After five successful championships in 2013, the winter championships once again offer an incredible opportunity to showcase the best of Victorian Baseball.
“The Winter Championships are a festival of the sport, showcasing the State’s best talent and brings the excitement of our sport to regional hubs,” said Baseball Victoria’s chief executive officer Neale Price.
“The Winter Championships are an important event on our calendar, and is an extremely important program within the development pathway within Victoria. These championships provide the opportunity for 500 players to compete against the best players across Victoria in their respective age group.”
Below are the dates and locations for all Championships:
Age Group
Dates
Lareocations
Grounds
Seniors
7 – 9 June 2014
Geelong
Geelong Baseball Centre
Under
16
5 – 6 July 2014
Mildura
Old Aerodrome Sports Complex
Under
18
12 – 13 July 2014
Geelong
Geelong Baseball Centre
Under
14
26– 27 July 2014
Wangaratta
Targoora Park
Under
12
2 – 3 August 2014
Bendigo
Albert Roy Reserve
“Baseball
Victoria is excited to be holding the State Winter Championships at such great
facilities and we are looking forward to working with the clubs and associations on making these championships a successful event”, Mr Price added.
The State Winter Championships also provide Baseball Victoria the opportunity to leverage off these events by running school clinics in the days leading up to the
championships, as well as conducting some clinics at the venue during the championships. “This year due to school holidays, we are planning on conducting school clinics in Wangaratta and Bendigo prior to the Under 14 and Under 12 Championships respectively,” said Baseball Victoria Game Development Manager Justin Huber.
“Last year, we had great success in running clinics in schools prior to and during the
under 16 Championships in Wangaratta. Following these clinics, the Wangaratta Rangers had 17 new players sign up for their Aussie T-Ball Program. Leveraging off these
championships helps inject new participants into our country associations and clubs,” said Mr Huber.
“These clinics will also link well with our “Wanna Play, Start
today!” TV ad campaign, especially into these regional areas where the ad was aired on Win TV. This has been a very successful campaign in recruiting new players for our winter associations, with all associations reporting increases in team entries for the 2014 winter season,” added Mr Huber.
Another initiative Baseball Victoria will be trialing during these Winter Championships
will be live streaming. This year Baseball Victoria has partnered with My Sport
Live which will stream the Under 16 Championships from Mildura. “This is a
fantastic opportunity for family members and the baseball public unable to make
it up to Mildura the chance to watch their child, grandchild, or teammate play
in this championship. This also provides Baseball Victoria the opportunity to present the sport to a new audience and hopefully receive some commercial investment,” said Mr Price.
Baseball Victoria looks forward to working with all associations, players and families in the coming months to deliver these five exceptional championships.
We encourage the baseball community to get involved. Whether it is as a player, coach, official, volunteer or as a spectator, these events are truly a reflection of the people involved in the sport.
Baseball Victoria would like to thank our partners and sponsors for assisting us in bringing you these championships:
