OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA) is pleased to announce that the 2010 USA Softball Women’s National Team (WNT) selection camp has officially kicked off this morning at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. The 17-member team plus alternates selected from this camp will represent USA Softball during the 2010 season. The 2010 WNT will compete in the International Softball Federation’s XII Women’s World Championship held June 23-July 2, 2010 in Caracas, Venezuela. The complete schedule of events for the 2010 season will be announced at a later date at www.usasoftball.com.

The attendees will go through a series of drills and scrimmage situations in front of the Women’s National Team Selection Committee that will choose the final team.

“The selection camp features all the factors that enable the committee to evaluate every player,” said USA Softball National Team Director Ronnie Isham. “It provides the selection committee the opportunity to see the athletes compete for a spot on the team by seeing them field balls, run the bases, play their position, hit against different pitchers, and much more. The scrimmages are also beneficial putting the athletes in real-game situations to see how they respond."

The 2010 roster will be announced on January 11.

The 2010 Women’s National Team Selection Camp attendees include:

Monica Abbott – Salinas, Calif.
Valerie Arioto – Pleasanton, Calif.
Brandice Balschmiter – Newark, N.Y.
Chelsea Bramlett – Cordova, Tenn.
Courtney Bures – Haymarket, Va.
Katie Burkhart – San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Eileen Canney – Paradise, Calif.
Ashley Charters – Beaverton, Ore.
Kaitlin Cochran – Yorba Linda, Calif.
Andrea Duran – Selma, Calif.
Jennie Finch – La Mirada, Calif.
Vicky Galindo – Union City, Calif.
Alissa Haber – Newark, Calif.
Ashley Hansen – Chandler, Ariz.
Ashley Holcombe - Fayetteville, Ga.
Molly Johnson – Lexington, Ken.
Megan Langenfeld – Bakersfield, Calif.
Lauren Lappin – Anaheim, Calif.
Brittany Lastrapes – Laguna Niguel, Calif.
Jenae Leles – Fair Oaks, Calif.
Caitlin Lowe – Tustin, Calif.
Jessica Mendoza – Camarillo, Calif.
Stacey Nelson – Los Alamitos, Calif.
Cat Osterman – Houston, Texas
Amber Patton – Forsyth, Ill.
Brittany Rogers – Dacula, Ga.
Melissa Roth - Long Beach, Calif.
Taylor Schlopy – West Hills, Calif.
Angela Tincher – Eagle Rock, Va.
Natasha Watley – Irvine, Calif.
Tammy Williams – Roscoe, Mo.

About ASA

The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation's largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 77 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 210,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than three million. For more information on the ASA, visit www.asasoftball.com.

About USA Softball

USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won eight World Championship titles including the last six consecutive as well as claimed two World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about USA Softball, please visit www.usasoftball.com.