Five Victorians will represent Australia as part of the Under 18 team heading to Hong Kong to play in the Phoenix Cup from 19-22 February.
All veterans of the recently concluded National Championships in Canberra, the state representatives for this prestigious tournament are Brittany Cedelland, Sinead Byrne-Connell, Maddy Davis, Emma French and Abbey Kelly.
The youngest of the lot, Cedelland is just 16 and she will be making her international debut. She performed brilliantly at the recently completed national championships, finishing with a sparkling 2.79 earned run average and pitched excellently against New South Wales in the gold medal game.
At 19, French is the team’s veteran. This will be her third time representing Australia at the Phoenix Cup. She played a huge part in Victoria’s silver medal run at the National Championships, registering a crucial win over Queensland.
Kelly, 17, is making her second trip to the Phoenix Cup.
Also 17 years of age, Davis played for her first Victorian Blue squad at the National Championships and will likewise be making her initial trip abroad for Australia.
Last but not least, Byrne-Connell (17) will also make her Phoenix Cup debut after playing very well for the Vic Blue team in Canberra.
“Congratulations to all the girls selected to represent Australia at the Phoenix Cup in February,” said Ashley Blair, Interim General Manager of Baseball Victoria. “This is a fantastic achievement and is the result of a huge amount of hard work and sacrifice you have put into baseball over the years.
“That five girls have been selected again demonstrates the strength of the Victorian High Performance program and everyone involved. We are sure those selected will represent Victoria and Australia to the best of their abilities.”
Supporters can follow their progress at the Phoenix Cup website.