Plenty of Newfoundlanders invited to national senior pool party
Softball Canada names long list of 44 players for its men's team and 10 are from this province, including a couple of newcomers
Softball Canada has revealed its long list of players for the 2020 national senior men’s team and almost a quarter of those named are Newfoundlanders.
In all, 44 players were named, with 10 coming from this province.
Six of the 10 from N.L. played on the Canadian team that came away with a bronze medal at the 2019 WBSC world championship in the Czech Republic: catcher Ryan Boland of Goulds, his brother and shortstop Shane Boland, pitcher Sean Cleary of Harbour Main, brothers and outfielders Brad
Ezekiel of Harbour Main and Kyle Ezekiel of Holyrood and pitcher/utility player Jason Hill of St. John’s.
Two others, pitcher/outfielder Colin Walsh of Goulds and catcher/infielder Blair Ezekiel of Harbour Main (yet another Ezekiel brother) make a return to the list.
The two, both former members of the national team, were part of the long list/player pool last season.
The remaining two Newfoundlanders — infielder Peter Kavanagh of St. John’s and outfielder Nick Pittman of Placentia — are new to the national team program.
Eight of the 10 were with the Galway Hitmen as they won Newfoundland’s seventh national senior men’s championship in eight years this summer in Grande Prairie, Alta.; Ryan Boland and Cleary weren’t with the Hitmen in Grande Prairie, but had been key members of the previous national champions from the province.
The national team long list will be used to select a roster for an expected 2020 Pan American championship to be held ahead of the 2021 WBSC World Cup (world championships are held every two years).
There are a couple of openings on the national senior team after the recent retirements of Freshwater native Steven Mullaley and P.E.I.’S Jeff Ellsworth.