Colorado girls see themselves in a new era of women's baseball; some may be first female to play on high school teams
As the baseball world watched last weekend while women took the field in a female professional league for the first time in decades, teen baseball players across Colorado saw a future.
"It's giving me a lot of hope, especially just that there's other girls out there like me," said Longmont player Evie Mumm.
Mumm is one of many young women across Colorado playing a sport where they can sometimes be the only female on the team; some say they're the first women to play baseball at their high schools.
At a recent baseball tournament for female athletes, the teens were able to play together alongside other athletes from across the country.
"I just started playing t-ball, and I love doing it. And no one told me I could stop, so I just kept doing it," Highlands Rach player Zoey Smith said.
The teens are staying competitive on their teams, with some striking out batters from the pitcher's mound as others are sending balls over the fence.
The players say they're starting to see more women on the field.
"Every year it just keeps on growing and growing and growing. Every state, every country, like everywhere," Wellington player Audrey Larson said.
But the teens say being one of the few females on the field can come with its own set of challenges. As more step up to the plate, it still is a male-dominated sport. Mumm says sometimes pitchers intentionally walk her.
"I do get walked a lot. Yeah, they just don't want to pitch to me. They don't want to admit that I've gotten a hit off of them," Mumm said.
She has gotten those hits more than once. Smith also said she lets her skills prove any skeptics wrong.
After winning a game, Smith said, "A guy on the other team told me 'go play softball', and I've never heard that before. So it was honestly a confusing feeling, but then after that, I was like, 'Who cares?'"
For these teens, the answer is simple: keep playing, keep practicing, and keep proving they belong.
And now, they're watching the professional game for another reason, because they can see themselves on the field.
"It gives you kind of a path for the future, how there's going to be, I think it's going to expand from here," Smith said.
And for any girls considering joining the sport, Larson shared some advice: "Let haters hate. Trust your instinct and just follow your dream. If you want to play baseball, play baseball. And there's a whole bunch of girls that will support you."
