Little League's lone girl comes up big at the plate

SANDPOINT — It was the crucial point late in a Sandpoint Little League Minors’ playoff game on Monday at Pine St. Field and the North Idaho Spas Tigers had just the hitter they wanted in the batter’s box.

Stepping to the plate was Kelsey Hansen, 10, who just happens to be the only girl in the entire league. Undaunted, she smacked a ball all the way to the right field fence, and motored around the bases for the game-winning home run.

“Should I go, should I stay, will I make it?” Hansen said she was thinking as she rounded the bases.

Hansen, who also plays basketball and flag football, has no problem fitting in with a dugout — or league — full of boys.

“I’ve been in a lot of sports like this,” she said of playing with the boys, adding that she really doesn’t think much about it.

Her play on the field, both as a hitter and defensively at second base, has landed her a spot on the All-Star team later this month. Her coaches both used the same word when describing her as a player: coachable.

“No matter what you tell her, she will go and do it,” said Tigers coach Bill Connolly. “She has turned into one of the best players on the team.”

Assistant coach Jim L. Parsons said she’s simply a good hitter, good fielder and good baserunner, while playing the game with a great attitude.

“She’s just smiles all game,” he said.