Moody Airmen represent Air Force at Armed Forces softball tournament

MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. — Airmen from Moody Air Force Base competed in the Armed Forces Softball Tournament alongside service members from across the force on Aug 26-29, 2026. 

Master Sgt. Maurice Green, 23d Munitions Squadron unit deployment manager, competed on the men’s team, while 2nd Lt. Kaitlyn Gorgus, 23d Contracting Squadron construction contract supervisor, represented the women’s team. 

“It is a privilege to experience the pressure of competing at that level,” Gorgus said. “It sounds cheesy, but it really is a humbling feeling to wear Air Force across your chest representing the Big Blue and doing it while representing our units who continue the mission in our absence.” 

Gorgus prepared for the tournament by staying active in military and civilian softball leagues throughout the year. She focused on consistent practice and getting in as many repetitions as possible to stay sharp and ready for the competition.  

“So typically, I play softball year-round,” Green said. “When preparing for the trials for the Air Force team, we do a lot of batting practice, they'll do some fielding practice and pretty much play tournaments with higher levels of competition to get ready for the environment for armed forces.” 

Green and Gorgus went through a four-day selection camp at Fort Sam Houston, where players faced multiple practices and games while coaches evaluated their individual performance and ability to work with teammates. The selection process gave players only a short window to prove themselves and earn a spot on the final roster. 

“Each year is a crapshoot of the kind of the people who you'll get to return, and you'll get new people who apply,” Green said. “It’s all about what happens when you get to camp because our camp process is four days long. We'll have multiple practices each day, and then we'll probably play about 10 games in that four-day time span.” 

Since players had limited time to build chemistry, one of the challenges was developing trust before going to the tournament. 

“I have played for the All-Air Force Women’s softball team for 4 years,” said Gorgus. “Each year it's different women from different walks of life who almost never play together and then build confidence and trust to make a winning team in less than 2 weeks. It’s the most challenging part.”  For the men’s team, they were able to develop their own chemistry during the training period. 

“As a team, we were great. We all hung out,” Green said. “Whether we went to the mall or we did team building, we did mini golf, or we had barbecues at the coach's house. Our group just gelled instantly, and we were all like brothers for the two and a half weeks.” 

After training, the teams went to the Armed Forces tournament, which was held at the USA Softball Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The Air Force competed against Army and Navy during the tournament. 

“The armed forces tournament is the most intense tournament you'll play in, especially if you're a service member, because you're representing your branch,” Green said. 

The Air Force men finished the round-robin portion of the tournament with a 5-1 record before advancing to the championship game against the Army players. The team's approach centered on helping the next player in the lineup. 

Green explained that they call it “working down,” meaning the goal is to work for a base hit, whether that means hitting through the hole or into the gap, and then put the next batter in a position to succeed rather than making an out.  

The men’s team were able to defeat the Army in the championship game to claim the gold medal. 

The women’s team also entered the championship game with a 5-1 record before facing the Army. After spending the week competing against one another, there was little left to hide when the championship game arrived. 

“By that last game there are no secret plays or secret players, we know them and they know us. We spent a week scouting each other.” Gorgus said. “So, it really came down to just good softball.” 

The women’s team ultimately fell short in the championship game, letting in two runs. Despite the loss, competing against the other military branches was one of the most rewarding parts of the tournament for Gorgus. The week of competition gave the team an opportunity to test itself against some of the best players from across the military while building the relationships and trust needed to compete at a high level. 

“While heart-breaking to lose it all at the end, it is so fun getting to have rivalries played out with other branches,” Gorgus said. “It is what keeps players coming back. The hunger to win gold.” 

Despite the results on the field, both Airmen said the relationships created through Department of the Air Force Sports were an important part of the experience. Some relationships extend into the players’ professional and personal lives. 

“I have been friends with some of these women for 10 years now and I still talk to them more than most people,” Gorgus said. “Each year this experience is the thing that keeps me going, my ‘re-blueing’ if you will. Softball is an outlet for me and many of us use the experience as morale, networking, and a place to reset after grinding away at the mission.” 

For Green, the opportunity to compete at the national military level also represented a chance to pursue a goal he had been working toward throughout his career. 

“In 2018, I was there for the Armed Forces Tournament. I think we ended up going five and four that year.” said Green. “The last day of the tournament was rained out, so we tied for silver with the navy, and that was the last time I'd had a chance to compete for a gold medal.” 

Deployments and mission requirements prevented him from returning to the tournament for several years. 

“This year was probably one of my last shots, or possibly my last shot,” said Green “To go was my motivation to try and get a gold medal before my career ends and I retire.” 

For both Airmen, the tournament provided an opportunity to step away from their normal duties, compete at a high level and build relationships with Airmen they otherwise may have never met.

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