Author: torontofastpitchclub

2017 18u Midget Try-Out Schedule

The 18U Midget Toronto Fastpitch Club is pleased to announce the try-out schedule for the upcoming year. With a busy fall ahead, we welcome any interested players and parents to contact us if they have any additional questions. The coaches do appreciate being contacted prior to the try-out dates in order to fully plan and utilize our time. Contact info can be found on our Contact page. If you are interested in trying out, but you are unable to attend these dates, please feel free to contact Coach Alan Spohn to speak directly about other options.

Please note that the coaching staff has decided to hold our first Try-Out on Tuesday, so as not to disrupt players before their first day of school.

The Try-Out Schedule is as follows:

Tuesday September 6th @ 7pm 

  • Location 224 North Queen St. Toronto M9C 4Y1. This is the private training facility of the TFC program. It is a 2400 sq ft fully turfed indoor facility that boasts a batting area, cages, mounds and all training and fitness equipment required to field a competitive team come summer.
  • Please bring running shoes, batting equipment (and bat if possible) and water as this try out will be a combination of fitness plus batting.
  • *Please note that pitchers and catchers will be evaluated immediately after hitting.*

Thursday September 8th @ 8pm

  • Location Paul Coffey Park (formerly Wildwood Park)
  • 3430 Derry Rd E, Mississauga, ON L4T 1A9
  • This park is tucked into the Southwest corner of Derry and Goreway Drive. Please bring cleats, water, and all equipment necessary for your position.

Saturday September 10th @ 9am

  • Location Paul Coffey Park (formerly Wildwood Park)
  • 3430 Derry Rd E, Mississauga, ON L4T 1A9
  • This park is tucked into the Southwest corner of Derry and Goreway Drive. Please bring cleats, water, and all equipment necessary for your position.

2016 University/College Fall Tour

adelphi

The Toronto Fastpitch Club 18U team will once again head on the road this fall for a tour of colleges and universities. Using an extensive list of contacts including past players and college coaches carefully curated in over 20 years of coaching competitive softball, Head Coach Alan Spohn was fielding game requests this summer while competing all over North America.

American colleges and universities are able to compete in exhibition games with international teams during the fall season, graciously hosting us at their playing fields, while provided enriched college-level game experience. The college tour provides live game introductions while also creating an exciting setting to get to know new team mates and continue to build friendships with current ones.

I think my favourite part of the tour was being able to play against all the college teams because it gave me an idea of what I have to work towards. It helped bring the team together. Most of us had played together before but it was still a new team so it forced us to come together especially against a team like the Winthrop University Eagles.

– Allyse Volpe TFC Class of 2018

Last year’s college tour saw a very young TFC team pile into a bus and vans as a brand new team challenging and holding their own against Kutztown, Adelphi, the Winthrop University Eagles, and South Carolina State. The team was thrilled to compete against familiar faces, program graduates and ex-team mates Kristin Fealy (Adelphi), Asja Saito and Sam Fraser (Kutztown) and KJ Uyeno (Winthrop).

It really helped me grow as a player because I had the opportunity to play against more experienced teams and players. It also helped me make a lot of memories from being on the road with my team mates every weekend. 

– Britney Boersma Class of 2017

This year’s tour will include past schools such as the Adelphi University Panthers, the Kutztown University Bears while adding the University of New Haven Chargers, the Marshall University Thundering Herd, the Kentucky Christian Knights and the Morehead State Eagles. The full schedule can be found below while this year’s try-out schedule for the Midget 18U team will be posted by the end of this week.

Playing against college teams last year was both challenging and enjoyable. The games consisted of good sportsmanship and competitive softball. I learned a lot and had great experiences!

