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Belize Blog #9 | ISU's Freshmen Wrapup Belize Experience Check out daily blogs and photo galleries for the ISU softball team's international tour in Belize The ISU softball team spent nine days in Belize Dec. 5, 2008 NORMAL, Ill. - With the Illinois State softball team now back in Bloomington-Normal following its nine-day international playing tour in Belize Nov. 22-30, freshman softball players Rebecca Baltikas, Jordan Birch, Caiti Kopp, Brianna Lizen and Megan Warner were kind enough to provide GoRedbirds.com with a wrapup blog to give Illinois State Athletics fans a final look into the Redbirds' time in Belize. Hello Redbird Country. We are back to Normal, Ill. This is Illinois State softball freshmen Rebecca Baltikas, Jordan Birch, Caiti Kopp, Brianna Lizen and Megan Warner with a wrapup of our team's recent trip to Belize, and our first experience traveling as Redbirds. It was our first trip away with the team, as well as our first trip out of the country. We departed from the cold weather to the warm and sunny climate of Belize, which was exciting for all of us. During the trip, we saw sparkling blue water, sandy beaches and bright, sunny skies from up above. We were shocked the moment we stepped off the plane and felt the blast of hot water-drenched air. Our team knew from this moment that the climate, and also the culture, would be a challenge to overcome and experience. We were surprised when we saw the bus that would be driving us around. The bus was green and had green cloth seats. Luckily, it came with air conditioning. Belize Tour Main | Belize Tour Photo Gallery

As the team looked out the window, we noticed homes that looked like they were about to collapse from floods, and suddenly worry came upon our faces to see where we would reside. We arrived at Hotel Mopan, which had a unique charm and something about it that upheld our original expectations about this beautiful country. The country is much older than the United States, and this made for older architecture and buildings than we are used to seeing, but still, all of the locals welcomed us with curious smiles. We were a group of odd girls to them but we came with a purpose; we came to play. Practices were tough in the scorching sun, and all the games were intense in the dim light on the loose sandy field we played on at Roger's Stadium. We came in wanting to win and also wanting to learn, and we accomplished much more.

The biggest part of our trip was of course playing softball and competing against international competition. This was a majority of our team's first experience out of the country, and so just coming to Belize was amazing, but also playing the Belize National Team, the Jr. Men's National team and another team named Telemedia was spectacular. Our first night, we played Telemedia, and had a great competitive game, and we came out strong. We didn't get to meet many of them, but we still learned a lot from their spirit on the field and their love of the game.

The second night, we played the Belize Junior Men's National Team, which was a great challenge to play men our own age and older who are stronger and faster. It was an amazing game with plenty of excitement. The game went into extra innings, but we pulled it out with great teamwork and determination. After the game, we took a picture and briefly met the team. All of the players on the team were very cheerful and happy to just be playing the game they love. They were all extremely friendly, and so it was great to at least get to talk to them, even if it was only for a short time.

The third team we played was the Belize National Women's Softball Team. We played the Belize National Team six times during the trip, and every time we played them, both teams came out ready to play. It was really exciting to see how others play the game and approach it, but the biggest thing we all took from the Belize National Team was their love for the game. They came and played with all their heart and pride every night, and it showed in every play. It was amazing to see their dedication to the game, even with all their other responsibilities in their personal lives. Thankfully, we are in college and don't yet have to worry about some of those responsibilities. It is safe to say that we will never forget this team. We finally got to meet the Belize National Team Friday night after our last set of doubleheaders, and it was our favorite part of the trip. They were all very welcoming and friendly, and it was great to be able to talk to them as not only competitors, but as companions, as well. This trip was an experience of a lifetime and was great because of the interaction between the teams and getting to know one another through competition, practices, and just sitting around eating pizza together. Thank you to the players of the teams who showed us how they take the game of softball and their love and dedication to the game and one another.

The day before Thanksgiving (Wednesday, Nov. 26), Illinois State softball held a camp for any individual who was interested in playing softball. We had no idea who would come, if anyone, and we were not even sure if the campers could understand us because there are a variety of languages spoken in Belize. Moments flew by and before we knew it, the bleachers had filled up with boys and girls of all different ages. We started with introductions of the team, while the campers sat patiently with smiles on their faces. After introductions, we split up the age groups. We had set up of a variety of stations, which included bunting, throwing, hitting, and speed work. Each station was about 15 minutes and just in that short amount of time, we taught the players the fundamentals of softball. There were children without shoes, bats or even gloves to play with. We worked around this and made sure to include everyone. When time had ended for the first session, the kids took a break and grabbed their snacks and drinks they had brought to the field. During this time, our team wanted to incorporate the importance of hustle in everyday activities, so we got in our positions and showed them our pregame warmup. Their faces showed excitement as they cheered us after multiple great plays. It was a great feeling to know that they loved the game as much as we did. Not only did the campers learn, but throughout the day, we did, too. We learned that you don't need to have the highest-quality equipment to succeed; all you need is your heart and soul. We truly learned the importance of giving.

On Thanksgiving Day, our team headed over to one of the islands off of Belize, called Caye (Key) Caulker. We were all excited to have a day off to explore the beautiful country of Belize. It was very nice of the Belize National Team to help organize the day trip and the boat ride. Since many of the girls on the team have never been away from their families during the Thanksgiving holiday, it was nice to be to have an exciting day planned. The short boat ride brought us to the small island, where we were surrounded by beautiful, clear water. Everyone immediately decided to go snorkeling as soon as we got off the boat. We ran down the dock to the shop and received our gear. We were handed flippers, goggles, a snorkel, and thankfully, we all remembered to pack some towels. At the first stop in the snorkeling trip, we could all touch in the ocean, which was helpful when we needed to readjust our goggles. We split our group of twenty girls in half, and each had their own instructor.

The water was warm and we could see straight down, but we had to be careful not to kick up a lot of the sand, which would ruin the coral. We all followed the instructor and were very close together. Everyone kept getting a flipper in the face trying to keep up with the guide and not stir up too much sand. We had to be very careful not to touch the coral, so we had to keep ourselves horizontal above it. Then we hopped back on the boat and headed over to the next stop. This time, the water was well over our head, and a couple of us grabbed some lifejackets. We saw an eel swimming right below us, as well as some tiny sting rays that blended in with the bottom of the ocean. The third stop involved many sting rays. Only a handful of girls got into the water, while the others watched from the boat. Right below us were about twenty huge sting rays, all beautiful in color. The girls could only go in the water with their goggles and snorkel, and had to be careful not to land on them when they jumped out of the boat. I do not think many of us planned for the tropical weather, because on the boat ride back to the island, we all noticed our sunburned backs. We were tired from being in the water all day, but once we got back, we toured the island. There were so many cute shops to buy souvenirs to bring back home. It ended up being an awesome day, even though we were not eating the turkey dinners. We all made sure to take plenty of pictures to bring back to show our family what a great time we had.

As freshmen, our first time traveling with the Illinois State softball team was a great experience. The trip was a big culture shock and taught us how fortunate we are to live in the United States.

- Rebecca Baltikas, Jordan Birch, Caiti Kopp, Brianna Lizen and Megan Warner