Just out., August 16, 2002, Page 63, Image 63

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15
Continued from Page S13
Open division team, but she declined the offer. Not wanting to
let this valuable resource slip through their fingers, though, the
guys asked if she would consider coaching instead. They thought
having a female coach might be an advantage.
“Most of the women grew up playing,” Nunez notes. “Their
knowledge of the game is better." Luckily for the lads and the
whole team, Henley welcomed the opportunity to coach.
Henley grew up playing ball in the back yards of Portland. It
wasn’t until high school that she started playing softball, making
an easy transition from overhand to underhand. The young
dyke was named first team All-Metro three years in a row at
David Douglas High School for her time served as pitcher.
Although she could have gone on to play fast-pitch in col­
lege, Henley chose instead to play basketball at Western Oregon
State University (being, of course, an all-around killer jock).
But never letting her love for softball die, she continued to play
on recreational teams. “Softball is something that I could always
get into and have fun with,” she says.
nce all the players and coaching staff were in place,
Scandals went to work, and, interestingly, the inexperi­
enced players never slowed them down. Instead, this
team came equipped with an unbeatable attitude. That may
sound sappy, but the fact is: They want it. They love it. They’re
versatile. And most importantly, they’re having a blast.
But what would winning be without a few rocks in the road?
Namely, they had to start from scratch. According to Henley,
they started the season by working on hitting and catching.
“By the end of the season, though, the players that started
out with minimal ability were totally different,” she beams. “The
key to our success has been a matter of me being able to really
work with them and them allowing me to do so.”
In order to qualify for the World Series a team must finish
first or second in their league. Heading into the last few games,
Scandals was an underdog, but after placing third in the play­
offs, they slipped into the biggest tournament of the year in sec­
ond place in the C division.
O
«
J.R. Perez
(left) and Victor Nunez strong-armed the best coach they knew to lead Scandals to the World Series
In addition to their intense work ethic and desire to excel,
Henley says they’ve been able to achieve so much in so little
time because of an innate camaraderie. “This team has a chem­
istry that really makes us gel and work together,” she says.
“That’s what has gotten us this far.”
From the very start, Scandals has been ready to make their
mark and prove that slow-pitch is serious business. Going into
the tournament, team members hope the confidence and com­
petitive spirit will carry them through a winning streak. Plus,
there’s so much more motivation to win the World Series for a
gaggle of gay boys.
“I want the ring,” Nunez smiles. Jffi
C ourtney P erkins is a Portland free-lance writer.
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