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The Quincy Women's Softball League celebrates its 50th anniversary, showcasing its enduring legacy since its inception in 1976. Players like Tricia Grant and Ginny Trainor highlight the league's impact on women's sports in the community.
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QUINCY -- Tricia Grant spent 27 years playing in the Quincy Women's Softball League for the Washington Tap team. Unlike some folks (one of whom we'll get to in a minute), she wasn't there for the league's birth. But she can recall its toddler years.
"I remember being probably 12 or 13 and my dad saying to me, 'Come on, let's go watch a softball game.' And I was like, 'What are you talking about?'" Grant said. "We went down to a (QWSL) game. That was probably 1980 or 1981, so the league was still very new. I was amazed. Oh, my God, you can play ball after high school?
"Seeing all these ladies playing softball and loving it and playing hard (was inspiring). Some of them were nurses or police officers and they would hop in their cars (after the game) because they had to go to work. I distinctly remember Ginny climbing into the 18-wheeler of her father's trucking company and driving off after a game. I just thought it was fantastic."
Ginny is Ginny Trainor, who most definitely was there at the very beginning of the QWSL. A lifelong Quincy resident until moving to Marshfield a few years ago, Trainor was one of the first to answer the call when the late Patty Molloy Gauthier, who worked in Quincy's Recreation Department, first got the idea of forming a women's league in 1976.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League was founded in 1976.
Early players included Ginny Trainor and Tricia Grant, who have been involved with the league since its early years.
The league has provided a platform for women to play softball competitively and has inspired many in the community since its inception.
The league has celebrated milestones, including its 50th anniversary, and has featured players balancing sports with careers in various professions.

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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
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The Quincy Women's Softball League is celebrating its 50th anniversary during the 2026 season.
Trainor, who remembers Molloy Gauthier as being "full of life," rounded up some friends and put together a team sponsored by her dad, the trucker. A 1972 graduate of North Quincy High, she hadn't played softball in high school, so Trainor's wasn't a league powerhouse at the start.
"Twenty-one years old and we had never played softball," Trainor, 72, said with a laugh about those early days. "We were playing for the first time and we were awful."
Life wasn't easy back then for aspiring adult female athletes. Laurie Hansen, who began playing for Washington Tap in 1977, remembers players having to drag the infield dirt themselves by tying a piece of chain-link fence to the back of a van and driving around. "And there were no port-a-potties, so we used the woods in the back," Hansen said. "Everybody had a roll of toilet paper in their bag."
Somehow, they made it work. Trainor's eventually rounded into shape, winning the first of their 13 'A' Division crowns in 1983, and Trainor willed herself into being an infielder/outfielder who played until she was 51. She said she "never looked back" after retiring as an active player, probably because she still had so much to do to keep the league going.
Molloy Gauthier, who died of cancer at age 29, recruited Trainor to help her run the league in 1981, and Trainor has been the QWSL director for more than four decades. These days, she's assisted by a four-person Board of Directors and also leans heavily on Hansen, who is the league's director emeritus. Trainor also saluted the work of the late Terry Greenleaf, her former assistant director and longtime coach of Liberty Lounge.
Directors of the Quincy Women's Softball League pose at Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy on Friday, May 1, 2026. Front row (left to right) -- Nia Fornaro, Ginny Trainor and Camille DeCaro; back row (left to right) -- Tricia Grant and Kelly Barker.
The league's 50th anniversary celebration is, in a lot of ways, a celebration of women such as Trainor and Hansen, who helped break down barriers. Hansen, who grew up in Boston, remembers there being no softball team at her high school in the early 1970s because the adults "wouldn't let (girls) hold bats; they thought they were too dangerous."
Times have changed. Women's sports are high profile now, and even though ESPN isn't televising their games, the QWSL players are justifiably proud of how far they've come and how long they have endured.
"It's incredible to be a part of something that's been sustainable for so long," said board member Nia Fornaro, a 46-year-old Weymouth resident who plays for defending 'A' Division champion Slidaz. "Through the ups and downs and the pandemic, we're still standing. To me that speaks volumes. I think without people like Ginny Trainor and Laurie Hansen (it wouldn't have lasted). They're the heart and soul of why this league succeeds."
"We owe everything to Ginny and Laurie," said board member Kelly Barker, a 47-year-old Weymouth resident who plays for the Cathay Center team that was 'A' Division runner-up last season. "It's been an amazing ride from when we started until now."
Cathay Center catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham signal to the outfield that there is one out. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Slidaz coach Bob Hawe, of Braintree, gets his team together before start of play. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
First base coach Kelly Barker watches the action as her team Cathay Center is at bat. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Directors of the Quincy Women's Softball League pose at Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy on Friday, May 1, 2026. Front row (left to right) -- Nia Fornaro, Ginny Trainor and Camille DeCaro; back row (left to right) -- Tricia Grant and Kelly Barker.
Slidaz batter Devon Kelley, 31, of Plymouth hits a line-drive double. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Director Ginny Trainor, of Marshfield, hugs a returning coach for the start of the 50th season. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Directors of the Quincy Women's Softball League pose at Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy on Friday, May 1, 2026. Front row (left to right) -- Nia Fornaro, Ginny Trainor and Camille DeCaro; back row (left to right) -- Tricia Grant and Kelly Barker.
Slidaz second baseman Denise Larivee, 53, of Braintree, stretches in the dugout before taking the field. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Slidaz pitcher Nia Fornaro, of Weymouth, in the pitching circle. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Nelly "Nana" Pratt, of Rockland, winds up for a high arc pitch. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Slidaz pitcher Nia Fornaro, 46, of Weymouth, gets her cleats on in the dugout before hitting the field. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Cathay Center catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham covers home plate as a runner threatens from third. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Slidaz batter Amanda Micco is greeted at home plate after hitting a first-inning home run. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Nelly "Nana" Pratt, of Rockland, winds up for a pitch. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Longtime umpire Michael McKinney looks over the shoulder of catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham of Cathay Center. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Cathay Center catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham signal to the outfield that there is one out. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Cathay Center catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham signal to the outfield that there is one out. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Slidaz coach Bob Hawe, of Braintree, gets his team together before start of play. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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First base coach Kelly Barker watches the action as her team Cathay Center is at bat. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Directors of the Quincy Women's Softball League pose at Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy on Friday, May 1, 2026. Front row (left to right) -- Nia Fornaro, Ginny Trainor and Camille DeCaro; back row (left to right) -- Tricia Grant and Kelly Barker.
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Slidaz batter Devon Kelley, 31, of Plymouth hits a line-drive double. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Director Ginny Trainor, of Marshfield, hugs a returning coach for the start of the 50th season. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Directors of the Quincy Women's Softball League pose at Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy on Friday, May 1, 2026. Front row (left to right) -- Nia Fornaro, Ginny Trainor and Camille DeCaro; back row (left to right) -- Tricia Grant and Kelly Barker.
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Slidaz second baseman Denise Larivee, 53, of Braintree, stretches in the dugout before taking the field. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Slidaz pitcher Nia Fornaro, of Weymouth, in the pitching circle. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Nelly "Nana" Pratt, of Rockland, winds up for a high arc pitch. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Slidaz pitcher Nia Fornaro, 46, of Weymouth, gets her cleats on in the dugout before hitting the field. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Cathay Center catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham covers home plate as a runner threatens from third. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Slidaz batter Amanda Micco is greeted at home plate after hitting a first-inning home run. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Nelly "Nana" Pratt, of Rockland, winds up for a pitch. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
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Longtime umpire Michael McKinney looks over the shoulder of catcher Karen Lydon-Peckham of Cathay Center. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Trainor was all smiles at the league's opening night at Mitchell-McCoy Field on Friday, May 1, greeting everyone she met with a "Happy 50th!!" "I love it," she said of seeing the league emerge from its fall/winter hibernation. "It's very gratifying to see the 50th season start up."
The QWSL crowned its first four champs -- LaRaia Club (1976), Jimmy's (1977) and Dee Dee's (1978 and '79) -- before adding a 'B' Division in 1980. It expanded to three divisions in 1986, but declining numbers after the pandemic whittled it back down to two divisions starting in 2022. This year's set-up features seven teams in the 'A' Division (Slidaz, Cathay Center, Malachy's A, Sammon's Tavern, Hancock Tavern, Cagney's, Fowler House) and five in the 'B' Division (Malachy's B, Nankin Dental, Hofbrau, Dedham Savings, Finn's 1).
The league, which plays games at Mitchell-McCoy Field and Welcome Young Park, uses a slowpitch format with an unlimited arc. There's a $45 entry free per player, and teams can have anywhere from 10-22 players/coaches, who hail from anywhere within driving distance, including a few from New Hampshire. "They come from far and wide, my friend," Fornaro said with a laugh.
There's a 15-game regular season that runs through July, followed by playoffs in August. The list of alumnae includes current West Bridgewater High School athletic director Jen Hammel, who was a divisional co-MVP for Fowler House back in 2010. Players must be at least 18 years old, but there's no age limit on the back end. Trainor remembers a daughter/mom/grandma trio playing for Washington Tap years ago.
There are one or two games per week with all of them scheduled for 8:15 p.m. or later to allow players to put the rest of their lives in order during the day before cutting loose with softball.

