Ash Patton in her pitching role. Photo: Supplied.
For 16-year-old Canberra baseballer Ashley Patton selection in the Australian senior women’s baseball team, the Emeralds, is a dream come true.
The fact that her debut will take place at the Women’s Baseball World Cup in Canada is an added bonus.
Ash is one of 14 debutants in the Emeralds line-up. She will be joined in the Australian team by fellow Canberra baseballer, 21-year-old Maddison Erwin.
Both have sacrificed plenty to reach this high point.
In a bid to lift her game to the level required to win selection in the Australian team, Maddison has been playing in the stronger Sydney competition for a number of years.
“I’ve been playing in Sydney since 2019,” she said. “I’ve been travelling back and forth from Canberra once a week and it has paid off. I owe so much to my parents, who often share the drive.”
Maddison Erwin has been playing in the Sydney competition for the last four years. Photo: Supplied.
Ash has also been playing in the Sydney competition.
“Playing with the Blacktown Workers in Sydney has been really beneficial for my development, even though I didn’t have the results that I hoped for, I still learnt a lot.”
Ash has also juggled playing two sports at a high level. Beyond baseball, she is also in the GWS Women’s AFL Academy.
Heading to the baseball World Cup means she will miss the remainder of the under-18 Allies AFL games this season.
As to the future, Ash believes she can pursue both sports.
The selection of these two young ACT women for the Australian team has an added dimension. Maddison is a role model for women’s baseball as she was the first female athlete in the Baseball ACT High Performance Program in 2018.
She has effectively paved the way for the likes of Ash to pursue her dreams in women’s baseball.
Maddison said selection in the Emeralds is a reward for years of dedication to the sport. She said, “It’s an accumulation of all the hard work I have put in to be the best I can.”
Importantly, Maddison adds, “Beyond personal sacrifices, there are those made by my parents and family to get me to training and games. And there is also all the time my coaches have dedicated to help me learn and make adjustments along the journey.”
For Maddison, this goal has been something that she has worked towards with considerable focus. “To make the Australian team has been a goal of mine since I was 10 years old when I played in my first representative team,” she said.
“It was my first all-girls tournament and it really opened my eyes to a pathway into the Australian women’s team. To be about to pull on the Australian jersey alongside some of my teammates from that first tournament is going to be so surreal and I can’t wait.”
The Emeralds are up against some tough teams in the 2023 World Cup. Photo: Supplied.
Ash, the talented multi-sport athlete, loves to compete whether it is AFL or baseball, but the World Cup is something special.
“It’s a pretty big thing to be an Emerald. Getting into the Australian team was always a goal and a dream of mine.”
And her focus is also very clear: “As my role is as a pitcher, I’m not expecting to get on the field every day but I’m there to enjoy the experience and compete to win.”
And it won’t be easy. The Emeralds are ranked eighth in the world and are in a tough group alongside two-time champions the United States, and with Canada on their home turf.
Australia’s first game in the Women’s Baseball World Cup begins on August 9 at 5:30 am AEST. For updates, head to the Baseball Australia website.
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