Female baseball continues 'huge growth' across N.L., now counting close to 1,000 players

For the first time ever, Conception Bay South hosted an all-femalebaseball tournament, when it welcomed sixteams from across Newfoundland and Labrador over the weekend for the 12U A provincials.

Steve Bartlett, coach of host team C.B.S. Raiders, says while his association sent agirls' team to the provincials last year,they nevercompetedin a regular league.

This year, a girls'team is doing both, whichhe believesis a sign of growing interest in the sportin the community.

"The reason it's grown is because it's so exciting," said Bartlett. "There's a lot of action, there's a lot of team spirit. It's infectious.

"It's so magnificent to hear the girls cheering each other on. And their team, they're trying their best. It's magic."

The Raiders welcomed the St. John's Capitals, Paradise Phantoms, Gander Pilots, Grand Falls-Windsor Braves and Pasadena Pirates to bat it out for gold on Kiwanis Field.

Fifteen players are on the roster for the host team. Bartlett said interest from more players was there, but due to limited space, registration had to be capped.

On the west coast, in Pasadena, David Baineshas beenexperiencing the same growth.

Baines coaches the 14U Piratesbut came to C.B.S. to cheer on his younger daughter in the 12U tournament.

"It's gone from my oldest daughter inU14trying to get together a group of girls to now, we have for 12U two teams, enough to support two teams and some," said Baines. "We just hosted our very first provincial tournament for 14U, as well."

He said several towns on Newfoundland's west coast Stephenville, Deer Lake, Corner Brook and Pasadena have teamed together to playgames, as well, and fields in the area are increasingly booked up.

WATCH | First all-female baseball provincials in C.B.S. a sign of growth in the sport, say officials:

C.B.S. hosts first-ever girls' baseball provincials amid growing female athlete numbers

19 days ago

Duration 2:29

The 12U A Girls' Provincials took place on Kiwanis Field over the weekend, with six teams from across the province going for gold. For officials, it's a sign of a broader development in the sport that sees female numbers continuing to rise. As the CBC's Henrike Wilhelm reports, there is hope for even more growth in the future.

For Baines, the town's support as well as quality coaches and involved parents are what help draw in more female athletes.

"They show up to every practice. They are willing to listen, and if you're a good listener, you're a great player because you're there to learn, and it's easier to teach and to coach these young athletes," he said.

"They really want to be part of a team and they really enjoy that social aspect."

It's an observation that is backed by science, says Kristyn Coley, minor baseball chair of Baseball N.L., and women and girls committee chair for Baseball Canada.

"There is a lot of studies that do support that the social part of sports for girls is very, very important," she said."That's something that we really lean into by providing those programs where we're putting a lot of importance on the social aspect."

Over the past 10 years, said Coley, female baseball in the provincehas seen "huge growth," with several provincial divisions, plus local leagues.This season, she said,there are more girls' teams than ever across the province. Accordingly, athletenumbers have grown by more than 100, adding up to a total of almost1,000 female players.

"About 25 per centofall people playing baseball in the province now is female," said Coley."Not just in the province but across the countrywe stack up very well."

The provincial association, she said, offers programming for kids, from a young age up to their teens, to further foster this development. That, in combination with strong volunteerism and successful examples of female baseball players from the province, like Jada Lee or Heather Healey, draws in higher numbers of girls than ever before, she said.

Coley said Baseball N.L. will continue the development of female officials and coaches in the off-season, and itplans to offer an 18U or 21U provincial female league next summer to ensure that athletes over 16 have options to continue playing.

"It's very exciting, definitely keeps me going because every year it's like, 'OK, what's the next thing?' And seeing all that growth has been really inspiring," she said.

Bartlett is also looking at the next thing. He hopes that in the coming season, the C.B.S. Kiwanis Minor Baseball Association will have two or three girls' teams in other divisions and he says interest from new players is already there.

"Wesee an explosion of women's sports globally, women's hockey, women's basketball. And I think women's baseball is next," said Bartlett.

"With those opportunities, you're seeing a lot of great talent develop and emerge."

Download ourfree CBC News appto sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador.Click here to visit our landing page.