 Alcmaria Victrix adds some experience
Nederlands
 ALKMAAR (Neth.) -
Alcmaria Victrix this season captured the championship-title in the 'Overgangsklasse' and therefore automatically promoted to the big league, where it takes the spot of DSS, that relegated.
And so, the team from Alkmaar will make its comeback in the highest division next season after a 11-year absence, as it played in the big league earlier in 1998 and 1999.
For next season, the team added some additional experience and lost only one player, who retired.
...Femke van Dusschoten...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Coming to Alkmaar are Righthanded Pitcher Femke van Dusschoten, Catcher/Infielder Anne Blaauwgeers and Outfielder Maaike Blaauwgeers, while Outfielder Annemiek de Wit retired.
However, when the season starts, the team will be somewhat shorthanded, as four players will miss the first weeks of the season, as they will be in the USA, including the Blaauwgeers-sisters.
Righthanded Pitcher Femke van Dusschoten is coming from Iber Lengua Terrasvogels, where she played the last two seasons.
At Alcmaria, Femke joins her sister Malou, who is also a pitcher, and her father Frans, who is the Bench Coach of the team.
After coming from Onze Gezellen, Femke made her big league-debut last year, pitching in 16 games for Terrasvogels and was 9-5 with an 1.56 ERA and striking out 81 in 85 1/3 inning.
This season, she again pitched in 16 games, was 8-3, finished with a 3.09 ERA and struckout 61 batters in 70 1/3 inning, while walking 42 and giving up 64 hits.
Last year, Femke played for the Dutch National Softball Team that captured the European title in Spain.
...Anne Blaauwgeers... |
...Maaike Blaauwgeers... |
| (© Photos: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Catcher/Infielder Anne Blaauwgeers made her debut in 2003, playing in seven games for HCAW.
She then played in parts of three seasons for Sparks Haarlem, including a full season in 2007 when she played in 31 games, batted .338 and led the team with five stolen bases.
In 2009, Anne went to play for Centrals and had two successful seasons in De Bilt.
Last year, she batted .384 and led the team in batting average, runs (19), hits (38), triples (5) and stolen bases (12).
This season, Anne was the third best hitter of Centrals with a .288 average (30-for-104), but led the team again in runs (22), hits (3) and stolen bases (21).
Last year, Anne made her debut in the Dutch National Softball Team, with whom she won the European title and this year participated in the World Championship in Venezuela.
Like Anne, Outfielder Maaike Blaauwgeers also played her first big league-games during the 2003 season for HCAW, appearing in four games.
And she joined Anne a year later to play for Sparks Haarlem, where she played in only nine games.
Maaike then played one season in the First Division for Almere '90, before going to Centrals, where she played in her first of three seasons in 2008.
This season, Maaike was the second-best hitter of the team with a .317 (26-for-82) batting average, scored 12 runs and had nine RBI's.
During the 2006 season, the twins played for a travel-ball team in the USA.
This year, Maaike was a member of the preliminary roster of the Dutch National Softball Team.
...Jessie van Aalst...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Besides Anne Blaauwgeers and Maaike Blaauwgeers, Alcmaria Victrix will have to do without Lefthanded Pitcher Jessie van Aalst and Righthanded Pitcher Malou van Dusschoten when the season starts, as all will then be in the USA.
Pitcher/1B Jessie van Aalst this year made her debut in the Dutch big league, playing in 22 games for the Dutch National Junior Team, hitting .189 (10-for-53), scoring five runs and having three RBI's.
As a pitcher, Jessie was 0-1, throwing in seven innings in four games in which she struckout eight batters.
This summer, Jessie participated with the Dutch Juniors in the European Championship in Vienna (Austria).
Last year was Jessie's first with Alcmaria, after having played for Robur '58 in the year before.
...Malou van Dusschoten with...
...father & bench coach Frans...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Pitcher Malou van Dusschoten also played in her first season in Alkmaar in 2009 after coming over from Onze Gezellen, where she then also played together with her sister Femke.
Malou, who won the European title with the Dutch Juniors in 2008, this year was a member of the preliminary roster of the Dutch National Softball Team.
Next year, she will be one of the players on the Alcmaria-roster, who will make their debut in the Dutch big league.
Several players on the Alcmaria-roster already made their debut in the highest division this season as members of the Dutch Juniors, being LHP/1B Jessie van Aalst, C/SS Noëmie Brandjes, OF Kimberly Jones, IF Suzanne Meiring, RHP/1B Inge Tishauser and RHP/IF Laura Treurniet.
Noëmie played in 21 games, hitting .238 (10-for-42) with two runs and five RBI's, Kimberly played in 24 games and batted .138 (9-for-65) with one RBI, while leading the team with nine runs, Suzanne played in 16 games, hitting .176 (6-for-34), scored one run and had three RBI's, Inge played in six games and was 0-2, striking out five batters in 13 1/3 inning and Laura played in 22 games, hitting .226 (12-for-53) with seven runs and six RBI's, while being 1-5 as pitcher, striking out 15 in 31 2/3 inning.
A player, who already had some big league-experience before the start of this season was Outfielder Nadia Bron, who made her debut in the highest league in 2007, playing in 11 games for Amsterdam Pirates.
Playing for the Dutch Juniors this season, she played in nine games, hitting .235 (4-for-17) with one run and one RBI.
Noëmie, Nadia, Kimberly, Suzanne and Laura all participated in the European Junior Championship this year in Austria.
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...Noëmie Brandjes, Nadia Bron, Kimberly Jones, Suzanne Meiring, Inge Tishauser & Laura Treurniet...
(© Photos: Marco Stoovelaar) |
...Annemiek de Wit...
(© Ph: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Outfielder Annemiek de Wit, who was a member of the successful Alcmaria-team this season, retired.
In 2011, Gonny Farley-Reijnen will be the Head Coach again of Alcmaria Victrix and will be assisted by Carola Untied (first base) and Frans van Dusschoten (bench coach), who also were the coaches this season.
,,Our goal for next season will try to remain in the big league'', Head Coach Gonny Farley said.
,,That will be the most important thing.
We have a very talented team, so I think, we have a good chance to stay in the big league, especially when you look to what happened to some other teams.
In the off-season, we also add some of our Junior-players so they can participate in the practice sessions.''
Alcmaria Victrix also might look abroad for an additional (American) player, but that probably will be no pitcher, as the team currently had a 4-member pitching staff in Femke van Dusschoten, Malou van Dusschoten, Laura Treurniet and Jessie van Aalst.
(November 13)
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