Recently we caught up with LES Lady Furies coaches Damien Acevedo and Eric Perez, as they prepared for the softball league’s winter clinics. . In their inaugural year, the girls made a run at the Little League World Series. They went undefeated for the Manhattan Inter-Charter League before being beaten by the Rockville Center All Stars. Acevedo, a Lower East Side native, always intended to turn the league into a 52-week operation, the only organization of its kind on the LES.
The clinics will take place Saturdays at Grand Street Settlement beginning October 4 and lasting for 26 weeks. They’ve brought on a professional hitting coach to help the kids’ work on their skills. You can see more details in the flyer below and on the Furies’ website. Girls ages 9-16 from the Lower East Side (East 14th Street on down) are eligible to join.
Perez, who’s been coaching little league for about 12 years, says he joined up with Acevedo because he’s “just trying to give the the girls in the neighborhood something positive to do.” Perez and Acevedo are serious about winning but Perez also believes organized sports can make a huge difference in the lives of neighborhood kids. “They need role models,” he says. “We try to get them to believe in themselves because their biggest obstacle is their own confidence.”
Acevedo says a big priority this year is making sure the Lady Furies are representative of the whole LES, reflecting all kinds of different income, ethnic and cultural groups in the neighborhood.
