Sports
D.C. Swag captures division title at Sept. softball tournament
LGBT ladies team from D.C. perseveres despite rain, heat
Local queer ladies won big at the ASANA Softball World Series held in New Orleans last month. (Photo courtesy D.C. Swag)
After four days of competition in New Orleans (Sept. 16-23), D.C. Swag captured the title in the D Division at the 2018 ASANA Softball World Series. The women from D.C. fought their way back from a deficit in nine of the 14 games they played.
The Chesapeake and Potomac Softball League (CAPS) sent three travel teams to the annual championships — DC Swag, Crazy Pitches and D.C. Sharks. All three teams competed in the D Division.
The Amateur Sports Alliance of North America (ASANA) was created in 2007 as a non-profit organization comprised of women dedicated to promoting the participation of LGBT people in an organized softball competition.
This year’s championships boasted roughly 1,100 players on 38 teams from across the United States. This was D.C. Swag’s fourth appearance in the tournament; their road to the title began in 2011 when the team was formed by Rhonda Jackson and Diana Ring.
“We were looking for an opportunity to play more ball and began identifying women in the CAPS leagues who wanted to be more competitive,” Jackson says. “We started out by playing in regional tournaments in Philadelphia and New York.”
In their first two years of the World Series, D.C. Swag didn’t win a single game. After receiving mentorship from teams in Philadelphia, they rose to a third place finish in 2017. Their victory this year came in a 9-4 win in the championship game over Austin’s Cleats and Cleavage.
“Over the years, Philadelphia showed us how to win. We played through four days of hot weather, rain delays — a little bit of everything,” Jackson says. “We really have a great mix of talent and chemistry. We are a team and a family, and it shows in our play.”
Jackson is from Massachusetts and was a three-sport athlete in high school in basketball, field hockey and fastpitch softball. She was a four-year starter in basketball at Virginia Commonwealth University. She earned a master of public health degree at George Washington University and now works as an epidemiologist.
She has been a member of CAPS since 2008 and shares what she loves most about the ASANA Softball World Series.
“I love the competitive level, making new friends and the camaraderie. You get to see all the best players from all the divisions,” Jackson says. “These are people who share a love of playing ball and it is a space where women and athleticism are celebrated.”
The third day of the World Series was PINK day in support of breast cancer awareness. The players from D.C. Swag wore tribute jerseys to honor one of their players, Tonia Jones, who died last year from cancer. They dedicated their win to their fallen teammate.
CAPS commissioner Tony Mace chimed in on what the championship title for D.C. Swag means to him.
“At the ASANA Softball World Series, you are getting the best of every team. Their win meant the world to me as their friend and as league commissioner. I am still on cloud nine,” Mace says. “It has always been my goal to support our men’s and women’s teams in doing the things necessary for them to grow and succeed. D.C. is a city of champions.”
Iran and Egypt on Friday faced off during the World Cup’s “Pride Match” in Seattle.
Iran is among the handful of countries in which consensual same-sex sexual relations remain punishable by death. Discrimination and persecution based on sexual orientation and gender identity is commonplace in Egypt.
Friday’s match coincided with Pride weekend in Seattle. The Egyptian Football Association and the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran both objected to playing in the “Pride Match.”
Egypt and Iran tied 1-1.
FIFA, for its part, allowed Pride flags inside the stadium during the match.
“The FIFA World Cup 2026 is an inclusive event that welcomes people from all backgrounds,” a FIFA spokesperson told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Fans of all sexual orientations and gender identities are welcome at matches and events. General statements of human rights, including rainbow flags and other flags representing sexual orientation and gender identity, are permitted under the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Stadium Code of Conduct and may be displayed inside stadiums provided they are used in a manner consistent with the code.”
Human Rights Watch welcomed FIFA’s decision to allow Pride flags inside the stadium. Outright International, a global LGBTQ and intersex rights group, distributed Pride flags in Seattle on Friday, which was Pride Match Day.
“Visibility matters,” said Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjödin. “Pride is now being celebrated in more than 100 countries, including this weekend in Seattle. For many LGBTIQ people, seeing a Pride flag in public is a reminder that they are not alone, and that their rights and dignity are recognized.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino earlier this year told Die Weltwoche, a Swiss magazine, that “there will be no ‘Pride Match’ at the (FIFA) World Cup.”
“There will be a FIFA World Cup match in Seattle, and on the same day, events organized by external organizations will be taking place in the city,” said Infantino. “But that has nothing to do with the match itself.”
Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, was among those who traveled to Seattle for Friday’s match. Tatchell accused FIFA of not vetting World Cup teams — specifically Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Senegal, Qatar, Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Uzbekistan, and Algeria — over whether they would allow gay players.
“FIFA is protecting LGBT+ visibility in the stands while failing to protect LGBT+ players on the pitch,” said Tatchell.
The Baltimore Orioles will take on the Washington Nationals on Friday, June 26 at 7 p.m. for Pride Night at Oriole Park.
The first 15,000 fans will receive an exclusive Pride Night Orioles jersey. The Washington Blade is a media sponsor of this event.
To purchase tickets, visit Orioles.com/Tickets.
Sports
Minor league team in York, Pa., forfeits Pride Night game after some players refuse to wear special jersey
City is roughly 20 miles north of Md. border
An independent minor league baseball team says it is forfeiting a game because some of its players refused to wear a special Pride Night jersey.
The Atlantic League Pro Baseball’s York Revolution were planning to hold their 11th annual Pride Night event Thursday for a game against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs.
But the Revolution announced the day of the game that it wouldn’t be played. York is about 20 miles north of the Maryland line. The Blue Crabs play in Waldorf.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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