Growing up in Elmhurst in the 60’s and 70’s with his three brothers, Roy always had the desire to play sports. With a big backyard they were constantly challenging each other in all sports. Growing up next to a 16 inch softball coach also got him introduced to softball at an early age.

He fondly remembers coming home from an American Legion baseball game and having his neighbor waiting in the driveway to take him to Chicago to play softball because they were short guys. Playing on a veteran team taught him many valuable lessons; including how to hit the ball to all fields.

Home from college always brought two things into play; finding a job and finding a softball team to play on for the summer. He continued to play with his neighbor in two leagues and found a tournament team of younger players to play weekends within the city. The fall of 1978 was a turning point in Roy’s career. He had just finished a successful summer playing 16 inch ball and since he graduated from college, he was able to play in his first fall league. His neighbor asked him to play in nearby Bensenville and he accepted the offer.

The day of their first game, the neighbor came over to the house and informed Roy that he needed to bring a mitt. He explained that he made a mistake and signed up for a 12 inch league. After batting above .850 for the league, Roy was asked to play on three different teams that were in that fall league. This was the beginning of his 12 inch and the end of his 16 inch career. In 1979, Roy was playing in Bensenville, Elmhurst, and Glen Ellyn on three different 12 inch teams.

During the 1980’s Roy played on a number of league teams in the western suburbs and was searching for the perfect tournament team. During this time, he played on numerous teams including the Shooters, X’s, Steamers and FCA. In the summer of 1993, he decided to put his own team together for the 1994 season and Aurora Thunder was founded the next year. He combined veteran players with new talent to formulate a winning combination. Between 1994 and 2001 Aurora Thunder won three State Championships, and became one of the most successful teams of that era.

After the Thunder reign had ended, he took his veteran expertise to play on two quality tournament teams, WWJD and the Barn.

Roy has always been known as a smart precision hitter who always looks for the holes. With his ability to hit the ball to all fields he has frustrated pitchers and infielders for many years. As a life time .733 hitter, he usually found himself batting somewhere in the one through five slots. During his playing career, he has won eight Illinois State Championships and one World Championship. He has been on seven All-State Tournament Teams, one Divisional All Tournament Team, and two All World Tournament Teams.

Roy continues to play softball on local area teams and plays tournaments in the Senior Division. In three years of playing senior ball, Roy has won nine World Championships with the Chicago Classics and Windy City Softball Clubs. As you can see, softball still has not left this ball player as he has completed his 35^th year of playing softball.