Taunton High eighth grader Abygale Souza eyes a chance at playing on the diamond
TAUNTON — Baseball is not just for boys anymore.
Ask Taunton’s Abygale Souza.
The Silver City resident is one of 100 girls — ages 9 through 16 — that currently play for the Girls Travel Baseball program.
The organization, which celebrated its two-year anniversary this year, is divided into three teams — 12U, 14U and 16U.
The teams are made up of 17 different states and two countries.
GTB is the only all-girl youth travel baseball team in the country and play in tournaments against boys’ teams in their respective age groups.
Souza, 13, not only represents Taunton, but is the lone ball player from the entire New England region.
She recently enjoyed a nearly three-month stretch in tournaments played in North Carolina, Miami and Orlando, Fla., this summer.
Souza had a batting average of .444 with an on-base percentage of .750 in 12 games played.
In 24 plate appearances, Souza collected eight hits, drove in seven runs, scored nine times, walked seven times and fanned just two times.
Her team, Prime, took first place after going unbeaten in the Top Gun tournament in Cary, North Carolina.
In the team’s final performance of the summer, they took third place out of nine teams with a record of 3-1.
News quickly spread around the country about GTB.
Its program was featured this year on ESPN’s “Outside The Lines” (Heroes of the Week) and NBC Nightly News.
Playing baseball against boys is something Souza has done since she started playing Little League.
Last year, Souza was part of the winning 2016 city championship team — the Taunton East Little League Mets — that went on to beat the Taunton West champion Cubs in the best-of-three series.
Souza, who played terrific defense at second and third base, contributed a double and a walk in the series-clinching win.
She still plays baseball for local teams in Taunton.
The Taunton resident balances baseball, friends and school while also pursing her future goal, along with many of the girls she plays with, of becoming a female player on an MLB team.
Souza entered Taunton High School on Wednesday.
You can bet when spring rolls around, Souza will bring her glove and bat to the baseball diamond.
Souza hopes to become the second female player in the state to play varsity baseball.
Thea Hanscom is the only girl in Massachusetts that plays high school varsity baseball. Hanscom plays for Hopkins Academy.
Souza is currently in the works of creating a website, including a Twitter and Instagram page, which shows the work of GTB and how they compete with boys.
Souza and the new wave of “The Girls of Summer” are hungry.
They will not be denied until they accomplish their ultimate dream.
Baseball is in their blood.