Slidaz coach Bob Hawe, of Braintree, gets his team together before start of play. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Jessica Szyszka, a 46-year-old from Abington who plays for Cathay Center, called the league a "de-stresser from work," and everyone who was interviewed mentioned the enduring friendships that they've made through playing.
"It's a really nice outlet from our everyday lives," said Slidaz outfielder Devon Kelley, a 31-year-old Scituate High grad who soon will be relocating from Plymouth to Hingham. "And this is a really good group. We help each other through personal highs and lows. I've been with this team for five years, and we've seen each other through a lot."
As you might expect, the league's 50th season is a cause for celebration. Plans are in the works for a QWSL night at Fenway Park, and the league's all-star game (July 11 at Faxon Park) figures to be a high point. The nostalgia will peak on Sept. 25 as league organizers are seeking old photos and jerseys to display at the annual season-ending banquet at Florian Hall in Dorchester. Those with photos can share them at qwsl@hotmail.com.

Slidaz batter Amanda Micco is greeted at home plate after hitting a first-inning home run. Mitchell-McCoy Field in Quincy hosted opening night for the Quincy Women's Softball League, which is starting its 50th anniversary season, on Friday, May 1, 2026.
Trainor calls the 50th anniversary a "monumental" milestone, and few would disagree.
"I might be wrong, but I believe it is the longest-tenured softball league in the state," said Barker, who has played for Cathay Center since 2011. "It's been around for 50 years for a reason -- because there have been so many women who just want to keep reliving their youth and play a fun sport and meet people and hang out and do something other than the normal day to day."
Szyszka predicts that the league will last "for an eternity" -- a statement that might have caught the 1976 version of Trainor by surprise.
"50 years later (did I think it would last until now)? I don't think so," Trainor said. "But one year just carries into another. People just keep wanting to play. It's stood the test of time. It's a testament to these women who love to play softball."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Quincy Women's Softball League still going strong as it turns 50