DALLAS, Texas (August 22, 2024) — The USA Softball U-18 Women’s National Team (WNT) has arrived in Dallas, Texas ahead of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) World Cup – Group C Stage event where the U.S. will look to finish atop its group for a chance to compete in the World Cup Finals next year. Featuring a two-stage format, the top two teams from each group, along with two wild card choices, will earn a spot in the WBSC U-18 Women’s World Cup Finals to be held in 2025 in Dallas.
With 18 teams competing across three groups (Group A, B and C), Team USA will battle it out in the Group C event alongside five other countries in Dallas while Group A teams previously contested in Brazil and Group B teams in China. Held earlier this year, Chinese Taipei and the Czech Republic secured their ticket to the 2025 Finals during the Group A event while Japan, China and Puerto Rico will represent Group B at the Finals.
Click here for WBSC World Cup Group C Stage event info »
“This team came together back in June for a very special week of softball for everyone involved and it is finally event time,” said head coach, Kyla Holas. “I am looking forward to picking up where we left off and continuing to grow and get better each day of the event.” she added.
The U-18 squad, which came together for a pair of exhibition games in Oklahoma City earlier this year, reunites to begin its preparations for the highly anticipated World Cup with a series of practices throughout the next week before starting tournament play on Thursday.
Slated for August 29 – September 2, a total of 19 games will be played in the Group C Stage event as world-ranked No. 1 Team USA, No. 5 Canada, No. 8 Mexico, No. 9 Australia, No. 16 Philippines and No. 21 Ireland look to advance to the Finals set to take place next year. As hosts of a WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup Group Stage event, world-ranked No. 1 Team USA received an automatic bid in the Group C event and will play each evening at 6:30 p.m. CT. The top four teams will battle it out in the playoff round on Monday, September 2 with the top two teams going head-to-head for a chance to advance to the Finals. The loser of the first playoff game will then take on the winner of the matchup between the third and fourth-place teams for the second spot in the Finals, which will be held in 2025. The game schedule is as follows:
- USA vs Ireland — Thursday, August 29 at 6:30 p.m. CT
- USA vs Australia — Friday, August 30 at 3:30 p.m. CT
- USA vs Canada — Friday, August 30 at 6:30 p.m. CT
- USA vs Mexico — Saturday, August 31 at 6:30 p.m. CT
- USA vs Philippines — Sunday, September 1 at 6:30 p.m. CT
- Playoff Round — Monday, September 2
The WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup Stage 1 event will be streamed via GameTime. Fans will have the option of two different services: Group Pass ($12.99) or Daily Pass ($7.99). Group Pass subscribers will have full access to the 19 games played in the specific group that is subscribed for (Group A, B or C). For more information on subscriptions, click here. Fans can also follow along via live stats by following the U.S. U-18 Women’s National Team on Gamechanger.
Fans in the Dallas area wishing to attend the event can purchase tickets via Brushfire.com — with two options available: Tournament Pass ($60) and Daily Pass ($15). Click here to view ticket options and available discounts for seniors and youth.
At the helm of the U-18 WNT will be head coach Kyla Holas who previously guided the U-15 WNT to three gold medals during the 2023 season, including a 7-1 campaign at the WBSC U-15 Women’s Softball World Cup that put the Eagles atop the podium. Alongside her will be assistant coaches Alisa Goler (Western Illinois – Head Coach) and two-time Olympian Kelly Kretschman.
Announced earlier this year, the selected athletes worked their way through identifiers on the local and national level to represent the Red, White and Blue — hailing from 11 different states and eight USA Softball regions. Texas (Region 5) leads the pack with five athletes while Arizona (Region 10) is highlighted by two, followed by California (Region 10), Florida (Region 3), Kentucky (Region 6), Louisiana (Region 4), Oklahoma (Region 5), Oregon (Region 9), Pennsylvania (Region 1), Tennessee (Region 3) and Wisconsin (Region 8) each represented by one athlete a piece.
“The USA Softball Junior Women’s program has a very high standard and strong tradition — I know these athletes can rise to meet it,” said Holas.
Click here to view the 2024 U-18 Women’s National Team World Cup roster »
The roster marks the second group of athletes to advance through the HPP program, with the previously selected 2023 U-15 WNT being the first – showcasing the opportunity of being involved in the Pipeline to the Women’s National Team Program. The HPP was created in 2020 to identify a pool of athletes to train, compete and represent USA Softball in domestic and international competition. The program focuses on providing an equal opportunity for players to showcase their talent while growing the game of softball in the United States. To learn more about the HPP or to get involved, visit USASoftball.com.
To learn more about the U.S. Women’s National Team Program, visit USASoftball.com.