SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Little League International is launching the first-ever girls’ baseball event as part of the organization’s year-long Girls with Game 50 Celebration.
Named after one of the first female players in Little League, the Maria Pepe Little League Baseball Legacy Series: A Girls with Game Experience will bring together nearly 100 female baseball players ages 10 to 12 for a weekend of fun, excitement, competition, and celebration of female baseball players across all generations. The event will be held at Howard J. Lamade Stadium and Complex in South Williamsport, Pa., from June 7 to 9, 2024,
“As our organization reflects back and celebrates 50 years of girls and women in the Little League program, it would be impossible to host an event of this nature without giving the well-deserved honor, respect, and recognition to Maria as she paved the way for generations of girls to step out onto the baseball field with a sense of pride,” says Nina Johnson-Pitt, Little League senior strategy executive. “We are thankful to Maria for allowing us to honor her legacy with this event and look forward to watching nearly 100 girls come to Williamsport for a weekend of history as we pay tribute to Maria and the other incredible ‘girls with game’ who have helped pave the way to allow our organization to get to where it is today.”
An inspiration to hundreds of thousands of females across generations, Pepe helped spearhead a movement in the 1970s that would lead to girls having the opportunity to participate in the Little League Baseball program, changing the game forever and opening the doors to provide opportunities that had never been available before. A native of Hoboken, N.J., where her journey first began, her name is inscribed on the community’s batting cages, cementing her name in history as she remains committed to inspiring girls to get involved with sports.
“I am so grateful that Little League will be hosting this event for girls who just love playing baseball and that I will be able to be there to support them,” says Pepe. “Playing baseball at Lamade Stadium is surely going to be a wonderful memory for those girls who will get to participate, and I appreciate the Little League leadership, coaches, umpires, and support staff who are committed to making this event a success.”
The new event also marks an expansion of the Girls with Game Experience held in October, bringing Division I collegiate softball teams to Lamade Stadium for an afternoon of exhibition games and youth clinics.
Held just one day after the celebration of the first-ever Little League game on June 6, 1939, the event kicks off the 65th National Little League Week on June 10-16 to celebrate the world’s largest youth sports organization. More information about the event, including details about the format and instructions around registration for the event, will be made available in early January.
