Jason Kerr
Daily Herald
The team will look the same, but the surroundings will be much different when Prince Albert’s Criseyde Borthwick takes the field with Team Saskatchewan.
Borthwick was one of 13 players named to the Team Saskatchewan 16U Girls Baseball squad that will compete at the Canada Summers Games in Newfoundland later this summer. It’s the first time the Summer Games will host a girls baseball event.
“I’ve played on this team for three or four years already, so it wasn’t much of a surprise, but it was just really cool because this year we get to go to the Canada Summer Games,” said Borthwick, who plays catcher and first base. “It will just be a really cool experience.”
The games run from Aug. 8-25, with women’s baseball starting on Aug. 19. The gold medal game is scheduled for Aug. 24.
Saskatchewan is in Pool B with Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. They open the tournament against Manitoba at St. Pat’s Ballpark in St. John’s.
“I think it’s very cool,” Borthwick said when asked about women’s baseball being included. “It’s a good experience, and it’s good to start now because women’s baseball is growing.”
Borthwick last suited up for Team Saskatchewan at the 2024 16U Girls Championships in Saskatoon. Saskatchewan finished the tournament 3-3, with wins over Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick.
Borthwick said she expects the team to perform well in Newfoundland.
“I think our defence will be very good this year,” she said. “We have a strong team and we’ve been together for a while.
“We’ve grown and we’ve been on the same team so overall I think actually we’ll be a pretty good team.”
Borthwick is the only Prince Albert player on the roster. In club competition, she’s spending the 2025 season playing with the 15U AAA East Central Dodgers.
