Photo: WBSC
Great Britain Women’s U-18 National Fastpitch Team Head Coach Tara Tembey and the British Softball Federation have today announced 15 players and two alternates to represent Great Britain at the 2024 U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup Group A in Sao Paolo, Brazil from 23-27 July.
Great Britain, the 13th ranked team in the WBSC world standings, will face world-ranked No. 4 Chinese Taipei, No. 9 Czechia, host nation and No. 23 Brazil and a team from the Americas who have yet to qualify. An additional 12 countries will compete in Group B and Group C, played later this summer in Pingtan, China, and Dallas, USA, respectively.
The top two teams from each group, along with two wild-card teams, will advance to the 2025 U-18 Women’s World Cup Finals, to be held in Dallas. Great Britain qualified for the U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup as a wild card, joining fellow European nations Italy, The Netherlands, Czechia, and Ireland. Europe is tied with the Americas for the most teams participating in this edition of the World Cup, with both regions sending five teams each.
Athletes were selected in accordance with the 2024 British Softball Federation Women’s Performance Programme Selection Policy and Criteria. The 15 members of the roster are as follows, with their university commitments in brackets:
Lily Bell
Hannah Bingaman
Molly Blackwood (Bethune Cookman)
Abigail Chan
Jessica Chan (George Mason)
Elena Clark-Wilson (St. Peters)
Cara Edwards (Canisius)
Kailyn Haig
Amy Hartle
Mia Krueger (Cal Baptist)
Kaitlyn Parisi (U. Albany)
Emma Smith
Sydney Teague
Jenna Thompson
Georgia Wilson
A sixteenth member of the roster will be announced prior to the start of the World Cup.
The two reserve members of the roster are:
Aliyah Clarke (Lane College)
Lily Daniels
Including reserves, the U-18 GBR roster returns 11 players from last year’s U-18 European Championship team, including infielder Jessica Chan, who also debuted last year for Great Britain’s Senior Women in the Softball World Cup Pool A in Balbriggan, Ireland. Chan was the U-18 Women’s batting leader at the 2023 U-18 European Championships, batting .607, and leading the tournament in runs and hits, with 17 each. Also returning from the 2023 team is Cara Edwards, whose five doubles were good for second in the Europeans, and Elena Clark-Wilson, who led Great Britain’s pitchers in innings and strikeouts.
Great Britain Head of Performance Gary Anderson commented, "As part of our Olympic Strategy we are tracking players in this age group; it's vital that we maintain the overall upward trajectory through the programme. We are committed to creating and developing an environment and culture that prioritises the sustainable development and well-being of our players in our preparation for the LA2028 Olympic Games."
Great Britain Softball Olympic Head Coach Tara Henry added, “Competing in the U18 World Cup tournament is a tremendous honour for Great Britain Softball, focusing on nurturing the future of our national team. Developing younger age groups stands as the cornerstone of our Olympic preparation.’’
In addition to the roster, Great Britain has also named the coaching staff for the U-18 World Cup, with Head Coach Tara Tembey returning for her fourth competition season. The coaches, with the university they coach at in brackets, are as follows:
Head Coach - Tara Tembey (Cornell)
Assistant Coach - Vicky Rios (Sacramento State)
Assistant Coach - Lilly Travieso
Pitching Coach - Mary-Karen Wheat (Brockport)
Team Operations Manager - David Morris
Physiotherapist - Jake Solomons
Safeguarding Officer - Alice Hunter
“Great Britain U-18 Head Coach Tara Tembey said, “I’m very excited to lead this wonderful group of athletes to the World Cup in Brazil this summer. It’s an incredibly exciting time to be a part of Great Britain Softball and I'm looking forward to competing this summer with the aim of qualifying for the 2025 World Cup Finals.”
Great Britain will participate in a training camp prior to the tournament, with details to be announced soon.
Follow the Great Britain U-18 Women’s Team on social media @GBSoftballU18 on X, and Instagram, and on the British Softball Federation website, britishsoftball.org.