BATON ROUGE — LSU softball pitcher Britni Sneed and outfielder Trena Peel were selected to represent the USA as two of the 32 elite athletes who will participate on two separate national teams during the 2001 season as announced by the Amateur Softball Association of America/USA Softball.
“This is an awesome honor for both of these athletes,” said head coach Yvette Girouard. “It is also another feather in the hat for this LSU program. This is a great experience for them to represent the nation.”
Peel was selected as a member of the USA Red team, and Sneed will represent the USA as a member of the USA Blue team.
Sneed and Peel were each members of the 1999 Summer USA Junior Olympic team that played in Taiwan. Sneed was the runner-up Olympic female athlete of the month for her performance, as she did not allow a hit or run.
The two teams will compete against each other in the USA Softball Shootout, a West Coast exhibition tour, that will stop in Portland (June 8), Spokane (June 10), Sacramento (June 14) and Los Angeles (June 17).
Peel and the USA Red will then travel to Honolulu, June 20-24, to represent the USA at the 2001 U.S. Cup, where they will face 2000 Olympic silver medalist Japan, bronze medalist Australia and fourth-place finisher China. The U.S. Cup will mark the first time Team USA has faced these international teams since the 2000 Olympic Games.
The two teams will then travel to Vancouver, June 30 to July 6, for the 2001 Canada Cup. The USA captured the gold medal and the bronze medal in 1999 when two teams were represented at the Canada Cup.
Sneed USA Blue will close out the season when it travels to Maracay, Venezuela, July 28 to Aug. 5 to represent the USA at the 2001 Pan Am Qualifier.
USA Softball Women’s National Teams have been among the most dominating of any sports team in history. The USA’s ability to bring home the gold in World Championships, the Pan American Games and the Olympics is unchallenged, with a total of 13.
The USA Softball Women’s National Team won the first Olympic gold medal in the sport’s history during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, GA, and defended its gold medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. The USA Softball Women’s National Team, which has won the past four consecutive World Championships, the past four consecutive Pan Am Games and the past two Olympic gold medals, is the undisputed No. 1 team in the world.
Players selected for USA Red:
Lindsey Collins, Fountain Valley, CA
Amanda Freed, Cypress, CA
Lindsay Gardner, Katy, TX
Michelle Gates, Chowchilla, CA
Nicole Giordano, Saugus, CA
Keira Goerl, Moreno Valley, CA
Lovieanne Jung, Westminster, CA
Lizzy Lemire, Irvine, CA
Toni Mascarenas, Garden Grove, CA
Jessica Mendoza, Camarillo, CA
Tairia Mims, Tucson, AZ
Stacey Nuveman, La Verne, CA
Catherine Osterman, Katy, TX
Trena Peel, Aurora, CO
Kirsten Voak, Fremont, CA
Natasha Watley, Irvine, Ca
Coaches for USA Red are Jay Miller (University of Missouri), John Rittman (Stanford University) and Kirk Walker (Oregon State University).
Players selected for USA Blue:
Toria Auelua, Garden Grove, CA
Lauren Bauer, Santa Ana, CA
Tia Bollinger, Santa Ana, CA
Amy Chellevold, Tucson, AZ
Jaime Clark, Tustin, CA
Courtney Dale, Fresno, CA
Kim DePaul, Tomball, TX
Missy Hixon, Scottsdale, AZ
Nina Lindenberg, Anaheim Hills, CA
Keri McCallum, Port Orchard, WA
Jarrah Myers, Carbondale, KS
Jennifer Sharron, Agoura Hills, CA
Britni Sneed, Houston, TX
Nichole Thompson, Irvine, CA
Jenny Topping, Whittier, CA
Kellie Wilkerson, Jacksonville, FL
Coaches for USA Blue are Mike Candrea (University of Arizona), Ken Erickson (University of South Florida) and Michelle Gromacki (Cal State Fullerton).