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Monday, 21 September 2015

Introducing Arts student and mad baseball/softball player and fan, Caitlin Rooker (20), who will be the captain leading the baseball team at UniGames this year.

Name: Caitlin Rooker

Age: 20

Sport: Baseball and Softball

Degree/area of study: Bachelor of Arts, majoring in history of art

Q. What is your specialty (batter, pitcher, fielder, 1st baseman)?
A. In the Perth women’s baseball league I am a pitcher, but also play 3rd base. At UniGames and when I play men’s/mixed baseball I play 2nd base.

Q. At what age did you start playing baseball/softball, and how did you get involved?
A. I started playing softball at a young age in St Louis, Missouri (USA) because my older sisters played softball. I trained as a softball pitcher up until age 13 when I moved to Australia and found a baseball club very close to my house where I started playing mens/mixed under 17s baseball and under 21s/colts baseball. When I started attending UWA 3 years ago I joined the UWA Baseball & Softball club so that I could play women’s only baseball.

Q. You play for the UWA Baseball and Softball Club, and are involved as a student representative, why are you so passionate about baseball/softball?
A. Growing up in America my dad was a very passionate baseball fan and university level umpire, and took me along to countless major and minor league baseball games where he very patiently explained to me all of the rules. I have always loved baseball and softball and everything about it reminds me of my dad. It is such a fast-paced, exciting sport with so many varied and specialised positions. There’s nothing more exciting than being right in the middle of a fast-paced play where the umpire’s call could go either way!

Q. Do you have any experiences as captain prior to joining the UWA team?
A. Not particularly, it has been a steep learning curve the past two years and it has helped that I am already very organised and find being a captain easier when I have a clear idea of what I want to accomplish.

Q. How long have you been captain of the UWA UniGames baseball team?
A. In 2014 I was captain of the softball team, and I was very excited this year to take over as captain of the baseball team and recruit some talented UWA players.

Q. For people who do not have any clue about what it entails to be captain, can you sum up the key tasks in just a few sentences?
A. My role as captain on the baseball team has been to keep the team organised and to make sure that every team member is prepared and ready for the competition. It’s also important to make sure everyone is being included and feels like a valued team member. I have been lucky to have two senior players step up and help me with the coaching and on field side of things.

Q. What sort of tasks/duties have you had to do as captains this?
A. We participated in a captains workshop with all the WA captains which was awesome to get some helpful ideas for being a captain and meet and talk to the many captains from WA. As early as March I started recruiting players, which really paid off in the end as I have established a database of baseball players who attend UWA, which will help in years to come, but also gained 4 brand new players, who bring the team a wealth of experience and have been invaluable with running trainings and putting together game day line-ups. Getting started early also meant that we have been training together as a team since April which also gave me a larger timeframe to make sure everyone had flights sorted and organise some fantastic accommodation with the help of StayOz!

Q. Who’s the person in your team that no one wants to room with and why?
A. Easy: Merrick, the snorer.

Q. Who’s the craziest person in your team and why?
A. Diviij, one of our law students and a seasoned UniGames player who is all about the banter, and fully commits to every jump throw and diving catch! Special mention goes to Troy, who had the whole team practice their walk-off homerun moves.

Q. Who’s the best player in your team and why?
A. Luke Shipway, who is at UWA following a few years in the USA playing college baseball and who will no doubt be impressive on field once we get to Gold Coast! Special mention to Matt and Andrew who are natural leaders and talented baseballers who put in the effort early on to learn everyone’s names and took the time to teach the guys the groundwork for playing baseball

Q. Have you and your team done any team building or bonding things leading up to UniGames?
A. Our trainings have been the main banter arena leading up to UniGames. Prior to UniGames we played a scratch match against the Curtin UniGames baseball team which brought the team together. After the scratch match we celebrated our victory with a team dinner!

Q. This isn’t your first UniGames, how many have you been to?
A. I went to UniGames last year as the Softball captain, this will be my second UniGames and first one playing baseball.

Q. Which UniGames were your favourite? Why?
A. I am anticipating this year to be my favourite, and am sure all my behind the scenes effort leading up will pay off and I’ll be able to have fun with my team once I’m there!

Q. What is the best thing about going to UniGames?
A. Friends and Sport! I am so excited to play my favourite sport of all time with some awesome friends, and can’t wait to see the friends I made at UniGames last year from other Unis!

Q. Do you/your team have any rituals/superstitions while playing?
A. I’ve been wearing the same baseball pants every game I’ve played the past 3 years and all of the grass/dirt stains just add character! I also prefer the old school baseball look with pants rolled up and am very particular about that!

Q. What do you/your team usually do before games?
A. Having plenty of time to warm up properly before the game gives everyone time to mentally prepare for the game, and I’m a big believer in circling up the team and getting everyone together when the game isn’t going our way to make a comeback!

After the game I like to get everyone together to reflect on the game and what was good and what we could have done better as a team. Game highlights, an MVP awarded for the day and we also have an award for the silliest mistake on the field!

Q. What do you think your team’s chances are at UniGames this year?
A. I have done everything in my power to give my team the best chance of success, while we may not be able to win every game we will certainly put up a fight! It’s hard to tell what the competition will be like but we are looking to come home with a medal!

Q. Who is your team’s biggest rival and why?
A. When we play the Curtin team it will certainly be a game to prove who is the best in the West!

Q. What’s your team’s secret weapon for UniGames?
A. I think the other teams will be surprised to see how competitive we are this year, and we’ve got some very high calibre pitching stocks to turn the game around and secure the win!

Media references

Nicole West (Marketing and Communications Officer, UWA Sport Pty Ltd) +61 6488 4309

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