Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Softball Napanee’s summer of softball will continue at the Fairgrounds this weekend as the organization stages the Provincial Women Softball Association (PWSA) U13 Qualifier.
The Napanee Jac Severin Mortgages U13 Express will play as the host team, taking on a field that includes the Aurora Diggers, a pair of Whitby Eagles teams, Cobourg Angels, Mississauga South, Vaughan Vikings, Mississauga North, two teams from Brampton, Oshawa Lady B’s, East Gwillimbury Rise and the Barrie Storm.
“Our team’s a relatively young team,” said Express coach Bryan Brooks. “We have a lot of young, returning players from last year. We’ve had a lot of development and we’ve been working on a lot of technical stuff and the girls have really impressed, they’ve really progressed very quickly. We’re excited to see what the weekend brings.”
Making up the Express player roster are: Ashlin Cox, Avery Murray, Bailey Morris, Madison Howe, Olive McCullough, Shaye Brown, Kendyl Hunter, Ruby Marlow, Sarah Difazio, Abby Van Order, Camryn Brooks and Rhea Hollingsworth. Joining brooks on the coaching staff are Gracie Hearns and Craig Hollingsworth.
The Express get their tournament underway Friday with a 5 p.m. game against Mississauga North. A win advances them to play Brampton at 9 a.m. on Saturday, a loss means a 1 p.m. game on Saturday.
Teams will be playing for division seeding heading into the Grand Championship, Aug. 11-13 in Windsor. A top four finish would mean playing in the ‘A’ tier. Those that finish five through eight play in the ‘B’ tier while the remaining would play in ‘C’.
“It’s really about getting the girls an opportunity to compete and see where we’re at,” said Brooks. “For many of them its their first introduction to the PWSA and it’s really about getting them an opportunity to see that they can play with the best softball players.”
It’s also a rare opportunity for the Napanee players to play on home turf.
“Our girls play a lot of time on the road, we play on the Eastern side of the GTA, the Cobourg, Oshawa, Whitby area and so this will give them a chance to play at home in front of their friends and family and for many of them it’ll be a first,” said Brooks.
Games will be played at the Fairgrounds throughout the weekend with the finals scheduled for 3 p.m. on Sunday.
The following weekend Softball Napanee will do it all again, hosting the PWSA U15 Girls Qualifier, July 28-30.