Across the country, girls are participating in boys youth sports more often due to the lack of girls’ equivalents and the opportunity to compete at higher and more intense levels. Several civil laws allow for girls to participate in physical education, clubs, varsity athletics and other physical activities in schools and organizations. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution, state and local Equal Rights Amendments, the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act and state and local public accommodations laws are designed to protect girls specifically from sex discrimination in sports. There is still a lack of normality causing less girls to play boys youth sports; however, Tessa Anzalone defies this discrimination in Walpole Little League.
In Walpole, girls have competed in traditionally male-dominated sports like wrestling, tackle football, hockey and baseball. According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) prohibits schools from withholding girls from playing on boys’ sports teams unless there is an individualized assessment stating that there is a possible safety risk for the participant.
Tessa Anzalone, a current sixth grader at Walpole Middle School, has been playing baseball for five years. Baseball has always been a part of Anzalone’s life, with her older brother, father, grandfather and even mother playing and coaching baseball for Walpole. Her mother especially played a large role in inspiring Anzalone to play Little League baseball.
“She played baseball here when she was my age too. She helped me feel confident and made me feel like it was completely normal to play a sport mostly dominated by boys,” Anzalone said.
Being one of two girls on the Walpole Little League team, Anzalone has faced a variety of obstacles in her baseball career. Despite these obstacles, one year she had her older brother on her team while her father was coaching, allowing her to grow not only as a player, but also as an individual.
“My brother helps me improve in all different ways. Not only on the field but just in general in my life. He teaches me what to do and what not to do on and off the field. He is my best friend and my favorite baseball player of all time. Similarly, my dad is the greatest coach and supporter I could ask for. He always encourages me to do great things in the stuff I love and teaches me something new about this game everyday,” Anzalone said.
Typically, the controversy of biological girls seeking to play on a boy’s teams is centered around physical ability, safety and legality; however, under Title IX, if a school does not offer a girls team for a certain non-contact sport, then girls are legally allowed to try out for the boys team. Critics argue that in contact sports, the difference in muscle mass, bone density and size is a key concern that schools must pay attention to for injury prevention.
“The biggest obstacle of being on an all boys team is earning their respect. You have to make sure they are nice to you and respect you,” Anzalone said. “If you become one of their friends, it helps you with confidence and having a voice on the field.”
“Another person I wanted to mention is Morgan Ludwig. She has been playing with me since day one,” Anzalone said. “We are the only girls in the little league this year.”
Many girls throughout different towns, like Anzalone and Ludwig in Walpole, continue to fight against the discrimination and play the sport which they love most.
