RICHMOND, BC- In February 2010 all of Canada was consumed by the Olympics as the city of Vancouver welcomed some of the finest athletes in the world. The Olympics also provided Vancouver and surrounding areas with some of the finest athletic facilities in the world that will leave a lasting legacy to the sporting community.
For fifteen female baseball players, they had the chance to work out at the Richmond Olympic Oval as Baseball Canada held an Identification camp for girls in conjunction with the annual fall convention. The camp was open to current baseball players or those coming from the softball world that would like to give baseball a try.
“We want to increase the pool of players and get more athletes,” said André Lachance (Ottawa, ON), Head Coach of the Women’s National Team. “The facility here is in incredible and if it (Identification Camp) can help bring baseball in Richmond into the oval that would be great.”
Players were tested in speed, agility, plyometric and endurance drills before getting into traditional baseball drills. Towards the end of the session, pitchers were able to throw and receive instruction from Lachance and other guest coaches.
“The biggest thing for me is that I’m looking for athletes,” explained Lachance. “Once you have those physical tools and you see that a girl is committed, you can teach them the proper mechanics of hitting, pitching and other skills of the game.”
Participants also had a chance to receive instruction and learn about the Women’s National Team program from three current players as Kate Psota (Burlington, ON), Nicole Luchanski (Edmonton, AB) and Becky Hartley (White Rock, BC) helped conduct the camp.
“I didn’t have an opportunity like this when I first started,” said Psota. “I wanted to let the girls know that there is an opportunity to for them with baseball and to give it a shot.”
One such player that took advantage of the camp was Hailee Renkers (Surrey, BC) who was a member of the national champion BC team that won gold at the Bantam Girls level in August.
Renkers started playing softball when she was four and switched to baseball when she was ten. She doesn’t hide the fact that she’d like to continue with the game and see how far she can take it.
“I’d like to play baseball as long as I can, keep pushing myself and hopefully I can make the national team.”
For Renkers this was her first step towards reaching her dream. She has to look no further than to Kate Psota for proof that it truly is a special experience to represent your country.
“Playing for the National Team is something that you can’t understand unless you do it, it’s incredible.”
Baseball Canada would like to thank Serj Sangara from the www.dugoutclub.ca for making the event possible.
