- April 18, 2024
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Lady Renegades pitcher Emma Wood plays catch at practice on Thursday in preparation for the SEAA World Series, starting on July 16.
The 12U Ormond Beach Lady Renegades pose for a photo on Thursday, July 6 at practice at the Ormond Beach Sports Complex.
Ava Colubiale receives a ball during practice on Thursday, July 6. She is a catcher and first baseman.
The 12U Ormond Beach Lady Renegades have a motto.
It reads in block white letters on the backs of bright red shirts: “Winning Attitude, Team Player, 100% Effort, Never Give Up, Play With Confidence.”
The Lady Renegades’ play has been good enough to lead them to the Sporting Events Association of America’s World Series. Out of 40 teams, they’re the only participant from Florida.
“To be able to go and play teams from out of state is going to be a great experience for the girls,” assistant coach Brian Colubiale said. “When you go from tournament to tournament, you typically play the same teams all the time, so this is what it’s all about.”
The SEAA 2017 World Series will be July 17-23, in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
It took a great amount of fundraising for a team of 10 girls and their parents to be able to travel 603 miles to Tennessee, so the Lady Renegades rallied.
The team raised over $14,000 by utilizing GoFundMe pages, running concession stands, sponsoring Chipotle 50% giveback nights and more.
“I kind of felt like we could do it from the beginning. It’s kind of like when you’re jumping off a cliff: There’s no turning back, and your parachute is opening.”
Nick DeJulio, Lady Renegades head coach
“I kind of felt like we could do it from the beginning,” head coach Nick DeJulio said. “It’s kind of like when you’re jumping off a cliff: There’s no turning back, and your parachute is opening.”
The team has players anywhere from 11 to 13 years old. Colubiale and DeJulio each have a daughter who plays for the team, and, ever since January, the Lady Renegades have been traveling from different tournaments around Florida.
The coaches see how much the girls have improved over the course of six months, and it shows in their play.
“At the beginning they had to be developed and they’re all from different areas,” Colubiale said. “They had some problems adjusting on how to react to failure, so we’ve seen them overcome that and get through it. Their attitudes have changed a lot, and the goals that the head coach has set from this season to now have definitely been achieved.”
When it comes to memorable moments throughout the season, the girls find it hard to point one out in particular.
That’s mostly because they just tend to dominate their opponents.
“We’ve come from really low scores when we’re down a lot to winning, and then we crush the other team in just one inning,” Ava Colubiale said. “And I like those kinds of games.”
Whether they win or lose in Tennessee, the Lady Renegades are thankful for the community that allowed them to play at the highest level.
“If you don’t have the community that we have, a lot of the stuff that Ormond Beach has wouldn’t be possible,” coach Colubiale said.
The Ormond Beach Lady Renegades will be holding tryouts for the upcoming fall season in August. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/2sOHamR.
