Whanganui High School Sports

Junior Softball is hitting it out of the park.

The junior softball season ended on a high on Monday night with the finals of the Secondary school slowpitch and U17 competitive league finals.

During January – March, the junior softball scene has been buzzing with the junior teeball and softball, keeping the grounds full on Saturday mornings and the continued support of the slowpitch and competitive fastpitch on Monday nights.

It was another great finish to the U17 competition, with Angels taking out the final against Yankees 8 – 1 and the Red Sox keeping their composure to narrowly beat the Mets for 3rd place, 3-2. The introduction of U17 competition has been a huge success. Each half season, players register individually and are placed into teams in their preferred positions. The focus is development, and as the teams gel together over the season, the games start to get really close. The introduction of this league, in its current format, has made a big impact on player numbers for this age group at softball. The teams, Yankees, Angels, Mets and Red Sox, have been full with 48 players, boys and girls, taking part in the weekly competition.

The competition is a great feeder for representative softball, and this season Whanganui sent U15 boys and girls and U17 boys and girls teams to national and regional tournaments. All teams were competitive, punching well above their size for a regional association. Development of the players from the Monday night competitions and Saturday senior ball was evident as all teams bettered their placings from last year. The girls teams have had huge success and individuals have been selected for national honors this year. Ngārongokaumoana Ponga, Taylah Waitokia and Poppy Priddle were selected for a Junior White Sox regional team who played against Queensland at the end of last month, and at just 14, Priddle has been selected for the Junior White Sox to travel to Brazil in July for the WBSC U18 World Cup Qualifier. Ponga and Waitokia are also travelling overseas for top level softball, having been picked up by the Australian Bears to play in the USA in July at the Babe Ruth World Series 2024.

29/3/24