WOMEN'S TEAMS

Once up on a time not so long ago, the phrase “women’s sports” was limited to badminton, croquet, hopscotch and jump-rope. Swimming was included, as was a form of basketball where you dribbled (bounced) the ball only once.

Women simply were not allowed to turn out for contact sports. Football, boxing and wrestling were out of the question, unladylike. After all, the fairer sex were the future wives and mothers of our societies. Besides, who would go out to see a bunch of girls play football, or basketball for that matter. I mean, girls aren’t built to play sports. They can’t throw, they can’t run, they’re too slow, and far too weak to compete. So the litany went.

Well, let me tell you, things have changed. In Seattle we have one of the best pro basketball teams in the WNBA, the Seattle Storm (national champs in 2004). The Seattle Majestics, a women’s tackle football team, is unbeaten two years running in regular season play, The University of Washington fields basketball, volleyball, and softball teams that rank with the top teams in the nation. Seattle Pacific’s soccer team won the NCAA championship. All women.

If you haven’t got the picture yet—women’s sports is a big deal in Seattle. Don’t miss a chance to take in a game. Oh, and that business about girls not being tough enough to play contact sports? Spend a night watching the Rat City Rollergirls or the Jet City Roller Girls go at it, or catch a Seattle Majestic football game, then tell me that. Watch the Seattle Storm play, or The U of W softball team in action, and tell me girls can’t catch, throw or run. These gals may not be as big or as strong as their male counterparts, but they are just as much fun to watch.