MOUNT Isa’s under 19s representative softball team have recently returned from Rockhampton after contesting the state championships.
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With teams from Redlands, Toowoomba, Redcliffe, Hervey Bay, Rockhampton and Ipswich present, the level of competition was also going to be stiff.
Despite losing their President’s Cup preliminary finals match against Toowoomba, the whole team could hold their head high, said assistant coach Ryan Smith.
“Overall, it was a solid weekend for the boys, even if we didn’t get the results we wanted in some of the games,” he said.
“Unfortunately, there were a fair few errors in our game and it generally came down to which team made the least amount of errors would win.
“If we had turned up and played consistently each match, like we did against eventual champions Redlands, where we won 9-8, we could have won our division.”
The team, which has been training since February, was rewarded for its strong play with duo Alexander Cleary and Jarrod Nilsson being selected in the under 19 men’s state team.
“It’s a great achievement for both the boys, who have been working hard for some time now,” Smith said.
“I thought Alex was one of the strongest batters in the tournament and proved that by consistently getting on base.
“Jarrod did an exceptional job catching all weekend and was one of our most reliable batters.”
From the 12 players that travelled away, 10 of them are still eligible to attend the tournament next year, with only James Byrne and Jaymon King being ineligible because of their higher age.
“Jaymon’s pitching was exceptional and in the right spot all weekend,” Smith said.
“He and catcher Jarrod Nilsson developed a strong combination and kept us in a lot of matches off their own backs.
“The will be missed next year but it gives younger blokes like Mitchell Nilsson and Luke Pollard [both 15] an opportunity to step up.”
Alexander Cleary and Jarrod Nilsson, who both were part of the victorious Queensland under 19s schoolboys team in September, will travel to Sydney in 2015 for the Australian under 19s Championships.
Joining the pair is Mount Isa head coach Steve Wagner, who was named head coach for the Queensland team.
TEAM: Denise Kostowski (scorer), Angela Nilsson (manager), Luke Pollard, Steve Wagner (head coach), Jarrod Nilsson, Alex Cleary, Nathan Drew, Mitchell Nilsson, Alex Kostowski, Darcy Celona, Nick Celona, Steve Nilsson (assistant coach), Ryan Smith (assistant coach), William Bulgarelli, Matt Croghan, Jaymon King and James Byrne.