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New York Statesmen's Victories Tempered by Tragedy

Jan. 1, 2002 – Jack Sirard contributing writer

The evening of September 10, 2001, the New York Statesmen were on top of the world. They had come to the Senior Softball World Championships in Las Vegas on the heels of a string of tournament victories and had just beaten the West Coast Champions ˆ the California Gold Rush ˆ to win the US National Title.

The team couldn't have been in higher spirits as they walked off the field.

Little did they - or the rest of the world - know what would happen the next day, Sept. 11.

"We had a number of players who had children working in and around the World Trade Center and like people everywhere, they hoped for the best and feared the worst," said George Martin, NY Statesmen manager.

The games continued for the World Championships, but Martin's team came up short, losing six straight games.

Softball ran a distant second to their concerns for loved ones during those turbulent days. Fortunately, when team members finally made contact, they found out that all their children were safe.

One of the more miraculous stories was that of right fielder Angelo Ragone. His son was a member of the elevator maintenance crew in the World Trade Center. The day of the attack, the son missed work for the first time other than vacations, to take Angelo's grandson to his first day of kindergarten.

The team, like many in the tournament, had to scramble to get flights home and for Martin it wasn't until he got home that the impact of the tragedy began to sink in.

"It was only then that we began to put names and faces to the statistics we were hearing out in Las Vegas. I learned that a fellow umpire who I knew very well was one of the firemen who didn't get out," Martin says.

Martin welcomed the end of tournament play for the season, but is looking forward to the 2002 season.

They take their senior softball serious on Long Island, N.Y.

Martin plays in a league of 28 teams in four divisions, aged 60 and over. That's 350 players in their 60s and 70s hitting, running and fielding a good portion of the year. And when it turns cold, they continue to play in what they call their Snowflake League."We've got a lot of teams so everyone gets a chance to play," Martin says.

When it comes time for tournament play, Martin manages the New York Statesmen, a team comprised of players from the six teams in the top division of their league.

Martin, who began playing senior softball seven years ago when he was 61, is the field manager of the Statesmen, which also has a general manager and a treasurer.

"That way we split up the responsibilities so one person doesn't have to do it all," he says. The team has 17 players and usually can count on 14 to 15 of them making it to the tournaments that they enter.

And what a record they've had in 2001.

"We played in the ISSA Tournament in Manassas, Va., in August and won that by beating Fairway Ford of California in the finals of the 65 Majors. We've played Fairway several times in the past and I think it was the first time we won," Martin says.

Previously, the Statesmen won the SSWC Qualifier in Bridgewater, N.J., with a 5-1 record.

"We lost a game early on and had to come up through the loser's bracket and had to beat the winner's bracket twice to claim the title.

The team also won the SSWC Eastern National Championships in Glen Burnie, Md., which gave them the chance to play ˆ and win ˆ the US National Championship game against the Western National Champions in Las Vegas.

The retired high school and college math teacher says that the team will resume play in April when the signs of spring will signal a rebirth in the region. In the meantime, he stays in shape working as a basketball official. "It helps me get my running in so I can play the outfield when needed," Martin says.

Martin says he's enjoyed playing softball since he was playing fast pitch at age 17 and never missed a year, although he switched over to slow pitch many years ago. Along the way he had the wonderful opportunity to play for eight years along side his two sons.

Although the winter snow will stop the team from playing, Martin says they get together and go out for dinner as a group a couple of times during the off-season to stay in touch with each other.

What's in store for the upcoming season?

"I'll be scouting for some younger guys, maybe a few 65 year olds as we try to reclaim our crown. And as many of us will be moving on to age 70 in the not too distant future, we may have to start thinking about playing in a new league," Martin says.

Here's the New York Statesmen team that went to Las Vegas:

George Martin, 68, pitcher, outfielder.

Ray Burr, 64, third base.

Tony Castaldy, 66, catcher.

Richard Clarke, 65, first base.

Robert Conk, 67, first base.

Stanley Cutler, 67, middle infielder.

Al Giordano, 68, second base.

John Johnson, 67, left field, general manager.

Andy Koerick, 68, short stop.

Marty Paris, 68, pitcher.

Angelo Ragone, 68, right field.

Ray Rogener, 67, center field.

Harry Settino, 69, designated hitter.

Dave Thomson, 67, outfield.