The trailblazers

I believe in them. I always believe in them.

FILIPINA clouters are looking to make an impact. DAVID JOHN CUBANGBANG

Here in the Philippines, girls also got game.

From Lydia de Vega-Mercado, Bong Coo to Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski and Hidilyn Diaz, the list of women who made it big in their respective sports goes on.

Recently, Nesthy Petecio made her presence felt when she copped the gold medal in the AIBA Women’s Boxing World Championship in Russia. Her win was largely celebrated, not just because she did it in masterful fashion, but because she made a strong statement that girls can also win in a sport largely dominated by men.

In an oft-forgotten baseball field inside the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, a group of women are patiently sharpening their knives to emerge victorious in a sport that is supposed to be the turf of their male counterparts.

And a former basketball star is behind this revolution.

“I want to lift baseball in the country as it is a sport, especially those in the rural areas, are very interested in playing,” said Chito Loyzaga, the former Philippine Basketball Association star who went down as the bulky, hardworking forward that bravely challenged the Chinese giants during the Beijing Asian Games in 1990.

Now, Loyzaga serves as the president of the Philippine Amateur Baseball Association and his pet project is to boost the first-ever women’s baseball team, which is competing in the 2nd Women’s Asia Baseball Championship in Zhonsghan, China from 9 to 16 November.

“Some people have already forgotten about baseball. But I can see a lot of potential in our players, especially our newly-formed women’s baseball team.”

There’s a reason why Loyzaga is keeping his faith on the Lady Clouters.

Should they emerge victorious in the first-ever Asian women’s competition, they will gain a ticket to the World Women’s Baseball Championship, a prestigious battle where the world’s best baseball players would be seeing action.

And with a perfect brew of young and veteran players comprising the team, Loyzaga is hoping that their mission is achievable.

“I believe in them. I always believe in them,” said Loyzaga, who had a brief stint as commission of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

“They got the talent. They got the attitude. And, of course, they got the skills. We always have their backs. With these, they can surpass any trials and mount to the top.”

Since the team just got assembled, it has yet to barge into the world ranking.

But Loyzaga stressed that a win or two would put them in the international baseball map, joining other Asian countries like Japan, Chinese Taipei, South Korea and Hong Kong in the world ranking.

“We are doing everything we can to stretch the reach of the baseball team. We are getting all the help from our stakeholders to uplift the morale of the team,” Loyzaga said, adding that the PSC went all out in supporting the squad.

“We should be the driving force to make all these things possible as soon as possible.”

The team’s first order of battle was supposed to be the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games that the country would host from 30 November to 11 December.

The Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee said the event drew less than four participants, leaving them with no choice but to scrap the event.

But Loyzaga stressed that this sorry development only makes the team stronger.

“We won’t be able to play in the SEA Games because the event was scrapped. It’s quite sad because we won’t be able to showcase the talent of our team,” Loyzaga said.

Team captain Esmeralda Tayag agreed, adding that they are preparing hard only to find out that they won’t be able to see action in the prestigious biennial conclave that would merit them steady flow of support from the government.

“What a pity,” said Tayag, a seasoned softball player before crossing over to baseball.

“We could have been dominating the event based on how we’re preparing. We’re all pumped up and ready for war.”

Still, Tayag said this would only make them stronger.

“We just have to move on and continue preparing for the bigger competitions along the way,” she said.

“We cannot control these things so we just have to focus on what matters most and that is to train harder for the Asian Championship.”

Tayag said it’s still a long way to go, but with the way things are going, standing next to De Vega-Mercado, Coo, Cojuangco-Jaworski and Diaz in the pedestal of sporting success is not far from reality.

All they need are trust, hard work and faith in what they are doing.