By CONNIE TABBERT
Editor
A Cobden fastball player returned home with a silver medal from the 11th Pan Pacific Masters Games held in Australia last month.
Liz Cobb was part of the Ontario Strong Ladies Fastball Team that won nine of 11 games – only losing one game in the round robin and the championship game to earn the silver. They were edged 7-6 by the Camira Amigos from Australia.
“The girls gave it their all, but it wasn’t meant to be,” noted Pam Behnke-Van Hoof, an organizer of the team. “The Ontario Strong Ladies fastball team earned a silver medal for their efforts and are determined to return and win the gold. They’ve proven they can hold their own in the tournament and are hungry to have another chance down under.”
There were 14 members on the team, and six of them are from the Upper Ottawa Valley Area – Cobb (Cobden), Behnke-Van Hoof and Joanne Duquette (Petawawa) and Chrissy Laforce, Michelle Beale and Michelle MacDowall (Arnprior). The other members were Chris Dewer (Carp), Donna Price (Almonte), Kathy McCullough (Orleans), Rochelle Heudes (Halifax) and from southern Ontario, Shyanne Stockie, Brenda Brown, Shelley Graul and Rene Michiels. The coach was Lauren McCormik from Australia, but who knew some of the players from southern Ontario.
“We played 11 games in five days,” Cobb said.
Behnke-Van Hoof added, “They were having a heatwave that first week we were there. By mid-day, it was 34 to 38 degrees and humid, so it was hot.”
Cobb agreed, noting she doesn’t sweat easy, but at one game, sweat was forming on her forearms.
Playing two games a day really wore the women down as they were not used to that kind of heat, Behnke-Van Hoof said.
While there is no difference in how the game is played, Behnke-Van Hoof said they were not playing on proper ball diamonds – but converted rugby and soccer pitches. The game is played on a grassy field, although it’s lined with chalk and there are bases. The pitcher’s mound is a piece of rubber with the mound attached, she added.
“That made it a bit of a challenge, because the ball comes off grass differently,” she said.
Usually in an outfield, there is dirt, grass and then a fence, Cobb said.
“There, you didn’t have a zone, so you have to be prepared to go everywhere and anywhere,” she said.
She and Behnke-Van Hoof both spoke about balls from other diamonds coming into their diamond because the four diamonds were back to back.
They both agreed there were teams that were worthy opponents, while others were easier to beat. However, the final game was not really a loss, they both said.
“We did compete and it was a team worthy of competing against, but there were definitely struggles with the umpires,” Behnke-Van Hoof said. “There were more than a few questionable calls, but you can’t blame it on the umpires.”
She added, “We lost by one. It was a close game.”
Cobb added, “Because some of the calls were frustrating, I’m very proud of how the team handled themselves, despite some of the frustrating calls.
“Some of the spectators were equally as frustrated and they were quite vocal.
“But, our catcher continued to be poised and mature and dealt with it very professionally,” Cobb stated
The team’s strength was its pitching and hitting, Behnke-Van Hoof said.
“We had the two highest-calibre pitchers in the entire tournament,” she said of Chrissy Laforce and Shelley Graul.
However, she noted, “It takes an entire team to win or lose. One person is never going to be the result of a loss, in any capacity, or the win. It takes all 14 of us.”
Cobb did note it’s just not possible to have a good game each and every time, with Behnke-Van Hoof agreeing.
“When batting, I would do well in one game, and the next game, a different player would do well. It was consistently a good effort by everybody.”
Coach McCormik also knew how to position the players and that was made possible because each player could play at least two positions, most of them three, she said.
Cobb agreed, noting she was concerned her knee may not have allowed her to play throughout the tournament.
“She was well-organized in the positions and how we were substituted,” she said. “It was very smart coaching.”
Ontario Strong had the youngest team, with players aged 46 to 58. But, there were teams with women as old as 77 and coaches who were close to 90. Cobb recalled one woman coming up to them and saying they were too young to be in the over-45 category.
“You’re too young, too fit, too cute and we’re not playing you,” is what the woman said, but in a joking manner, she recalled.
A very hard moment for Cobb was when she received word her father had died just shortly after she arrived in Australia. She knew it was a possibility, and that was one of the toughest decisions she had to make before going with the team.
“I was there every day for four years and he waits for me to leave and then dies,” she recalled. “I really thought long and hard before committing to going on the trip and I had to be okay with whatever happened.”
When Cobb received the news he had died, she said, “It was devastating to me. The girls rallied around me. They hovered over me to make sure I was okay. I can’t even begin to tell you the comfort they provided me in dealing with the heartache.
“They dedicated the last game to my dad.”
Cobb and Behnke-Van Hoof said it wasn’t all just ball while they were in Australia. The players took advantage of living on the other side of the world and toured the area, took in the culture and experienced the after-parties each day provided by the organizers of the event.
They checked out the wildlife sanctuary where Cobb held onto Enzo, a koala bear, wishing she could take it home; the native fauna and flora; went to the ocean, which was a 20 minute walk from the house they were renting.
This was an experience the women won’t soon forget.
“It was really an adventure, some I would have regretted if I hadn’t of gone,” Cobb said. “This was a lifetime experience.”
Behnke-Van Hoof added, “A sisterhood formed that felt like we had known each other our whole lives.”
And while it was an experience they didn’t think they would have again, that’s just not true.
They are hoping to participate again in the 2020 Pan Pacific Masters Games. And, even mentioned the 2021 world’s in Japan.
“I had no intentions of going again, but I am going again,” Cobb said. “We’re family now. I have no choice, they would never let me live it down.”
Behnke-Van Hoof laughed as she added, “We might need to win a lottery.”
If any women are interested in learning more about the team, or even joining it, contact them through their Ontario Strong Ladies Fastball Team facebook page.
Summing it, this statement was posted on their facebook page:
The Ontario Ladies Fastball Team would like to recognize and thank so many wonderful people who helped make our journey to the Pan Pacific Master Games a success. Re/Max Pembroke Realty (Judy DeGeer), and Sullivan & Son’s of Arnprior for sponsoring our team. Thank you!
As well as the endless friends, family, colleagues and associates who supported our many fundraising adventures. Your contributions assisted with equipment costs, transportation on the ground in Australia, sporting and insurance fees, and the endless costs of travelling with a team abroad. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Our Silver medal is as much ours as yours. We travelled abbroad as a team of individuals but became a band of softball sisters who will be lifelong friends; played with pride and honour as Canadians and we would do it all again knowing we have the support and love of so many.
There is nothing like the feeling of success and earning the admiration of so many. You’ve helped us make a dream come true and we are forever in your debt.
