Botswana U-18 Women’s National Softball Team dominates U-19 National Tournament

The Botswana U-18 Women’s National Team delivered a commanding performance to claim the championship title at the U-19 National Women’s Softball Tournament, defeating ISSA North, 9–1, in the final. The tournament, which included teams from Botswana and Zimbabwe, was held at National Diamond in Gaborone.

The event, held under the theme “Empowering Girls, Elevating the Game,” was supported by the Botswana National Sports Commission (BNSC). 

ISSA North advanced to the final after a 16-6 win over Harare Girls from Zimbabwe in a finalist decider. With this result, Harare Girls finished third place. Goodhope Senior Secondary School (CSE) finished in fourth place, followed by Masunga Senior Secondary School (CSE) in fifth and ISSA South finished in 6th position.

Day 1 Results:

• Botswana U18 22-8 ISSSA South
• Girls High School Harare 26-8 ISSSA North
• ISSSA South 5-12 Goodhope CSE
• ISSSA North 11-8 Masunga CSE

Day 2 Results:

• Girls High Harare 19-3 Masunga CSE
• Botswana U18 11-8 Girls High Harare
• ISSSA North 22-9 Masunga CSE
• Bronze Medal Game: Harare Girls High School 6-16 ISSSA North
• FINAL: ISSSA North 1-9 Botswana U18

Individual Awards:

• Best Batter: Agogowa Hunyenyiwa – Harare Girls
• Best Pitcher: Praise Nyekele – Harare Girls
• Best Catcher: Marriam Chipuriro – Harare Girls
• Most Valuable Player (MVP): Agogowa Hunyenyiwa

The U-19 Women’s Softball Tournament marked not only a competitive platform for emerging athletes but also a significant step forward for the development of officiating within the Botswana Softball Association (BSA). As part of the event, BSA hosted umpire and scorer upgrade sessions — a vital initiative to enhance the technical standards of the sport in the country. These sessions were facilitated by industry experts: Michele Williams, National Chief Scorer and Statistician from Softball South Africa (SSA), led the scorer development programme. Vincent Maoeng, WBSC Africa Umpire Director, together with Monkgogi Thakgathi and Abel Mataboge, spearheaded the umpire training and grading sessions.

A total of 18 umpires participated in the initiative across five different levels (from continental certification to Level 1); while 21 scorers participated in the course in three different levels.