-Jamie Jang, Class of 2017

Full Schedule:

Wednesday Sept. 28  Adelphi University Panthers:  Janet L. Fricke Field -Garden City, N.Y. (NE 10 Champions . Back to Back World Series Appearances NCAA DII)

Thursday Sept. 29 Kutztown University Bears: North Campus Field -Kutztown, Pa. (PSAC Atlanta Regionals NCAA DII)

Friday Sept. 30 University of New Haven Chargers: UNH Softball Field – West Haven, Conn. (NE 10 NCAA DII)

Friday Oct.14 Marshall University Thundering Herd: Dot Hicks Feld  Huntington WV. (Conferance USA NCAA DI)

Saturday Oct.15 Kentucky Christian Knights: Championship Softball Complex – Cannonsburg KY (Independent NAIA)

Sunday Oct.16 Morehead State Eagles: University Field – Morehead KY (Ohio Valley Conference NCAA DI)

withrop-field

Janes to Simon Fraser

*article previously published in the Brampton Guardian January 10, 2016
Amanda Janes

Amanda Janes

Long-time Brampton Blazer Amanda Janes has announced she is heading to Simon Fraser University in B.C. where she will be joining two other former Blazers on the softball team.
Brampton Guardian

By Frank Juzenas

Although she is heading to the West Coast of Canada, Brampton’s Amanda Janes should feel comfortable when she begins playing softball at Simon Fraser University in the fall of 2016.

Janes, who has been a long-time member of the Brampton Blazers girls softball program, is joining a Simon Fraser team that already has three other former Blazers: catcher/first base Samantha Ruffett and pitcher Jessica Tate, both currently freshmen, and sophomore shortstop/second baseman Victoria Saunders. Janes has also had several opportunities to visit the campus while playing in tournaments over the years.

While she is happy to be joining some friends, the big attraction is the quality of education she will get at the Burnaby university.

“The education program was the best of the universities I was looking at,” she said. Janes, an honour roll student at Brampton Centennial Secondary School would like to go to dental school with the goal of becoming an orthodontist.

Simon Fraser is the only Canadian school that plays a schedule against U.S. schools. Janes said there are benefits of staying in Canada for school, including getting an education that is recognized across the country and not having to worry about how the exchange rate might affect costs.

Janes has played 11 years of softball in the Blazers program. This summer though, she will be joining The Toronto Fastpitch Club 18 Gold, along with a number of former Blazers. That team is coached by longtime Blazer coach Al Spohn.

She has been part of a number of strong teams, wining three provincial gold medals and two silvers and has gone to several national championships. Janes has played catcher, first base and shortstop but catcher is the position she most enjoys.

“When you are a catcher you always have to think about the next play,” she said. Last year at the nationals she helped the Blazers finish fourth, batting .379. During the season she had a .368 batting average with 75 hits, including 12 doubles, and drove in 42 runs.

She had a tryout with the junior national team last year and the national coach has kept in touch with herm so Janes is hoping to get another chance this summer.

Simon Fraser head coach Mike Renney said Janes is part of one of the school’s best recruiting class ever.

“I first saw Amanda play at the U18 Nationals where she played three different positions in one game, and she played all three very well,” said Renney. “The other thing I like about Amanda is that she is a tough out at the plate and she will only get better.”

Passing of Mark Sanderson

The Toronto Fastpitch Club plays each season in memory of  Coach Mark Sanderson.

Published by Gilles LeBlanc

Published on December 21, 2015

(Ottawa, ON) Softball Canada is saddened by the news of the sudden passing of Mark Sanderson (Brampton, ON) on December 15, 2015.

A long-time coach in Softball Ontario’s Provincial Women’s Softball Association (PWSA), Mark was inducted to the Softball Canada Hall of Fame in 2000 as the Manager of the 1995-1997 Chinguacousy Junior Cougars team, which won three consecutive Canadian Championships during those years. He also coached club teams in Brampton and Cawthra, as well as the Universities of York and Toronto of the Ontario Intercollegiate Women’s Fastpitch Association (OIWFA). Mark was an Assistant Coach with the Canadian Junior Women’s National team from 2002 to 2007, attending two WBSC World Championships over that span. He was always willing to help out the National Team coaching staff as a guest coach at various identification camps and Development Team/Futures events, where his presence and opinions were always valued by coaches and players alike.

Our heartfelt condolences go out to Mark’s family and friends, as well as all of the players, coaches and umpires who have had the pleasure of crossing paths with him on the softball diamond.

Click here to view Mark Sanderson’s obituary.

-SC-

For more information, please contact:

Gilles LeBlanc
Manager – Marketing and Communications
Softball Canada
(613) 523-3386 ext. 3105
gleblanc@softball.ca