NORTH RIVER - There are few players in any sport more dedicated to their team than Brittany George and Kelsey Shipley.
After five seasons donning the uniform in peewee, bantam and midget, they practically bleed the orange and blue of their North River Inglis Jewellers Diamond Gators fastball team.
"Yeah I pretty much do," George, a 17-year-old Onslow Mountain resident laughed. "That's a great question."
When it came time for her family to buy a new minivan, George convinced her parents to buy an orange one. She then proceeded to attach a sticker of a softball on the back. Shipley's room is graced in orange and blue and when seen in public, she's typically wearing her Gators jacket.
"I don't take it off when I'm away from the field," Shipley, a 17-year old from Truro laughed.
"Yeah, we're pretty dedicated."
That's why, in spite of their rookie status and playing with older 18 and 19-year-olds, the pair will fill the captains roles for this week's Eastern Canadian Midget Girls Fastball Championship at the Leo Blair Memorial Diamonds in North River.
"It's a role they take very seriously," coach John Shipley said. "They are always my captains and I'm happy with that."
Shipley is comfortable with the decision because he knows the two players do everything in their power to win every time they step on the field.
"The Gators are really important to me because it's what I've done for the last five years," George said.
So George and Shipley make sure their teammates are ready to play too and hope their enthusiasm rubs off on their teammates.
"We want everyone working as a team and playing at 100 percent," Shipley said.
The Gators will be up against the Cole Harbour Comets, who they defeated in this year's provincial final, along with eight other teams from Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and P.E.I.
The event kicks off Thursday with the opening ceremonies followed by a skills competition. Play starts Friday when the Gators meet the New Brunswick Selects at 9 a.m.
George and Shipley are joined by Katie Munro, Hayley Leger and Emily Peters as the only Colchester players on the team. The rest of the roster is filled out with players from across the province.
Although George and Shipley have represented the Gators at Eastern Canadians in all five of their seasons in the program, they have never gotten the opportunity to do it on home turf. So what better way to represent their squad than to have a strong showing at home.
"If we stay together as a team we should be able to do well," George said.
Shipley agreed.
I think we can do it as long as we play to our potential. We have a lot of skilled players on our team."
sports@trurodaily.com
