In San Diego a group of women over 80, the oldest being 94, play on a competitive basketball team called Splash. They are the oldest members of the San Diego Women’s Basketball Association, a league of female players over the age of 55 that compete on the national level. Feisty and competitive, though admittedly on the slower side, the women of Splash play every week at the Mission Valley YMCA. Many of them grew up in the 1930’s and 40’s and did not have the opportunity to play organized sports, let alone basketball. It wasn’t until 1972 when Nixon passed Title IX that schools were required to offer girls equal opportunities to play sports and by this time, the Splash women were nearing middle age, raising children of their own. Many of the Splash players rediscovered basketball in their 70’s, and they haven’t looked back. Splash’s numbers may have dwindled over the years, losing players to physical decline and even death but they remain undaunted in their love for the sport, and for each other.
