Players prepared to pitch in
Published Friday July 3rd, 2009
Softball | Whelan, Ebbett, Whipple on Team N.B. for U19 international tourney next week in Charlottetown
Three Fredericton Boys' Fastpitch Association players will be playing on a field of dreams next week.
Jamie Whelan, Jacob Ebbett and Matt Whipple will play for Team New Brunswick at the 2009 under-19 international men's softball championship.
The 13-team event runs July 7-12 in Charlottetown, P.E.I. Entries from New Zealand and the United States (Salt Lake City) will join 11 Canadian clubs.
Whelan, who recently turned 16, is an original member of the FBFA, which president Scott Willis formed four years ago. The association, which now has 150 players, had just 15 that first year.
"I wanted to try something new," said Whelan, a pitcher and outfielder who was soon hooked. "The association has really improved now. Some players have switched over from other sports."
Ebbett, who turned 18 last Sunday, is Whelan's cousin. He went to a few of his games and was intrigued. He got his chance to play when the team was short players one time and was soon hooked, too.
"It was something to do at first, but then I got serious about it after that," said Ebbett, a pitcher and first baseman who's been playing for a year and a half.
Eyeing a chance to make Team N.B., Whelan and Ebbett practised on their own in September and October, then every Monday from January on when Larry Gould gave them permission to use the Keswick Valley Gym.
Willis, Brad Cameron, Bob Despres, Peter Mersereau, Ron Francis, Jason Gallant and Brent Evans offered them tips and advice to help them hone their skills.
Peter Whelan, the boys' uncle and an FBFA bantam coach, also spent countless hours working with his young nephews.
"Pitching took a lot of work at first," Ebbett said. "It was really difficult at first.
"But after 10,000 pitches or so, I started to get the hang of it," he added with a grin.
Whipple, a catcher and second baseman, has a baseball background. He played baseball for seven seasons, in fact, and only switched to fastpitch this year. But he did well enough at Team N.B. tryouts to earn a spot.
"It was a pretty easy transition at first, but now it's more difficult as you try to get all the little things right."
Whipple, 16, is the son of Jeff Whipple, who'll be umpire in chief at next week's tournament. Matt won't have to worry about questioning his father's calls behind the plate, though.
"He won't be umpiring any games," Matt said with a grin.
New Brunswick plays a pair of games next Tuesday the 7th, facing Manitoba at 9 a.m. and Saskatchewan at 2 p.m.
N.B. meets Ontario at 1 p.m. next Wednesday, the U.S. on Thursday and Nova Scotia on Friday.
The other pool consists of British Columbia, Alberta, Northwest Territories, P.E.I., Newfoundland, Quebec and New Zealand.
The top four teams in each division advance to the championship round July 11 while the bottom four are guaranteed at least one game in the consolation bracket.
"It will definitely be a great experience," Ebbett said, "especially playing the U.S. Mexico dropped out, which was a huge disappointment, because everyone on our team was looking forward to playing them.
"I'm anxious to see New Zealand, which is supposed to be a powerhouse," Whipple said.
"It's going to be a great experience and a lot of fun playing those big teams," Whelan said.
Team N.B. goes in as a heavy underdog - and in what's regarded as the tougher of two divisions, to boot.
"But I think we have a good shot to beat Manitoba in our first game," Ebbett said. "If we can do that, it will give us a little confidence."
"We'd have a pretty good chance in the consolation tournament too," Whelan said.
"Facing that caliber of pitching is going to be extremely tough," Ebbett said. "If we get somebody on base, we're going to have to execute bunts and steals. We're going to have to run and force them to make errors.
"We're going to have to play small ball," Whipple said. "Fortunately, we have some decent speed."
Softball isn't part of the Canada Summer Games, but the international tournament serves as a superior replacement, with the U.S. and New Zealand involved.
The plan is to hold the international U19s in 2013 in Quebec, as well, when the FBFA should have even more players ready to represent N.B.
"That's the goal," Whipple said. "Jamie and I will still be eligible to play then, too."
Disabled
Search Articles
More CE Network Sites & Partners:
