Softball skills take Leetsdale teen on trip to Italy

By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, September 15, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Mya Eshenbaugh can now say she has played softball on an international level.

The 14-year-old Eshenbaugh, a Leetsdale resident, traveled with family members Aug. 7-17 to Italy to compete against club teams and visit several cities.

Eshenbaugh’s team was made up mainly of girls from the upstate New York, ages 14-17, along with one girl from Ohio and another Bulgarian girl. The team played six games over 10 days.

“I had a really great experience,” Eshenbaugh said. “I had my teammates from the U.S, but I also got to compete against girls from Italy. After each game we got to interact with the girls and learn more about their culture and more about softball in Italy.”

Eshenbaugh, a 5-foot-4 freshman catcher/middle infielder at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, attended classes in the Quaker Valley School District through eighth grade.

She traveled to Italy with her dad (Tom), mom (Maria), brother (Gavin) and a cousin, Shania Short.

The trip was conducted by Caliendo Sports International, which has been taking teams around the world for more than 20 years. Players are hand-picked by CSI coaches or recommended by other coaches.

“They take multiple sports trips yearly to a few different countries for both softball and baseball,” said Eshenbaugh’s father. “This year the trip was to Italy for softball. We sent film and stats into Caliendo Sports and inquired.”

The Caliendo Sports USA Team played five Italian clubs — Nettuno, Verona, Rovigo, Luca and Grossetto — comprised of girls ranging in age from 14-20.

Eshenbaugh, a right-handed slugger, played in all six games and batted .571. She also had an OBP of .667, OPS of 1.738 and slugging percentage of 1.071.

In 18 plate appearances, Eshenbaugh collected eight hits, including three singles, three doubles and two triples, had four RBIs, scored four runs and walked four times.

The CSI girls finished with a 4-2 record in Italy.

“We performed well,” Eshenbaugh said. “Each game, we got better and better. Once we became closer, we started playing like a team. We fought hard every game and didn’t take a game off. We had each other’s back even in the scorching hot weather. We also had to adjust to playing a little differently than we do in the states. We adjusted to the Italian rules.

“I made a ton of friends on the team. The friends I made were from various backgrounds and most were older, but we bonded over this amazing experience. They are now some of my closest friends.”

The two-and-a-half week experience was not only about playing time, however; it combined softball, the overall lifestyle and the country’s culture as part of the package.

The trip’s itinerary included visits to Rome, Vatican City, Padova, Verona, Venice, Pisa, Florence and Grossetto. The girls and their families had a tour guide and time to explore at each city.

“We stayed in Rome, Frascati, Padova and Tuscany,” Eshenbaugh said.

Eshenbaugh also participated in the USSSA All American Softball Games in Viera Beach, Fla., last summer at the USSSA Space Coast Complex.

USSSA (United States Specialty Sports Association) primarily focuses on amateur sports involving youth baseball, youth softball and adult softball.

“The complex was amazing,” Eshenbaugh said. “They had two professional stadiums and 12 other playing fields that were all turf. It was a great experience for me.”

Eshenbaugh began playing softball at age 4 as a T-ball participant. Along with competing for QV’s middle school team, Eshenbaugh played travel ball for Valley Rage, where she was coached by her dad who she said has been her biggest influence in her promising softball career.

“He believed in me enough to suggest trying out for travel ball,” she said.

Eshenbaugh has been multi-faceted when it comes to sports. Along with softball, she also competed in football, basketball and lacrosse at QVMS.

She is a former all-American javelin thrower and state champion wrestler, as well. She placed fourth in the turbo javelin event at the 2017 AAU Junior Olympics.

Eshenbaugh captured the state championship in wrestling in 2018.

“Mya actually was the very first women’s (state) champion,” said her dad proudly, “as she pinned her opponent in the finals prior to anyone else.”

Eshenbaugh’s brother Gavin was an all-conference running back and co-captain of the QV football team in 2022.

He also was a senior team leader on the WPIAL boys runner-up track and field team at QV in 2023 and was a two-time AAU Junior Olympian All-American in the javelin in 2016 and 2017.

On the gridiron, he played linebacker and was a four-year letterman. He now is attending the University of Tampa.

Tags: Quaker Valley