" <hawkt...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20000820235535...@ng-fl1.aol.com...
Mike Rowe
>wish
>most of them would get off their .800 batting average egos and come TRY
>fastpitch. I bet they'd LOVE it. And there are all different levels of
>F/P,
>they don't have to jump into the ASA Major or ISC World.
Yes, but it is not as much as people and their ego as it does with the aging of
the average softball player regardless of the game your talking about. There
are the same number of athletes there was 30 years ago, but a much more
diversified sports world open to many participants that were not available
before.
In the 60's & 70's, there wasn't as much soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, roller
hockey, ice hockey, etc. other than what you found in certain schools and
clubs. Now, you can find all sorts of games and leagues any time you want.
When we were growing up, the summer game was baseball. That's it, just
baseball. When you were finished playing for fun during the days of summer
vacation, you went home, ate dinner, put on your uniform and headed out to the
field for the league games.
Those who weren't qualified or didn't have time to commit to semi-pro ball
often moved over to softball. And due to the diversity, those numbers just
aren't there anymore.
Of course, this is just my observation of how things have been around here, but
I'm confident this situation exists elsewhere.
Mike
Reid1boys
corey
AMERKIWI
Men's leagues here in my hometown at the very young age of 12. There were
simply no boy's leagues to play in. If I wanted to play Fastpitch, and I did,
I had to play with the men. Now, what's more dangerous... a boy playing among
men or teenagers playing among each other?
I don't think boys should be banned from playing softball, just as I don't
think girls should be banned from our sports. But, if size and things are
such a difference at that age, why not make the boys play at a different age
bracket? 16 year old boys must play 18-under Girls level. Or something like
that. After all, if these boy's sole purpose was to "play ball" then it
wouldn't matter what level or age, would it? Or would that open a new can of
worms when it came to women wanting to play men's sports, as far as ability,
strength, etc?
The USA male program can use all the ball players it can get
MentalTossFlycoon
The lefty (of course) in round 1, the other 2 in the seventh round. The
seventh rounder to the Astros was consistently clocked in the low 90's since
he was 14. Kids mature physically at such young ages these days that we see
things we never thought possible from them.
--
Jon N.
"Reid1boys" <reid...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20000822003130...@ng-fn1.aol.com...
Sftblmom33
whichever predominantly boys team you choose), do so at THEIR OWN risk. Boys
who choose to play on a girls team are not putting themselves at risk, but are
putting their opponents at risk. And that makes it wrong! I don't know a lot
about the LL system, but didn't they come up with LL softball to give the girls
a place to play so they would hopefully stay away from LL baseball?
Mike Rowe
No. I believe they came up with LL softball for the families (involvement for
son and daughter in same organization) and in some areas, they filled a demand
where there was previously no sanctioning organization. From there, it grew to
what it is today.
Of course, this is merely an opinion.
Mike
Jay Nicholson
Perhaps that as their initial reason but after being sued for
discrimination, LL was forced to allow boys to play SB
sftbl...@ao.com
>Boys
>who choose to play on a girls team are not putting themselves at risk, but are
>putting their opponents at risk.
Not according to all the die-hard girls softball fans who think girls will
whiff boys. Conflicting messages in this entire scenario. Can't wait for
people to debunk the fact that Reggie Jackson struck out rather easily
against a fastpitch pitcher and I'm surprised no one's brought it up
yet....that's what liberal cunts do best, point to things like that, Billie
Jean Dyke, etc.
Vince
Mike Rowe
>whiff boys. Conflicting messages in this entire scenario. Can't wait for
>people to debunk the fact that Reggie Jackson struck out rather easily
>against a fastpitch pitcher and I'm surprised no one's brought it up
>yet....that's what liberal cunts do best, point to things like that, Billie
>Jean Dyke, etc.
>
>Vince
>
Another real class statement, low class, that is.
Mike
April Orlando
> Coachk here ...asst. coach Jeffersontown, KY
> We played Arizona twice in the Senior League World Series, losing 4-2 and
> 3-1. They have a good team and very supportive group of parents that
> followed them all along the way.
> The Arizona "boys" are very good athletes , but for that matter so were
> their girls.
> This was our first trip to the World Series and our girls were placed in a
> very awkward set of cicumstances.
> A boycott was proposed by the Florida coach and all but the Canadian coach
> the other team with a male player) agreed that this was the proper course
> of action needed "to save Little League Girl's Softball"
> After meeting with our girls we too decided to honor the boycott
> But on game day ( We drew Arizona in our first game) We decided to play . We
> decided this because our girls wanted to play in the Senior League World
> Series. An honor which they worked all summer for.
> It did not matter if they won or lost, it just mattered that they be
> rewarded for all of their hard work.
> Their reward: A chance to compete for the Senior League World series
> Championship.
> And we did and we are proud of it.
> We are proud of our accomplishments this year and we are determined not to
> let politics spoil our "special summer"
> We have no solutions for the problems facing the "girls" program in LL
> softball.
> We just know that we played more games than any other team in the Senior
> League World Series because we did not "girlcott", and next year we plan on
> competing again. if there are boys playing we will adapt,adjust, and do the
> best we can
> This is the overwhelming sentiment of the girls softball players from
> Jeffersontown, Kentucky Little League Senior All Stars
> Kentucky District 2 champions
> Cental Regional Champions
> Coachk
> glori...@mindspring.com
> www.eteamz.com/jtdiamonds
> "Vince Muehe" <vmu...@isd.net> wrote in message
> news:399f1345....@news.isd.net...
