7 News Belize

U-19 Softballers Blast Federation
posted (July 9, 2012)
Early this year, the Softball Federation of Belize invited Belize's best under - 19 softballers to try out for the national team - which would compete later this month in regional games in Nicaragua.

Over 20 young women signed up for the 18 slots - and they have been participating in weekly workouts at the Rogers Stadium. That was until Saturday morning when they were notified by their coach that the trip to the tournament had been cancelled - just like that.

Well, they marched straight over to our studio to tell us that they were very disappointed and very angry. Here's what they said:..

Arneek Baptist, U-19 Tryout
"Our coach read a memo saying that the federation says that they don't have the amount of money to send us - they don't have $20,000.00 to waste on us, so they will not send us outside, they will leave us in Belize because they say that we are not ready. But we work out on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday."

Jules Vasquez
"But all of you guys showed up for work out?"

Arneek Baptist, U-19 Tryout
"Some people come all the way from down south, Orange Walk and all different places they come to work out, they don't give us money for passage. Do you know the amount of money we have to pay to work out in Belize for them to tell us this this morning."

Ashley Lucas, Pitcher - u-19 National Team Tryout
"I never would have minded if they came to us face to face but for them to send it over an email was really a disrespect."

Tyra Moreria
"I feel terrible because I come to work out every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday - every time on time. Sometimes I am the first person to reach that stadium, then to see that everyone is out here and everyone came prepared to work out - for them to tell us that today, this morning. We are supposed to go away in the next two weeks, it doesn't make any sense, they supposed to pick a team for us to go. They are just telling us that we cannot go. The problem is that they told us that it is financial. If they knew that we had financial problems - they didn't have to do this."

Pitcher - u-19 National Team Tryout
"We could have been working; we didn't have to be out here. We put our all out here. We work out all day, sometime we are out here and they don't even give us anything to eat nor money for our passage. We have to take our money from our pockets and take our time to come out here to work out. We want the softball federation put their input in too because we are putting our all in. What are we supposed to do?"

Ashley Lucas, u-19 Team Tryout
"Mr. Pat Henry say that we won't be going to Nicaragua again because they don't have $20,000.00 to waste. So obviously they are calling us a waste of time and I really take that as disrespect because I mean I don't know how the other young ladies feel but I know that I am not a waste of time, so I don't really appreciate that."

Pitcher - u-19 National Team Tryout
"Mr. Patrick Henry told us this morning - they don't us to go up there to look like this (hands in the air) when we are out there and look like this (hands below) when we are in Belize. What sense does that make, what is he trying to tell us? He is breaking out momentum down."

Ashley Lucas, Pitcher - u-19 National Team Tryout
"I feel bad because I go through all kinds of pain with my hands working out, pitches every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, not only on those days but I still go out to Berger Field to practice pitches."

Tyra Moreria
"I would choose softball over anything and everything. I could have gotten a summer job, I could have gone to summer classes or something to occupy my time to know that I am working out hard every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and now look what happens - everything just gone to waste."

Arneek Baptist, U-19 Tryout
"Everybody will want to stop play softball. Sports are going to nothing in Belize now because they are not pushing us. They are not giving us momentum; they are not doing anything for us. What do they want us to do?"

Their protest is touching but today President of the Softball Federation Patrick Henry was unapologetic. He told us, that if a team is unprepared - and not coming out to practice - then the Federation will not send them abroad. He adds that the team did not field 18 players at any given practice, did not perform up to expectations and were not representative of the best under-19 talent in the country. He says that quote, "if we had to make the decision over again with the same bunch we would do it again."

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