OTTAWA – The stars of Canadian Women’s Baseball will be in Windsor, Ontario August 3rd to 6th to play in Baseball Canada’s Annual Women’s Invitational Championships.
Teams from Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario will make up four of the five teams in the tournament with a team of 21 and under prospects from across Canada making up the fifth team. Games are scheduled to take place at Father Cullen Stadium at Mic Mac Park in Windsor and admission to the public is free.
Ontario will look to win back the title after having lost the gold medal to British Columba last year. Led by Women’s National Team veterans Ashley Stephenson (Mississauga, ON) and Kate Psota (Burlington, ON), Team Ontario could easily be considered tournament favourites. Each with 13 years experience representing Canada, the two will be joined by fellow Team Canada teammates Jen Gilroy (Mississauga, ON), Jenna Flannigan (Cornwall, ON) and pitcher Autumn Mills (London, ON). Ontario kicks off their tournament on Thursday August 3rd at 7:00PM versus Team Quebec.
Three of the four players who made their WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup debut in 2016 will be on hand to represent Team Quebec in Windsor. Quebec did not medal in 2016 but this young group of upcoming stars is looking to change that. Leading the charge for Quebec will be Daphnée Gélinas (Repentigny, QC), Pascale Jalbert (St-Honoré, QC), Anne-Sophie Lavallée (Boucherville, QC).
British Columbia should again be a strong force in the tournament. Having just finished her debut season with the Victoria HarbourCats, Surrey, B.C. native Claire Eccles made headlines this summer and became the first woman to compete in the West Coast League. The left-handed pitcher and member of the Women’s National Team will join fellow national team members Amanda Asay (Prince George, B.C) and Niki Boyd (Surrey, B.C.) when they take the field for game one versus Alberta, Thursday August 3rd at 3:00PM.
Bronze medalist from the 2016 Championship, Alberta, will look to take home a different colour medal. They will rely heavily on national team members Nicole Luchanski (Edmonton, AB), and Kelsey Lalor (Red Deer, AB).
The 21U Prospects team will round out the five team round robin tournament. The team which is made up of top talent from across Canada will also have the youngest player in the tournament in Annabelle Guay (Terrebonne, QC), an outfielder who recently turned 15. The young squad will rely heavily on players like Heather Healey (Paradise, NL) who has been a part of Team Canada for two seasons and Katie Hagen (Dartmouth, N.S.) who debuted with the national team in 2016.
Following the completion of the Women’s Invitational Championships in Windsor, Women’s National Team Manager Andre Lachance will select 30 players from the event to participate in the 2017 Women’s National Team program. With 2017 being a non World Cup year, Baseball Canada has partnered with USA Baseball to hold a player development camp in Washington, DC at the Washington Nationals Youth Academy from August 8 to 13. Canada is currently ranked No. 2 in the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Rankings.
The Women's Invitational Championships has been an annual event since being first held in 2006. This will be the first time it is held in Windsor. Tecumseh Minor Baseball Association (TMBA) and the City of Windsor are hosting the 2017 edition.
PAST HOSTS:
2006 – Gatineau, QC
2007 – Québec City, QC
2008 – Cape Breton, NS
2009 – Granby, QC
2010 – North York, ON
2011 – North York, ON
2012 – Spruce Grove, AB
2013 – Granby, QC
2014 – Surrey, BC/C-B
2015 – Saguenay, QC
2016 – Red Deer, AB
