Softball season underway in Whanganui as Athletic win exhibition with Mustangs

Athletic's Ben Tangata lines up his shot as the softball season got under at the Whanganui Ballpark with exhibition games on Saturday.

It is looking like a promising start for the new-look Whanganui Athletic men's softball team after they picked up a 13-5 win over the Castlecliff Club Mustangs in the exhibition game at the Puriri St Ballpark on Saturday.

Athletic will join both the Mustangs (Premier Reserve) and the Ezi Finance Wanganui Braves (Premier) in sending a team to compete in the Manawatu Softball Association grades, starting this coming weekend.

While the Mustangs and the Braves are straight adult squads, the older Athletic club has just had junior teams in recent years, however spokeswoman Kay Kotuhi-Brown said some of their high school-aged players are now old enough to play senior, joining a handful of adults to make a team.

"We got an interest in wanting to play [senior softball], the only problem was travel," said Kotuhi-Brown.

Lennox Fold bunts and takes off for first base.

The senior Athletic club members would be busy running Saturday morning children's games, which made an early afternoon trip to Palmerston North difficult, but now the time is right.

"We're all about developing. It's good to see all of them back going," said Kotuhi-Brown.

Mustangs will not be too put out by the surprise defeat, as the match was just an exhibition for interested parties who had come to that morning's 'Give it a Go' day, while several top players and their coach were unavailable.

Mustang Danny Green fires in his pitch in the first innings.

In the Women's game played earlier in the afternoon, Feilding United defeated Whanganui Athletic 10-7.