Today our youngest national Baseball Team leaves with 15 boys and 4 coaches to Trebic, Czech Republic. From July 2 till July 6- 2019 they will play in the U12 European Baseball Championships. Good luck guys!
“The U12 national team was able to qualify for the A-tournament last year, which means that we will now be competing against the top 8 in Europe. The boys deserved this place last year and it’s now up to us to defend that place as well as possible, “says Tom (Lorrentop), head coach and former Red Hawks pitcher.
Belgium will play their first games against Italy, The Netherlands and France. After that there are 2 games in the final rounds for the final ranking. The goal is to gain as much international experience as possible and a Top 6 spot.
The “little Red Hawks” have undergone a thorough selection and practiced a lot, creating a balanced top team of 7 boys from Antwerp, 4 boys from East Flanders, 2 from Namur and 2 from the Brussels-Capital Region.
“The biggest challenge is perhaps the language. Our boys speak either French, Dutch or English. It’s admirable how they do their best to make themselves understood amongst each other. We always use the 3 languages at practice. At the E.C. we strive to use only American Baseball terms”, says Tom.
The opponents are very strong on paper. In our team there are 5 boys with some experience on the European stage. Joe, Axl, Nils, Victor and Lucas already played with the U12 team last year and will now be able to share their experiences and help the newcomers on their way during the 5-day tournament. And perhaps setting the tone for the big Red Hawks (U18, U23 and seniors) who will also be playing their European Championships this summer!
#belgiumplayball
You can follow the tournament on this website: www.baseballstats.eu/2019/trebic/schedule.php
More on U12 NT BB: www.kbbsf-frbbs.be/national-teams/national-baseball-teams/
Photos: Peter Casie
