by Trish Quayle, Australian Baseball Federation
The 18Under Australian Women’s side will compete in the 2013 Asia Insurance Phoenix Cup IBAF Hong Kong International Women’s Baseball Tournament from the 18 to 21 January at Sai Tso Wan Baseball Field.
This is the sixth Phoenix Cup but the first time that the Australian Baseball Federation has entered an official team.
Mark Priestley, National Teams and Championships Manager, said that although the event is an open women’s tournament our team is 18 Under and is a part of our women’s development pathway.
“This is an opportunity to develop players and coaches with an eye on future representation on the Senior Women’s Team. There is a mix of first time Australian Capped players with a few with experience to help the young ones through and also to develop their own mentoring skills.”
Seven team will participate in this year’s tournament; two from Hong Kong, Australia, Japan, Korea and two teams from Taiwan.
The team is spearheaded by Stephanie Gaynor and Maddie Lenard who were all part of the 2012 IBAF Women’s World Cup in Edmonton and they will afford the side a balance experience to the young but talented team who are the future of our sport.
This is an exciting time for women’s baseball in Australia and its ongoing development. The first of these steps was the addition of the 15 Under Australian Women’s Championships held in April 2012 in conjunction with the National Women’s Championships. The level of baseball shown from these young girls impressed the Senior Women’s Head Coach, John Gaynor and he is excited for the future of the Women’s National Team.
The team will also have an all female staff with Simone Wearne, the first Australian Baseball Hall of Famer as Manager.
Australian Roster
PLAYERS
Claire O’Sullivan NSW
Maddie Lenard NSW
Sienna Burton NSW
Stephanie Gaynor NSW
Courtney Forbes NSW
Elodie O’Sullivan NSW
Kaitlyn Beccaris NSW
Belinda Cannington VIC
Emma French VIC
Georgia Page VIC
Kiera O’brien QLD
Cate Lessmann QLD
Shalyn Bressow-Thomas QLD
Kate West QLD
Tabitha Callander WA
Alexandra Worth WA
Nicole Gunzburg WA
Kate Russell ACT
STAFF
Simone Wearne (Manager)
Narelle Gosstray (Assistant Coach)
Amanda Mirco (Assistant Coach/EO)
