The first intercollegiate women’s baseball tournament in over a century will kick off on Friday. Four teams have gathered at the MLB Urban Youth Academy in Compton to take part in Baseball for All’s inaugural event.
The winner will take home the first-ever Women’s College Club Baseball Championship title.
The University of Washington, Montclair State University, California State University of Fullerton and Occidental College will each compete in a three-game series to win the title.
As part of the event, the teams will also be hosted by the Los Angeles Dodgers Academy at a series of events, including a meet & greet with players from the original All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, Maybelle Blair and Shirley Burkovich. Coaching sessions with the academy coaches will also take place.
The event comes during Women’s History Month.
“We are proud to contribute to the long history of women playing baseball while redefining what is possible for them at the college level,” said the foundation’s founder Dr. Justine Siegal. “We are honoring the past women’s baseball clubs from over 100 years ago by paving a way today for the students of the next 100 years.”
Part of Baseball for All’s mission is to establish women’s baseball as an NCAA Emerging Sport. In 2021, they partnered with college students at colleges like the four attending the inaugural tournament to help start women’s college club baseball teams. Additionally, the event is a key step in helping secure the sport’s status.
Last August, the organization hosted the first collegiate invitational at Centenary University in New Jersey.