Freshmen Join Congressional Women's Softball Game

By Christina Bellantoni

Posted May 21, 2015 at 4:01am

Gabbard was among the star recruits after she arrived in Congress. There are three rookies joining the members’ team this year. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

The lawmakers who play in the Congressional Women’s Softball Game have three new recruits to brag about this year, ahead of next month’s charity game against the press.

The roster being released Thursday includes freshman rookies from the House: Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., Kathleen Rice, D-N.Y., and Mia Love, R-Utah.

HOH contributors have had an eye on potential power players elected last fall, especially as veteran members of the lady lawmaker team made their case for the game, a fundraiser for the Young Survival Coalition breast cancer charity, to the newbies during orientation.

In reality, the members were hard at work recruiting new blood since defeating the Bad News Babes press team on a sweltering day last summer. No members from last season’s roster ended up on Roll Call’s Casualty List, but missing from this year’s roster are Democratic Reps. Ann Kirkpatrick of Arizona and Grace F. Napolitano of California, and North Dakota’s Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, one of the team’s sluggers in recent years.

What about those recruits? We haven’t yet ~~spied on~~ observed them at practice, but we’ve got some recon.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., recruited Rice early last summer.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., told the Glen Falls Post-Star Stefanik would be a top recruit, and signaled the freshman was a possible addition to the pitching rotation.

Love told CQ Roll Call last year she was an active soccer player growing up, likes to stay in shape and played recreational softball in her formative years. Florida Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen was all over it.

Members also had been hoping for 6-foot tall Rep. Gwen Graham, D-Fla., who was trash-talking about softball since her early days as a candidate, and Rep. Martha E. McSally, R-Ariz., a retired Air Force colonel, to join.

You can buy the $10 tickets for this year’s showdown — scheduled to take place at Watkins Recreation Center on June 24 promptly at 6 p.m. — on Eventbrite.

Here’s the full members team lineup:

Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio.
Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.
Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla.
Rep. Katherine M. Clark, D-Mass.
Rep. Donna Edwards, D-Md.
Rep. Renee Ellmers, R-N.C.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.
Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash.
Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-N.M.
Rep. Kristi Noem, R-S.D.
Rep. Martha Roby, R-Ala.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla.
Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.

Rookies:

Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah.
Rep. Kathleen Rice, D-N.Y.
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.,

Coaches:

Tori Barnes.
Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo.
Jim Kiley.
Natalie Buchanan.

Here’s the full Bad News Babes lineup:

Jill Agostino, New York Times.
Christina Bellantoni, Roll Call.
Lisa Desjardins, PBS NewsHour.
Elise Foley, Huffington Post.
Caroline Horn, CBS News.
Emmarie Huetteman, New York Times.
Kasie Hunt, MSNBC.
Jill Jackson, CBS News.
Brianna Keilar, CNN.
Tamara Keith, NPR.
Abby Livingston, Texas Tribune.
Carolyn Ryan, New York Times.
Lynn Sweet, Chicago Sun Times.
Shawna Thomas, NBC.
Amy Walter, Cook Political Report.

Rookies:

Mikayla Bouchard, New York Times.
Julie Percha, Washington Post.

Coaches:

David Espo, Associated Press.
Carl Hulse, New York Times.
Frank Thorp, NBC.

Disclosure: The author of this post is a member of the Bad News Babes, the press team.

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