Sports: International Standard Softball Pitch in Negros Eyed

Negros Occidental has been considered as one of the country’s top source of finest softbelles who have carried the national colors in various international competitions – South East Asian Games, Asia Pacific Little League Tournaments and World Series, among others.

In last year’s 26th South East Asian Games held in Indonesia, the Philippine Blu Girls claimed the gold medal, sweeping all their opponents. And of the 13 players listed in the team, 9 came from Bacolod and Negros Occidental, namely: siblings Angelique and Annalie Benjamen, Cindy Carol Banay, Elvie Entrina, Luzviminda Embudo, Queeny Sabobo, Rizza Bernardino, Sarah Jane Agravante and Veronica Belleza. These are only few of the hundreds of softbelles produced in the province for several decades of supremacy by the Negrenses in many diamonds across the country and abroad.

But behind the players’ success are the coaches, who have rendered almost half of their careers in developing local-based talents. Among those top coaches which the province have ever produced include: 16-time Palarong Pambansa champion coach Tony Oquindo, 2003 World Series Little League Softball champion mentor Reynaldo ‘Guy’ Fuentes and former Indonesian National Softball Team head coach Hernando ‘Kulafu’ Posadas.

Posadas, who starred in the Philippines’ third place finish in the 1979 Softball World Cup in Canada, has also led the Negrense softbelles to several World Series stints before accepting the coaching job in Indonesia in 2007.

Also, these coaches have helped many softball players earned their college education in several leading universities in Manila like the Adamson University and Rizal Technological University.

Aside from these softball talents, the province has also served as the venue of national and international softball competitions like the 2011 Asia Pacific Softball Tournament held at the University of St. La Salle, 2011 POC-PSC Philippine National Games at the Bacolod City National High School and the 1993 National Men’s Open Softball Championships at the Paglaum Sports Complex.

And, seeing the big potential of the province to go beyond its usual achievement in softball, a group of private individuals, who appealed not to reveal their names, are now looking for at least a hectare of land to lease in 15 years for this project. They added that this proposed softball pitch will be of international standard – that include bleachers, team’s dugouts, among others.

If this project be realized, this will benefit many aspiring softball players in the province and likewise help provide coaching jobs to former softball stalwarts.* (JGToga/SCOOP-Bacolod)