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Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a field that has base lengths of 60 feet, a pitcher's mound that ranges from 35–43 feet away from home plate, and a home run fence that is 220–300 feet away from home plate, depending on the type of softball being played. It was invented in 1887 in Chicago, Illinois, United States as an indoor game. The game moves at a faster pace than traditional baseball due to the field being smaller and the bases and the fielders being closer to home plate. There is less time for the base runner to get to first while the opponent fields the ball; yet, the fielder has less time to field the ball while the opponent is running down to first base.
The Netherlands national baseball team is the national baseball team of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, representing the country in international men's baseball. They are currently ranked as the best team in the Confederation of European Baseball, and the team is also ranked ninth in the WBSC World Rankings.
Women's baseball is played in several countries. The strongest and most organized women's baseball leagues are in the United States, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Cuba, Hong Kong, and Canada. Those countries have national governing bodies that support girls' and women's baseball programs. Other countries/regions that currently have organized women's baseball are France, Croatia, the Netherlands, India, Korea, Venezuela, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, and Pakistan. There also is a handful of women playing baseball in Vietnam currently on the Fishanu team at Hanoi University and on the Hanoi Baseball Club.
Jessica Ofelia Mendoza is an American current sports broadcaster for ESPN and former collegiate 4-time First Team All-American, two-time medal winning Olympian, retired pro All-Star softball outfielder, originally from Camarillo, California. At Stanford University Mendoza played from 1999 to 2002 in the Pac-12 Conference. She was also a member of the United States women's national softball team from 2004 to 2010. She won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, and a silver medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She played professionally in National Pro Fastpitch and was named 2011 Player of The Year while also currently still ranking top-10 in career records for batting average and slugging percentage. Mendoza owns numerous Cardinal records. She was an analyst on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball from 2016 to 2019. She was dropped from the Sunday Night Baseball broadcast after the 2019 season but remains an ESPN baseball analyst. Mendoza was recently named by the fans and experts to the Greatest College Softball Team as an outfielder, one of only three to achieve the honor.
Katie Uhlaender is an American skeleton racer who has competed since 2003. She has won six medals at the FIBT World Championships with two gold, one silver, and three bronze.
Jennifer Claire Joines-Tamas is an American indoor volleyball player. Joines made her first Olympic appearance at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and helped Team USA to a silver medal.
The Australian women's national baseball team, nicknamed the Emeralds, represents Australia in international women's baseball tournaments and competitions. The team is controlled by the Australian Baseball Federation, which is represented in the Baseball Confederation of Oceania (BCO). They are the only team in Oceania to be formally ranked by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF), and are the 3rd ranked women's baseball team in the world. The Emeralds have been in existence since 2001, when the first ever squad was selected from the 2001 National Women’s Championships, held in Sydney. They compete in the biennial IBAF Women’s Baseball World Cup.
The Canada women's national baseball team is a national team of Canada and is controlled by the Canadian Federation of Amateur Baseball. It represents the nation in women's international competition. The team is a member of the COPABE.
The United States women's national baseball team is a national team that represents the United States of America in international women's baseball competitions. It is controlled by USA Baseball and is a member of the Pan American Baseball Confederation (COPABE).
Samantha Hamilton was a first basewoman and outfielder for the Australia women's national baseball team.
Amy McCann was a centre-fielder for the Australia women's national baseball team for over a decade.
The Women's Baseball World Series was an international tournament in which originally national women's baseball teams from around the world competed, before being overtaken by the Women's Baseball World Cup in 2004. It was sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation.
The Michigan Wolverines softball team represents the University of Michigan in National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division I competition. College softball became a varsity sport at the University of Michigan in 1978. Carol Hutchins has been the head coach since 1985. In 2005, Hutchins' team became the first Division I softball team since 1976 from east of the Mississippi River to win the Women's College World Series.
Rose M. Gacioch was a right fielder and pitcher who played from 1944 through 1954 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Listed at 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m), 160 lb, Gacioch batted and threw right-handed. She had one of the most successful career in AAGPBL history and possibly the well-rounded of any female player. She was of Polish descent.
Verity Long-Droppert is an Australian softball third base man and outfielder. She attended the University of Western Australia. She has held softball scholarships from the Australian Institute of Sport and the Western Australian Institute of Sport. She has represented Australia on the junior and senior levels, and won a bronze medal at the 2007 ISF Junior Women's World Championships. She played professional softball for Baseball Softball Club Legnano.
Francisco "Paco" Figueroa is an American former professional baseball second baseman and current coach. He is the first base, outfield, and base running coach for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Lilly Jacobson is a former member of the United States women's national baseball team.
Rebecca "Becky" Hartley is a Canadian baseball player. She is a member of the Canada women's national baseball team which won a silver medal at the 2015 Pan American Games.
Kelsey Lalor is a Canadian baseball player. She is a member of the Canada women's national baseball team which won a silver medal at the 2015 Pan American Games.
Claire Eccles is a Canadian baseball player. She is a left-handed pitcher who throws three pitches, including a knuckleball. She is a member of the women's national baseball team of Canada, and has competed in the 2014 and 2016 Women's Baseball World Cups as well as the 2015 Pan American Games. In 2017, she joined the Victoria HarbourCats of the West Coast League and became the first woman to play in that league. She is also a member of the softball team at the University of British Columbia.
References
- Angel Catford ABF Profile
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