Nov, 27, 2007
SPOTLIGHT
COMMUNITY
SPOTLIGHT: Senior softball team earns medal, memories
JOSIE LIMING THE BELLINGHAM HERALD
From left: Daryl Smiley, Terry Jorgenson, and Jim Norris pose at
Geri Field Nov. 21. Their senior softball team recently won the silver medal at a national tournament.
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Two Yeager's Sporting Goods senior softball teams came back
with silver medals in a major international tournament in Utah, but the overall experience left the players with their richest
memories.
Bellingham's Terry Jorgenson,
who coordinates the Yeager's slowpitch program and coaches the over- 60 team, and players Jim Norris and Daryl Smiley
were overwhelmed by the 21st annual Huntsman Senior World Games last month in St. George.
In fact, they're now urging anyone 50 and older - not just softball players
- to consider participating in the multi-sport event, which is also known as the Senior Olympics.
"This is one of the great sporting events in the country for
seniors," said 64- year-old Jorgenson, a retired school principal.
"You know what I wish? I wish every senior in Whatcom County could enjoy this experience,"
he said. "They have an incredible range of activities, ranging from basketball, tennis and swimming to bridge, chess
and square dancing. I really would like to see as many people as possible look into it."
The Whatcom Countybased team capped its 24th season under the sponsorship of
Yeager's with silver in both the over-60 and over- 50 tournaments.
"That's the best we've done," said Jorgenson. "Coming in, we had one silver
and one bronze since we started entering in 2001."
For
softball players, the Huntsman Games is paradise. Or at least looks like it.
"The softball fields look like a perfectly groomed golf course," Jorgenson said. "But
it's the Huntsman people who make this such a fabulous experience. Before games, they even bring in baskets of fruit,
pastries and water."
Norris, 56, and
Smiley, 62, are former high school track and field athletes without a baseball background. They didn't begin playing softball
until they were young adults, and now they're having a ball using their speed in the outfield.
Smiley, a retired Mount Baker High counselor, legged out an inside-thepark
home run in St. George. Roger Metzger also contributed an inside-thepark job among an uncharacteristically high 18 homers
in nine games for the singles- and doubles-oriented over-60 team.
"We had so much fun," said Norris, who qualified for the state track meet at Mount Baker High
and has played thousands of softball games in the past three-plus decades. "No matter how good your team is, you always
want to go to the Huntsman Games.
"One
of the things that made this special is that our over-50 team actually had only one player younger than 55 (the youngest player
defines the age category). So we did pretty well to win the silver against mostly younger players."
Smiley, who played in his second Huntsman Games, said it's a
socially responsible event, too.
"It's
really pretty cool how they push health there," he said. "They give a variety of free health tests."
Jorgenson said more than 9,500 senior athletes participated in the
Huntsman Games. St. George, which has landed on some of the same "best of" city lists with Bellingham, enjoyed an
economic impact of more than $50 million, he said.
Yeager's
over-60 team went 4-2 in the official portion of its four-day Major Division tournament after three practice games. Yeager's
played teams from Minnesota, Michigan, Nevada, Wisconsin and California, beating the Michigan squad before losing to that
team in the finals.
Yeager's hitting
was some of its best of the season, led by Vern Tillman (.889), Jim Thomas (.769), Bob Ayres (.724), Joe Franco (.719) and
Metzger (.740). Ayres hit six homers and Thomas and John Wyatt had four apiece.
The over-50 team competed against Oregon, California, Alberta and Montana and lost in the championship
game to the X-Men from Vancouver, B.C. Norris led Yeager's with an .813 average, followed by Tillman (.737), Zack Bruner
(.714) and Ross Prince (.630). Jim Thomas hit three homers and Fred Hull had two.
Yeager's 60-over team went on to Phoenix, Ariz., for the Senior Softball USA
Association's national tournament in the Major Division. Thomas was MVP for Yeager's, which went 3-3 with three close
losses, and other top hitters were Bill Edwardson (.845), Luther Schutz (.810), Ayres (.750), Tully Swanberg (.722) and Bud
Turner (.700).
"I couldn't go
to Phoenix so Tom Brusca filled in for me as manager," Jorgenson said. "It was great to hear him say this was the
most pleasurable group of guys he's ever worked with and the most enjoyable tournament he's ever coached."
The teams have several extra players, although everyone plays at
some point. Playing time is not an issue, the players said.
"Nobody likes to sit out, but they're not complainers," Smiley said with a laugh. "Sometimes
we fight to see who gets to sit out!"
"Yeah,"
Norris added. "The hotter the tournament ..."
The
players said one of the greatest pleasures is being loudly cheered by their wives.
"But you know what?" Jorgenson said. "We have had four wives inspired
to participate in the Huntsman Games - Joanne Norris, Cheryl Hull, Sue Turner and Cheryl Franco. Joanne once won a silver
in the halfmarathon, Cheryl Hull won a gold in racketball, and Sue and Cheryl Franco played on a volleyball team.
"Like I said, I wish everyone 50 and older in Whatcom County
could play there at least once."
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