Talent
The team had no lack of talent. While many sluggers batted in throngs of runs for the ladies, pitcher Theresa Manaloto deserves credit for keeping the opposition on their toes and off the bases. She was integral to the team’s success, adding some big hits and home runs throughout the season.
Effort
While the team strolled through their regular season knocking off the competition with no remorse, playoffs told a different story. The University of Calgary fastball vixens were pitted against a tough University of Alberta Gold team–who they had beaten the previous evening–in a tie-breaking game to continue in the playoffs, but couldn’t manage to pull out the win.
Coaching
The fastball team’s coach Tricia Aasen is not one to mess with. She pulled her team through a trying season well ahead of the competition. With single-day tournaments having as many as three and weekends as many as seven games, the team needed someone to keep them motivated through these hard times. Aasen proved that U of C ladies have stamina.
Achievement
If 14 wins, three losses and one forfeited game don’t say something about the achievements this team made, I know what might. Save the playoffs, these ladies dished out some baseball beatings the majors teams would envy. They ended many games not in the conventional nine innings, but by the mercy rule that takes effect when a lead grows so large that the chances of the opposition catching up are as great as a gay Chinese monk becoming the pope. They scored 10 or more runs on many occasions and won by as much as a 15-point margin. Ouch.
Overall: B+
Animal: Goldfish. While you sit there, feeding your goldfish wondering when it will be full, you don’t realize it will in fact eat until it dies. The fastball squad feasted all regular season, but were too full and exploded in the post-season.