Salling embraces Canada’s vibe
SOFTBALL: Veteran shortstop says national team shaping up nicely ahead of Tokyo Olympics
Jenn Salling heads into the Canada Cup with momentum at the plate.
Team Canada’s veteran shortstop from Port Coquitlam hit .500 (10-for-20) at the World Cup of Softball in Oklahoma City that wrapped up Sunday. Canada finished third overall at 5-3, closing out the proceedings Sunday by blanking Australia 3-0. Japan and the United States both finished at 7-1. Salling and her cohorts open the international women’s division of the Canada Cup tonight at Softball City, taking on the Philippines in a 6 p.m. start.
The tournament final is slated for next Monday. Japan and Australia are among the other top contenders on hand. The Americans decided not to send a team to South Surrey this year.
It’s all part of early preparations for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Softball had been dropped from the Olympic calendar after the Beijing 2008 Games, but it was voted back in for Tokyo last summer.
“I was 20 in 2008. I’ll be 33 for Tokyo. I’m excited to have the chance to compare the two experiences,” said Salling.
As for what she likes about this edition of Team Canada, Salling explained: “We’re showing signs of resilience. There were a couple of games in Oklahoma City where we got down early. We didn’t worry about whether we were going to be able to come back.
“It feels like we’re getting more confidence collectively. We’ve had people who were confident individually, but, as a group, it was something we struggled with in the past. We’re showing signs of that now.”
Salling, 30, is a familiar name for Softball City fans on Team Canada, along with catcher Kaleigh Rafter, infielder Joey Lye and outfielder Victoria Hayward.
There are several newcomers, too, like Surrey native Holly Speers, a Kent State University junior who played first base and hit in the middle of the order for Canada in Oklahoma City, and Kelsey Jenkins, a University of Wisconsin junior from Tucson who played second for Canada this past week.
Jenkins is the daughter of Shannah Biggan, a Delta product who played for the Canadian national team for a time.
“I’m not surprised to see the new faces,” Salling said. “With where Coach (Mark) Smith is heading over the next three or four years, and with how we want to the develop as a country, you want to have some of the younger ones with the senior team. And they’re showing that they can compete at this level.”
Notably absent from this Canadian entry is ace pitcher Sara Groenewegen. The White Rock native, is currently playing for the Akron Racers of the National Pro Fastpitch, a six-team American professional loop.
She’ll rejoin the team during the Olympic cycle.