The Port Townsend Drizzle are the most successful women's basketball team in Washington State Senior Games (age 50 and older) history, winning gold medals two consecutive years.

The fact that the Drizzle are also the only women's team competing at the senior games is something the women want to change.

"There is no other team in Washington," Robin Stemen, a Drizzle co-founder. "We are looking for competition. We would think that some of these bigger cities would have teams."

It's not that Drizzle members – who range in age from 31 to 68 (senior games eligibility starts at age 50) – want cutthroat roundball competition, it's just they are tired of having to split the group and play themselves for a state medal.

"We never keep score because that's not important to us," Stemen noted. "To have fun is the most important thing, and to learn the game. Our motto is, 'one team, one heart.'"

TEAM HISTORY

Drizzle came to be after Stemen was practically dragged by her husband to watch friend Joanna Sanders' youngest daughter play basketball at PTHS.

"I went under protest. How boring would that be!" Stemen recalled. She sat with Sanders and watched the game, and then went to another and another and so on. Stemen and Sanders had the notion to start an adult women's team, and laughed. "We'll do it for a lark, a goof," Stemen said.

That was three and a half years ago. Now, six to 10 women (about 12 total participate) meet for an hour two days a week to play full-court basketball, and have fun.

"Our original idea of shooting around was to try to have more fun in life. That is still the goal," Sanders said.

“Leading by example, I hope I show my own kids that adults like to play too, and when they have fun with a sport they are more likely to stick with it and remain active throughout their life."

Watching a daughter play varsity basketball, Sanders said she became a lot less judgmental about yelling out to the players about hustling or grabbing a rebound. "I realized just how hard they work on the court and whether high school or pro, they make the game look easy," Sanders said. "Unless you are in their shoes, the only thing you should shout from the sidelines is encouragement."

It's the same thing with the Drizzle: encouragement. Player skill levels range from never-played-before to two players with college experience. Some women played in youth league or middle school, and maybe played in high school. A lot of them grew up in states at a time (in the 1960s and 1970s) when girls' high school varsity basketball was not a sport.

The team name – Drizzle – pays homage to the Seattle Storm, the Women's National Basketball Association team. Initially, a friend insisted the team have T-shirts, and paid the bill. Entering the senior games required shirts with a player number, front and back.

There are enough players now that on any given practice, at 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays and 9:45 a.m. Saturdays, there's at least enough for two teams. If there is an odd number of women who want to play, a "rover" position allows one player to play offense for both teams.

"Everyone gets to play as much or as little as they want," Stemen noted. "It's for the love of the game and the love of play."

COACHING

While Stemen is described as the main ringleader, Kristi Wilson is coach.

Wilson grew up in Oregon with a basketball-coaching father, and went on to play ball at Mount Hood Community College and Western Oregon State College. She coached her children's youth teams but has not played competitively since 1985. When a friend of a Drizzle player told Wilson about the program, the former college player took a look at a practice, from afar: Literally, she watched from the parking lot as the women practiced at the courts across from the Jefferson County Courthouse.

"I want to compete. I watched and they had this goofy practice. I left," Wilson said.

She returned a number of weeks later, for her love of basketball. Wilson's basketball skill and knowledge has been welcome.

"When we first started playing, we didn't have a lot of guidance but we had a lot of fun," Stemen said. "Now we know what we're doing, and we still have a lot of fun."

Wilson sets up drills to teach basketball fundamentals that many of the women never had an opportunity to learn. The team has one set play: a give-and-go move to the hoop.

"I may teach them the fundamentals of basketball but they have taught me to love the game again," Wilson said. "I hadn't played for years and they gave me the joy of playing a game I used to love back in the day. They soak up any and all guidance to learning more of the game and it's so much fun for me to watch them grow."

It's competitive, but nowhere close to cutthroat. Elbows aren't thrown, and no one takes a charge from someone trying a lay-in, for example.

Sanders noted, "Safety is critical, so we play hard at times and go easy on other days depending on the skills and abilities of those playing."

CHANCE TO PLAY

Jean Walat grew up in New Jersey, and played ball in Catholic Youth League. She always loved the sport, and coached fifth-grade Junior Hoop boys for Jefferson County Parks and Recreation. Walat gave up her dream of finding a women's team to join and donated her book on basketball skills to a book sale, and into the hands of Robin Stemen's husband. He gave it to Robin; Walat's name was in the book, and the two women happened to know each other. That's how Walat learned about the Drizzle.

"It's a lot of fun," Walat said.

Teresa Janssen, who in 2015 played volleyball and basketball at the senior games, said the Drizzle program "is more fun than jogging."

Diane Bommer wasn't much of an athlete back in school. "I was always one of the last kids when they chose the team; I was left over." Still, over the years she shot hoops with her children and grandchildren. With friends on the Drizzle team, "for some reason they invited me. They are very tolerant of me."

Basketball skill-level is not an issue, team members say, because it's all about having fun and being part of a team.

At age 68, Bommer is the team's senior member. "The camaraderie is great. They are a great bunch of women. We laugh a lot."

"Come at your own skill level," noted Zoe Ann Lamp, as the Drizzle continue to welcome new participants.

SENIOR GAMES

Basketball is one of 24 sports on the Washington Senior Games menu; the 2016 event drew about 1,800 athletes. A team or individual does not need to qualify for the senior games, just register to compete. When the Drizzle initially contacted Jack Kiley, senior games president, in 2015, they were encouraged to join the 3-on-3 competition. Its played on half-court, with NCAA/NSGA rules. As the only women's team, last year and this year, the Drizzle divided into two squads, and played against each other.

This year when the women competed July 23 at Olympia High School, there were 70 men's players on other courts. For the women, it was the Drizzle, plus three other women (two of them older, and only interested in the individual contest categories).

For the second year, Maria Joyce came from Boise, Idaho, to participate. Joyce had contacted the senior games and asked if it were OK if she attended to participate, and was invited to be part of the Drizzle team rotation. "We adopted her," Stemen noted.

Last year, the women's teams had to play three 30-minute games, back-to-back. This year, the games were spread out.

In the state games played July 23, the first game had a victor, the second one went into overtime, with a victor; and, in keeping with true Drizzle spirt, the third game ended in a tie. Drizzle players all received a gold medal.

In the state individual competition this year, Joyce won the free throw competition, for ages 50-54, with Wilson second and Bachmann third. Sanders won for age 55-59, with Lamp second and Stemen third. In the Hot Shot contest, Wilson won her age bracket, followed by Joyce and Bachman. Sanders won her Hot Shot category, followed by Stemen and Lamp. Bommer won the Hot Shot contest for ages 65-69.

Drizzle leaders praise the senior games experience, and encourage Port Townsend and Jefferson County residents to check the competition categories to see where their skill fits. See a link to all basketball results HERE.

Winning state qualifies the Drizzle for the National Senior Games Association tourney in Birmingham, Alabama, in June 2017. Due mainly to travel considerations, there is no decision yet if the team would enter.

The Drizzle has scrimmaged against the Port Townsend High School junior varsity girls a few times. "The varsity may be a little too tough for us," Stemen noted, "but you know what they say, you can't measure heart."