Mary Ornberg
The sport, which involves rolling the four-inch bocce ball as close as possible to the pallino, a smaller target ball, is now surging in popularity. According to the World Bocce Association, it is currently the second most popular participatory sport in the world – and women are driving the charge. Here is a women-only team called Ragazze (which loosely translated means “women with balls”). We learned the game under Jean White’s leadership as captain and practiced, practiced and practiced. Our skill level was poor in the beginning but as the season advanced we finished in the top five. The players on the Ragazze Team are Robbie Waits, Pat Hamblin, Neta Moore (not pictured), Mary Ornberg, Lore Carr (not pictured), Joanne Bostwick, Eileen Dasso, Deb Allen, Bobbie Hardt, Elizabeth Olson and Jean White. Congratulations!