Anouk Boontjes of Velsen-Noord is going to play softball in the United States – Jutter

Welsh-North – With a smile, but a slightly tense look, Anok Pontges approaches us from the weight room. The 17-year-old softball player has not done many interviews yet, but that will change soon, given her talent and the fact that she will play for American Gulf State College in Florida this summer. ,, I’m excited. When the offer came I knew: this is where I should go. Mood, culture, owning everything, getting to know new women. The game is small in the Netherlands and everyone knows it. The ambitions there are big, there is a wide range – like football here. It’s so awesome.

She was seventeen, and the fact that she did not know anyone in Florida did not stop her. In other words, she even thinks it ‘a good idea’. She continues with confidence: “I like to do it myself without introduction, so this is really a new beginning. I had the same feeling when I moved into the Talent Team NL Center at the age of 16.”

Anok comes from a real baseball and softball family, but that does not mean that her parents registered her directly at the club. ,, I did everything, was looking. Eventually I went to see softball with a friend and I really liked it. She continues with a smile: ,, My mom is definitely so happy, she immediately booked me into the club. That was nine years ago now. ”

Leads the field

In the beginning Poontges played at all levels where the team needed them. She liked everything. The focus came a few years later. When to like – her favorite position from the first moment. You are in charge of the domain. You have the overview, you manage the team, I like it. With Pitcher you are at the heart of the game. This is tactical. As a catcher you respond to what your enemy is doing.

Until he boarded a flight to Florida, USA in mid-August, Anuki Sparks could admire the Dutch fields in Harlem.

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