Florida Senior Games Softball teams to qualify for National Senior Games this weekend
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Senior Games (FSG) Softball players will take the field this weekend to begin their journey to the 2019 National Senior Games in Albuquerque, N.M., at the FSG Softball Qualifier at the Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex in Leesburg.
Teams ranging in ages from 50+ to 75+ will earn a trip to the 2019 National Senior Games with this qualifying performance. Games begin on Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. and the final game begins at 3:30 p.m. There is no admission charge and spectators are encouraged to attend and support the Florida Senior Games athletes.
Four teams winning medals at the 2017 National Senior Games are looking to return to the 2019 National Senior Games. The 55+ Players team and the 65+, 70+, and 75+ Golden Gals teams, all from The Villages, have registered to take the field in Leesburg.
The 70+ and 75+ teams were gold medal winners in 2017.
The Golden Gals 70+ team is a mainstay on the medal stand at the National Senior Games having won gold medals through the years at the National Senior Games since 2007, according to, Midge Ferraro, who serves as the team’s coach.
“This is an amazing group of women who have been together since 2005,” said Ferraro, a native of Long Island, New York, who has been coaching for nearly 50 years. “This group is made up of 99% Floridians and has grown in the number of players and the number of teams. They have a passion in life that comes through the fact that they are still playing the game they love.”
From the 2017 National Senior Games gold medal winning team are 12 members who will play this weekend; Barbara Bailey, Sharon Baran, Julie Bradley, Carol Courter, Evelyn Hayes, Barbara Lukens, Gloria Miller, Noreen Murphy, Beth Quesnel, Virginia Rowand, Joyce Turner, and Carol Walthers.
Several members of the Golden Gals also compete in other sports of the Florida Senior Games. Madelaine “Tiny” Cazel, who is a member of the 75+ team, has also been a record-setting track and field athlete for more than 10 years.
Avis Vaught is a member of the 70+ team. She is a triple-threat athlete that holds a handful of track and field records and plays on Florida Senior Games volleyball teams. Both Cazel and Vaught are former FSG Athletes of the Year. Cazel won the award in 2003 while Vaught claimed the distinguished honor in 2010.
CLICK HERE for a full schedule of the 2018 FSG Softball Qualifier.
The 2018 Florida Senior Games Presented by Humana will be held December 1-9, in various locations throughout the city of Clearwater and Pinellas County. Registration will be available soon for the 24 sports of the 27th Annual Florida Senior Games. The 2018 Games are a qualifier for the 2019 National Senior Games, to be held June 14-25 in Albuquerque, N.M.