For many people in the LGBTQ+ community, K-12 school sports never seemed approachable because of a fear of intolerance. Fortunately, for those 21 and over, Stonewall Sports Raleigh is giving LGBTQ+ and LGBTQ+ allies a place to play as adults.
The nonprofit sports league hosts two different nontraditional sports each season. The sports are reminiscent of middle and high school, with games like kickball in the rotation.
“Currently we offer six sports,” said Will Brackett, the commissioner of Stonewall Sports Raleigh and an NC State alumnus. “We started with kickball and then we expanded to dodgeball, bowling, football and just recently two weeks ago we started tennis. We also have a free-run club that’s year-round and meets on Tuesdays and Saturdays.”
Both tennis and flag football leagues are running over the summer. Brackett said most sports are played at the Halifax Community Center, with the exceptions of bowling, which is hosted by AMF Pleasant Valley Lanes, and tennis, which is played at William Peace University. Run club routes start in downtown Raleigh at either The Ugly Monkey Party Bar on Tuesdays or The Green Monkey on Saturdays. According to Brackett, the average cost for a league per season is $30, with some sports like bowling being a little higher due to expenses like lane rentals.
“I heard about it from a friend a few years ago,” said Shone Reeves, a longtime player and a junior studying political science at NC State. “Kickball is what they had at the time and it just seemed fun to do. I hadn’t played it since middle school so I thought, ‘Why not play it as an adult?’ I’ve played kickball, dodgeball, volleyball, bowling, flag football and I just signed up for tennis.”
Reeves said he generally only meets once a week per sport. The teams range from more competitive to teams made up out of individuals who don’t know each other.
“We try and make sure that it’s very open,” Reeves said. “We have social events for everyone that are outside competitions, like free-agent mix-all and after every kickball game we have Sunday fun day at Legends. Usually, once the games are over, we open everything up and break down the shirt color barriers and intermingle into one big rainbow.”
Reeves said that the fact that Stonewall Sports is LGBTQ+ friendly was really important to him.
“I think that it [Stonewall] has given people who typically didn’t have a chance to play competitively in sports because they were already out, so they didn’t to do as much activities when they were younger, sportswise,” Reeves said. “It gives them a great chance to compete and be part of that team unit that they probably wouldn’t have had a chance to when they were in elementary, middle and high school.”
Last year, Reeves captained a dodgeball team and his team was sponsored to compete in Las Vegas. Stonewall Sports Raleigh sponsors a team every year to play in Las Vegas at a tournament made up of many different LGBTQ+ friendly leagues from across the country. Teams from Stonewall Raleigh also travel to an event in Washington, D.C. each year sponsored by the Stonewall organization.
Brackett said there are Stonewall Sports Leagues in different cities across the U.S. including Chicago, Philadelphia, Minneapolis and New Orleans. The first Stonewall Sports league was founded in 2010 in Washington, D.C. The Raleigh league has been around since 2013 according to Brackett. There are also several more Stonewall Sports Leagues in North Carolina outside of Raleigh in Charlotte, Greensboro and Wilmington.
“It’s an all-inclusive sports league for members of the LGBT community,” Brackett said. “It’s a place for maybe shy people who want to get involved with sports, but might be intimidated. It provides a safe space for people to be athletic in the community. It’s also a great place for people who might have just moved into the area who are looking to make new friends in the community to meet people. That being said, we’re not exclusively an LGBT sports league. I would say we are predominately made up of members of the LGBT community, but we also have a lot of players who are allies. We don’t discriminate based on any orientation whatsoever. Everyone is welcome.”
Reeves said that even though the league is 21-and-up for players, the activities are family friendly and families often come to watch the games, including his mother who he said comes to every kickball game.
“At the end of the day, it’s about community,” Reeves said. “We don’t win money. We don’t have a parade for who wins. It’s about connecting and being a part of a bigger family. That’s why I feel like I can juggle school work and being able to play. Part of its mission, I feel, is to not just broaden gays in sports, but to broaden the community as a whole.”
Reeves said that he recommends the league to other students, LGBTQ+ or not, and that he thinks it is fairly easy to balance his NC State class work with Stonewall.
“It’s not always the case for everyone, but for those who have struggled growing up, when they become an adult it gives them an opportunity to do something that is stable,” Reeves said. “It has a real family feel to it. I think that is important. It’s one of the reasons my partner and I keep playing every season.”
Bran Holland and Michael Park compete in a doubles match at William Peace Tennis Courts on Saturday, June 17. Holland won the match 6-4 for his team Baby got Backhand. “Stonewall Sports is a fantastic way to dip your toes into the water if you are new to the area or just curious about being more involved in the LGBTQIA community,” Holland said.
