Baseball set for exciting debut at KSSSA national Term Two games

 Newly introduced baseball is expected to make an exciting debut at the KCB Kenya Secondary Schools Sports Association (KSSSA) national championships following the conclusion of regional championships.

Baseball Kenya Federation (BKF) president Titus Mutwiri said he anticipates stiff competition in both the girls’ and boys’ categories as the sport marks its first appearance on the KSSSA calendar.

“I expect a good show from the teams that have qualified for nationals. Some teams like Mully Children’s Family Secondary and Kongoni are among the favourites having played this game for long, but they should be wary of newcomers,” said Mutwiri.

He said baseball has gained a strong foothold in both Western and Eastern regions, where more schools have adopted it.

In Western, Kongoni started their hunt for a place at the nationals with a 15-0 thrashing of Miruiri before beating Musingu 12-0 to qualify for nationals.

In the girls' category, Musoli Girls beat Shibuye 15-0 and Miruiri 11-0 to lift the regional title. In Eastern, Mully Children’s Family Secondary dominated both the boys’ and girls’ categories.

In the boys’ affair, Mully beat Kilungu 2-1 in the opening game before edging Kivani 15-0 to secure a place at the national championships. In the girls’ category, Mully thrashed Kivani 33-1 to progress to the national showpiece.

In Central, All Sports Academy Africa beat Alliance High School 28-3 to book a slot at the nationals. Central region will not field a team in the girls’ category.

Olympic Boys lifted the Nairobi region title after a 10-1 win over Dagoretti Boys while Dagoretti Mixed will represent Nairobi in the girls’ category.

Nkaimurunya Senior School and Bomu will represent the Rift Valley and Coast regions, respectively, in both the boys' and girls’ categories.

The national championships will be held at MPesa Foundation Academy from August 28 to August 1. However, baseball is likely to be held at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) main campus.

Mutwiri said JKUAT has the best baseball fields in East Africa. Mutwiri welcomed the strong turnout of schools for the inaugural regional championships.

“Being the first time we are having the sport in the KSSSA calendar, I’m happy with the number of teams which registered for the regional championships. We expect to have the sport played from the lowest levels from next year,” said Mutwiri.

However, he expressed disappointment that the sport will not feature in the Nyanza and North Eastern regional competitions.