Pitcher armed with talent

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Connie Ness usually plays fastball with players much older than she is. It's been that way for years, said the 14-year-old star pitcher, after she led the Edmonton Warriors to a 9-5 win over host Surrey, and a Western Canadian PeeWee Fastball Championship. "I've always played about three years ahead of myself," Ness continued. "But this year and next I'll be only one year ahead. That'll be better."

Better, maybe, but the 1994 season was capped with her teams' championship and personal honors, too. Ness was named both best pitcher and most valuable player at the Western Canadians. She'd done about all there was to do - there is no national title in the peewee age group.

Ness is a dominating figure on the mounds, standing in at 5' 9" tall and 165 pounds. Born in Pendleton, Oregon, she says her best pitch is her fastball, no question.

"I used to be pretty wild, but now it goes where I want it to, and I can rely on it more than the breaking pitch," Ness said.

Sometimes she throws the change-up too fast, especially with the smaller fastball, and she's just learned to throw the curve.

"The curve is only sometimes here, you know," she added.

Success at the peewee (under 14) level comes after playing all year for the Edmonton Bandits bantams at under 16. That experience, and playing juvenile (under

19) at the 1993 World Indigenous Games in Prince Albert, Sask., makes for a ball player mature beyond her years.

Her success isn't limited to the pitcher's mound, though. She's an articulate interview, though she "used to be quieter, before," she says. And she's a credible batter.

"I usually hit third or fourth in the batting order, and I usually get on," she said when pushed to comment. "I guess I'm a power hitter, though, more than anything else, but I don't really go for home runs."

That may surprise those who saw her hit two over the fences in Surrey this summer.

Ness's father Leroy has coached her for all nine years she's played.

"You'll never find a more dedicated player. Connie never quits and now, at 14, she's teaching younger players. She loves playing ball; it's all her idea. If you're sitting around, chances are that she'll have you up and throwing with her," he said proudly.

"She's a helluva player," he continued. "It all started when she was four. I came home and she was watching the World Series on TV. She said to me 'I want to play that.' I went out and got her the stuff to start and she's played every since she was five."

Leroy is enthusiastic about his daughter's ability and her future.

"She's got a super fastball, a great change-up and a good curve. She's got a great arm. She'll continue to play ball, maybe go on to a scholarship at an American university. She hopes to play for Canada at the Olympic Games."

Connie, though, is not necessarily thinking that far ahead. "Eventually, I'd like to play for Canada, and get a shot at an American university, but that's in 2000. Right now,

I love playing ball," she said. "I love the competition. I want to win."

But the Edmonton resident says that it's the fun of the game and the friendships that make it worthwhile. "And the travel. I like to go places."

As the 1994 outdoor season comes to a close, Connie is already training for

Team '95 and looking forward to getting into the gyms for the winter. She'll be going more places next year, carried there by her strong pitching arm.