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closeSchaapveld makes trip overseas for fastpitch tourney in Taiwan
Rogers sophomore Bobbi-Jo Schaapveld partakes in opportunity of a lifetime
Shaun Scott
Bobbi-Jo Schaapveld wasn’t going to pass up a chance to take a trip across the world to play her favorite sport in Taiwan.
Schaapveld, who is a sophomore pitcher and first baseman at Rogers High School, was a member of the Northwest Xposure fastpitch all-star team comprised of some of the most talented players from Western Washington and Canada who competed in the prestigious Taipei International Softball Tournament during the first week of March.
Before taking off on their jaunt across the world, Xposure head coach Charlie Glenn was excited about seeing his team compete against stellar competition in a foreign country. The Xposure are based out of Anderton Sports Academy in Redmond.
“This trip should provide these young ladies with a once in a lifetime experience and a chance to represent this area athletically in another country,” Glenn said.
The Northwest Xposure compiled a record of 2-7-1 against a multitude of teams from Japan, China, Korea and Taiwan. Despite their sub-par record, Schaapveld said she wasn’t disappointed with the trip by any means.
“It was an amazing experience being around different kinds of people from a different part of the world,” Schaapveld said. “We got to see what it is like to experience their kind of lifestyle in both fastpitch and everyday life. The competition level over there was pretty amazing. Fastpitch is part of what they do when they go to school. Almost every girl growing up there plays softball. “
Schaapveld said they squared off against top level competition in Taiwan.
“We played against some women’s national teams who had players who were between 20 and 30 years old,” Schaapveld said. “It was a little different playing against players who were that age.”
The American’s style of play also was much different than the majority of the teams they faced.
“They focus more on the little things of the game like bunting, getting the runner over and quickness,” Schaapveld said. “In America we focus more on power and driving the ball. We play the same game but we put an emphasis on different aspects of the game.”
Taiwanese locals enjoyed watching the Xposure’s style of play.
“After every game kids would come up to us and ask us for our autographs,” Schaapveld said.
When the Xposure weren’t on the playing field, they decided to soak in all the sights the island of Taiwan has to offer.
“We went to a Buddhist temple in Taipei,” Schaapveld said. “We checked out a lot of buildings and enjoyed the scenery of the country.”
In the future, Schaapveld plans on making a return trip to Taiwan.
“It was a cool place to go to,” she said. “I would like to go back for either softball or a vacation. It was an experience that was different and is something I will never forget.”