Greenbelter Sally Barcus Is a Gold Medal Winner

Sally Barcus did not start playing volleyball until she was almost 30, but several decades later she is the proud owner of three gold medals in the sport. The hardware comes from the Maryland Senior Olympics, at which Barcus’s team, MDAU- 24K, has taken home the top prize in the 60-year-old division for three consecutive years, most recently in August. The initials stand for Maryland Gold (AU is the symbol for gold). Barcus, a 65-year-old Greenbelt resident, captains the team and usually plays setter but was on the sidelines for this year’s Olympics because she has ovarian cancer and was undergoing a round of chemotherapy. “I was just cheering them on,” said Barcus, who first started playing volleyball as part of a work league. “I always coach. I can’t not coach when I’m there, but it was absolutely really tough not being out there. I’m a player.” Her teammates won the gold medal without her but it wasn’t easy without their captain. “We missed the heck out of her,” said Linda Lange, a member of 24K from Columbia. “She is just such a good leader and we’re all trying to pick up the slack. It takes a village to fill in for Sally.” Lange said even players from other teams wanted to come and check on Barcus at the Olympics because Barcus has been such an icon.  To read more about Sally’s volleyball, read the complete article in the paper.  Click here.