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<p>WEST PITTSTON &#8212; Victory Sports will open its ninth baseball season on Friday at the West Pittston Little League field.</p><p>The first game between the Yankees and Phillies begins at 5:15 p.m. and the second game featuring the Cubs and Giants begins at 6:30 p.m. The field is located on 6th Street in West Pittston.</p><p>In between games, pizza, soda, water and ice cream will be served to the participants, families, volunteers and caregivers.</p><p>There are 90 participants signed up for Victory Sports, which features adults with mental and/or physical challenges.</p><p><strong>About Victory Sports</strong></p><p>Victory Sports Inc. was founded in 2011. In 1991, Challenger Little League came to Northeastern Pennsylvania &#8212; the second Challenger league in Pennsylvania &#8212; Williamsport being the first.</p><p>In 2011, the Challenger chapter was transitioning to a new group, so it was decided to have an Old-Timers Game to celebrate the 20th anniversary and invited back were the participants from the first Challenger League of 1991.</p><p>About 35 players showed up &#8212; all now in their 20s , 30s and 40s. During the game, Eddie Orlowski, a mentally challenged young man from Duryea, asked a question: &#8220;How come we can&#8217;t play baseball anymore just because we got older?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;That question hit us like a ton of bricks,&#8221; said Fred DeSanto, Victory Sports president. &#8220;By August of 2011, Victory Sports was playing ball. Victory is for adults with mental and/or physical challenges who have aged out of Challenger at 18 and there is no limit to how old a participant can be.&#8221;</p><p>Victory Sports&#8217; players wear full baseball uniforms and they play on a real baseball field. &#8220;Buddies&#8221; are utilized to help some of the more involved participants hold a bat and run the bases.</p><p>&#8220;Nobody ever gets out in Victory, no team ever loses &#8212; everybody is always a winner.,&#8221; DeSanto said.</p><p>Victory participants also play basketball, attend dances, yoga classes, movie nights and much more. In a word, DeSanto said Victory is about &#8220;fun.&#8221;</p><p>And, DeSanto said, the organization would like to do a lot more.</p><p>&#8220;We have many testimonials from parents and caregivers who have seen remarkable change in their children/loved ones,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Each Victory participant is a story of courage, perseverance and determination.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">In this Times Leader file photo, Tony Russo (left) helps his Yankee teammate Jared Walski bat against the Phillies during a Victory Baseball game at the West Pittston Little League field. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_victory2_faa.jpg</photo0><caption0>In this Times Leader file photo, Tony Russo (left) helps his Yankee teammate Jared Walski bat against the Phillies during a Victory Baseball game at the West Pittston Little League field. </caption0><photoCredit0>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_TTL061716victory-ball1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">T.J. Jump and Joey Callahan hug at the end of the 2016 opening day game of Victory Baseball, as Michael Sabol looks on. The league is in it&#8217;s 9th year and is for individuals with mental and/or physical challengess. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_TTL061716victory-ball1.jpg</photo1><caption1>T.J. Jump and Joey Callahan hug at the end of the 2016 opening day game of Victory Baseball, as Michael Sabol looks on. The league is in it&#8217;s 9th year and is for individuals with mental and/or physical challengess. </caption1><photoCredit1>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_TTL061215victorybaseball1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">In this Times Leader file photo, Joshua Bonner and Brandon Harvey bump fists at a Victory Baseball game at the West Pittston Little League field. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_TTL061215victorybaseball1.jpg</photo2><caption2>In this Times Leader file photo, Joshua Bonner and Brandon Harvey bump fists at a Victory Baseball game at the West Pittston Little League field. </caption2><photoCredit2>Times Leader file photo </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>How you can help</strong></p><p>For more information, or to donate, contact:</p><p>Victory Sports</p><p>c/o 48 Norman St.</p><p>Pittston Twp., PA 18640</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Victory Sports to open its 9th season Friday