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News Release

FORMER UMBC PITCHER AMY SADOWL PLAYING PROFESSIONALLY IN THE NETHERLANDS

7/14/2006

After finishing her collegiate career ranked among UMBC's best pitchers, Amy Sadowl is spending her summer pitching in the Netherlands.

By Jessica Bernheim, UMBC Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Amy Sadowl’s senior season at UMBC was cut short. The pitcher from Horsham, Pa., made just eight appearances in 2006 before shoulder tendonitis shut her down for the next month, and she took the mound only six more times all year.

So when she was presented the opportunity to play professionally in the Netherlands, extending her softball career for another four months, she jumped at it.

“After being hurt for the majority of my senior season I didn't feel done with playing softball,” Sadowl said in an e-mail from Holland.

Sadowl is playing in the city of Haarlem for a team called Onze Gezellen. As of July 12, Onze Gezellen was 13-11 and in third place out of eight teams located throughout Holland. Sadowl joined the team midseason – Onze Gezellen began play in mid-April – leaving for Europe the day after her last final exam, just two weeks after she made the decision to play overseas.

“My decision to come over here was kind of spontaneous,” she said. “I thought I'd never again have a chance to leave everything for four months and live in Europe. I talked to my parents and they said I'd be stupid if I didn’t go for it.  Playing softball has provided me with so many great opportunities and experiences and I just figured this was another one that I couldn't pass up. I've never been out of the country before but I knew if I didn’t come I would have regretted it for the rest of my life.”

Onze Gezellen plays doubleheaders on Saturdays and occasional night games during the week. The team practices only two or three times a week, much less than Sadowl was accustomed to in college, when the Retrievers practiced every day and usually played four or five games a week.

“This is a great opportunity for Amy, and it shows the strength of our program,” said UMBC head coach Joe French. “She is one of the best pitchers in school history, and this is a great reward for an outstanding career.”

Sadowl finished her collegiate career second all-time in UMBC history in wins (43), innings pitched (489), games started (77), appearances (102) and saves (4); fourth in complete games (43); fifth in strikeouts (212); sixth in winning percentage (.606); and 10th in ERA (2.82). She also posted the second-most wins ever in a season by a Retriever pitcher with 18 as a freshman in 2003.

Appearing in only 14 games in 2006 because of the shoulder injury, Sadowl made eight starts and posted a 5-3 record with a 3.85 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 47.1 innings. Also a solid hitter, she batted .273 with one home run and five RBI in 22 at-bats as a pinch hitter, designated player or right fielder. Sadowl’s statistics with Onze Gezellen are not available.

Sadowl learned of the team in Holland from former UMBC pitching coach Bill Gilbert, who coached the Swedish National Team in 2000 and has contacts in different parts of Europe. Gilbert knew a member of Onze Gezellen who told him the team was looking for an American pitcher. Sadowl had already been considering several different squads in Holland and Sweden, but after researching Onze Gezellen and the city of Haarlem, she decided it was the right fit.

“The city is beautiful and has a wonderful town center with plenty of shops, restaurants and bars,” she said. “Amsterdam is about a 15-minute train ride away and there are beaches a bike ride away.”

Sadowl is the second UMBC softball player in as many years to travel overseas to continue her softball career past college. Last summer, former Retriever outfielder Megan Oursler spent her summer playing for a team in Sweden.

Because the level of play is not as high as it is in the United States, teams in Holland are always looking for American pitchers, and Sadowl says most teams have at least one. American pitchers not only help their own team succeed, but they help strengthen the league by allowing opposing hitters to see a higher level of pitching. Sadowl will also be coaching some of the younger girls on her team and in the organization.

“I'm excited to help out and give back to the organization since they have provided me with such a great opportunity,” she said. “For people who play sports here, there are not many opportunities to play like there are in America. High schools don't have sports and neither do colleges, so organizations like the one I play for are basically the only opportunity for people to play.”

Onze Gezellen is not just a softball team, but an organization that consists of baseball, softball, soccer and basketball teams for people of all ages.

“It’s a very close-knit community. Everyone knows each other and a lot of the people have been part of the organization for many years,” Sadowl said, adding that she is one of the youngest players on her team. She said her squad’s center fielder played on the Dutch National Team in the 1996 Olympics and is around 35 years old but is still one of the best players in the league.

At the end of July, Sadowl will play in the European Cup in Milan, Italy, with the Terrasvogels, another team from Haarlem who is considered a favorite to win the tournament.

“I am extremely excited to be able to contribute and experience playing against teams from all over Europe,” Sadowl said. “The European Cup is probably the biggest softball tournament in Europe.”

Sadowl has a game with Onze Gezellen on July 22 and will fly to Milan later that night.

After the European Cup, Sadowl will have the entire month of August off and plans to travel to Germany, France and possibly Belgium with relatives who will be visiting. She will be in the Netherlands through September, as Onze Gezellen’s final game is scheduled for Sept. 23. Though she originally planned to graduate in the fall, Sadowl will miss the first month of the semester so the American studies major now intends to finish her degree next spring.

“I figured UMBC isn’t going anywhere, but a free trip to Europe is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” she said, adding that she hopes to have an internship in the months between returning from Europe and beginning her final semester at UMBC.

Though she does not speak Dutch – “it’s a very difficult language,” she said – Sadowl has learned some basic words. And she said most people speak English, so communication has not been a problem.

“Everyone is extremely polite and people go out of their way to help me out with anything I need,” she said.

However, the language barrier does prevent her from getting a job in the Netherlands, so she spends her abundance of free time working out, going to parks or the beach, going shopping in the center of town or biking.

“I do have plenty of free time, which I thought would get annoying since I’m used to being on the go all the time, but I’m really enjoying it,” Sadowl said. “It’s nice having nothing to do; it’s a good break from school and softball. I know this is probably the last time in my life I will have so much free time, so I’m enjoying it as much as I can.”

And she is adapting to the Dutch culture. “I’d say the biggest cultural difference is that everything is smaller – food, cars, houses, stores, roads, etcetera,” she said. “And absolutely everyone rides bikes everywhere. It was a little bit of a challenge at first, but now I’m used to it.”

She added that the competition is more relaxed in Holland, as well. “People seem to be a lot more laid back. Winning is important, but having fun is why all the girls play. They actually have to pay to play, so while they are very competitive, the emphasis is on having a good time.”

Sadowl, however, does not have to pay to play – Onze Gezellen actually pays her. The team provides her with housing, a cell phone, a bike and a monthly stipend.

Though she is the only American on her team, Sadowl is living with an American coach who coaches another squad in Haarlem. “It’s good to have another American around,” she said.

“So far the experience has been amazing,” Sadowl said. “I've met a lot of very nice people and love experiencing a new culture. I never thought softball would take me to Europe but I'm extremely grateful it did.”