The Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association Mets, a wheelchair softball team co-sponsored by the New York Mets Major League baseball team and the Association, will be competing in the 2003 National Wheelchair Softball Tournament from Aug. 14 to Aug. 17 in
“Each season the National Tournament gives us an excellent opportunity to see how we match up against the elite teams in the country,” said Vic Calise, the Mets team captain. “We have a relatively new program, but we have already shown, on our best days, that we can compete against the top teams.”
The Mets first competed in the National Wheelchair Softball Tournament in 1998 in Denver, Colo., when they were known as the EPVA Bombers. They finished in 11th place.
Wheelchair softball started more than 25 years ago. In 1976, the National Wheelchair Softball Association, or NWSA, was founded, and today it governs more than 30 teams nationally. The game is played under the official rules of 16-inch slow-pitch softball, as approved by the Amateur Softball Association of America, with some exceptions that are geared toward the wheelchair user.
Most people with lower extremity impairments that prevent them from playing able-bodied baseball are eligible to play wheelchair softball, particularly persons with a spinal cord injury, amputation, multiple sclerosis and polio.
In existence for 57 years, the Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association is dedicated to enhancing the lives of veterans and all Americans with spinal cord injuries or diseases by ensuring quality health care, promoting research and advocating for civil rights and independence.
The Association is an independent national veterans service organization whose staff works cooperatively with other veterans and disability groups. For more information on the Association, visit www.unitedspinal.org.
