Woman's Division History

The Women's division began in the Fall, 1990.   Rick Leon , the Commissioner of the Men's division had been collecting names of women who might be interested in playing softball since 1989 at the Christopher Street West festival.  The problem was that there weren't any women in the league who could contact the 125+ names on those lists.  The first clinic was held at Poinsettia Park on September 9, 1990.  

We were able to put together 4 teams:  Strike Zone, Second Base, Outta this League and Batteries Not Included.  The first game was held on Sunday, October 14, 1990.  Originally the league was considered mainly recreational, however several players expressed an interest in having something a little more competitive.

The second season, which began Sunday, April 7, 1991 the league had just about doubled.  We now had 7 teams:  Batteries Not Included, Les Femmes Sauvage, Strike Zone, Hit and Run, Dream Team, Pink Cadillac's and JD's Revenge.

The third season began in the Fall of 1991 and this was the largest ever with 13 womens teams.    This season the division was split into Competitive and Recreation.  The Rec Division had 4 teams:  Pink Cadillacs, Les Femmes Sauvage, A Softball Team and Rebels.  The Competitive Division had 8 teams:  Last Call, Dream Team, Hit and Run, French Connection, Strike Zone, Personal Choice, Diamond Express and Batteries Not Included (now calling themselves BNI).

The Summer of 1992 saw the women's division retain 7 of those 13 teams and add another 4, making 11 teams in all.  This season began March 15, 1992.  The NAGAAA World Series came to Los Angeles in August, 1992.  "Players" represented GLASA in the 1992 World Series as the 1st. place team and "Basic Instinct", the seasons 2nd. place team was allowed to fill Milwaukee's vacant spot and also joined in the 1992 World Series. 

The fields of choice for the Women's Division was Hjelte Park in the Sepulveda Basin - largely because there were never any people trying to have a bar-b-que in left field while we played our game.  Besides the green grass next to the corn fields made everyone believe that it was a League of Dreams.

Throughout fundraisers such as the GLASA Calendar for 1992, the Bowl-a-thon for World Series 1992, bar-b-ques and beer busts the league continued to play.  It helped a great deal that the women's division was the cover story of the August 1991 issue of Lesbian News.  Many women, from various walks of life who might have not met otherwise were able to come together on Sundays, meet and share softball stories and maybe even breakfast after the game.

 In 1994, NAGAAA introduced the Alternative Division. The Alternative Division was created to allow leagues to have separate divisions based on skill level, similar to other leagues with A, B & C Divisions. In 1998, NAGAAA implemented an additional method to qualify for World Series with Qualifying Tournaments.  Currently, Los Angeles officially sends three teams to the World Series, but via qualifying tournaments, we have had as many as 5 representatives.

In 1996, GLASA moved play from the San Fernando Valley into the Glendale area, and in 1998, moved to the new Glendale Sports Complex.  In 1999 and 2000, Bent became the first Los Angeles Women's team to place in the World Series, coming in 3rd and 2nd respectively.  As we head into our 15th year as an active part of NAGAAA, we have 15 teams participating in our Winter Season.

As we move into the future, new rules allow our league to send additional teams to represent Los Angeles.  So join now and become a part of our next chapter. 

(thanks to Bev Hilton - 1st GLASA Women's Commissioner)

World Series Representation – GLASA Women’s Division