> > Peanuts, Pennants and Protests
> >
> > Here's a couple of articles from ABC News and Associated Press that
> > highlight a little of the "other side" of the issue. Some argue girls
> > need to compete with boys...
> >
> > --Vince
> >
> >
> > Little League Softball World Series Goes Coed
> >
> > Aug. 19 For the first time in the 26-year
> > history of the girls' Little League Softball World
> > Series, a team with boys won the championship
> > game but only after the opposing team from
> > the Philippines forfeited.
> >
> > A coed team from Eloy, Ariz., playing with five
> > male starters was to play against the all-girl Far East
> > team in the championship game today at Vanderberg Park
> > in Kalamazoo, Mich. And lots of parents and coaches
> > weren't happy.
> >
> > "What they've done today is turn something a good
> > thing that was for girls into a bad thing," said Mary
> > Doyle, coach of a team from Inverness, Fla."And now
> > it's gotten ugly."
> >
> > But the coach of the Arizona team, which also has
> > seven female players, says he had to recruit boys for the
> > team because only a handful of girls showed up for the
> > tryouts.
> >
> > Boys Allowed
> >
> > The rules have allowed boys to play girls' softball since
> > 1996, but some parents want the rules changed.
> >
> > "These little girls need a place to play,' says Wendy
> > Malik, a parent of a Little Leaguer. "And next year there's
> > going to be eight boys here. And the year after there's
> > going to be 12. And then there's going to be no girls."
> >
> > The Arizona team had lost only one game in the
> > tournament - to the same all-girls team from the
> > Philippines that it met in the final. The team from overseas
> > won 3-2 Tuesday night.
> >
> > Another team had forfeited its game against Arizona.
> > On Friday, the team from Florida refused to play Arizona
> > in the semifinal in protest. The gesture left players on both
> > sides disappointed.
> >
> > "I hate giving in to boys, it makes me sick," said
> > Brittney Doyle, a player for the Florida team that played
> > against an all-girl team from Jeffersontown, Ky., today for
> > third place.
> >
> > "The girls probably want to play us, but it's up to their
> > coaches," said Arizona player Martin Juarez. "And if
> > they're not going to give their girls a chance to play then
> > it's their loss.
> >
> > Injuries Inevitable?
> >
> > Softball coaches say that while girls can beat boys at
> > softball, boys in the 14- to 16-year-old age group tend to
> > be bigger and stronger than girls, giving them an unfair
> > advantage on the field and putting female players at risk of
> > injury.
> >
> > "Winning is nothing compared to a girl's career," said
> > Pete Maggiore, manager of the Florida team.
> >
> > But Amy Love, who was one of the first to play when
> > Little League Baseball changed its rules to allow girls to
> > play back in 1974, says safety is just an excuse.
> > "You're saying to those girls they are not good enough
> > to compete with boys," said Love, who is now the
> > publisher of Real Sports. "Twenty years ago, we'd been
> > trying to break down these barriers, saying girls can
> > compete with boys."
> >
> > Tournament director Bud Vanderberg said he'll take
> > the issue to the Little League board of directors next week
> > to make sure next year's softball world series is girls only.
> >
> > --ABC News
> >
> >
> > Female Football Player Suits Up
> >
> > ELGIN, Ill. -- Opponents of Elgin High School's
> > football team this fall may butt helmets with a rather
> > unusual player: a girl.
> >
> > Fourteen-year-old freshman Adrianna Delhotal will
> > take the field for the Elgin Maroons later this month,
> > becoming the first girl to play football for either of the
> > city's public high schools.
> >
> > The five-foot-seven, 170 pound Delhotal said she
> > enjoys the physical nature of the sport and feels like one
> > of the guys.
> >
> > "It's not like I'm fragile or anything," she said, referring
> > to a number of bruises from this week's practices. "I have
> > a good stance and I'm able to hit people hard. They treat
> > me like I'm one of the rest of them."
> >
> > Still, she didn't like cutting 12 inches off her hair this
> > summer so her helmet would fit correctly.
> >
> > Despite paying the $25 team fee and practicing all
> > fall, a school rule limits her participation to only two
> > games this season. Delhotal said she doesn't think it's
> > fair but still plans to practice and dress for every game.
> >
> > One solution, she said, is a separate girls football
> > team.
> >
> > "There are girls out there who actually want to play
> > football," she said.
> >
> > When she was in seventh grade, Delhotal and a friend
> > joked about playing football and a gym teacher
> > encouraged the girls to try out. But Delhotal's mother told
> > her to wait a year.
> >
> > She began playing football last year for her
> > eighth-grade team.
> >
> > Delhotal doesn't plan to play the sport much longer.
> > "When you get older, the guys keep getting bigger
> > and bigger," she said. "I'm thinking I'll play freshman and
> > sophomore year and then, when I'm a junior, join the
> > pompom squad."
> >
> > She said she wants to take up kickboxing and karate
> > this winter, and plans to play softball in the spring.
> >
> > The Associated Press
What do you all think about boys playing in the lower "coach pitch" softball leagues? I'd love for my boy and girl to be on the same team but she is older and the boys little league is just too basic for him. I had her on his baseball team last season and it was just way below her ability level. If they aren't competitive, should a little boy be allowed on a coach pitch team for some convenience for working parents who want their kids to be active, not to mention they WANT to be on the same team? It seems like our only option is to have her on his team in which she was and will be either the only girl or 1 of 2 girls. I don't want him to continue softball as it gets competitive but I don't see the harm in having co-ed softball in the lower leagues. You think it would cause too much controversy than it's worth?