Mackayla makes team Australia

Hedland’s long history with the diamond sports continued last week, with the announcement young up-and-comer Mackayla Denney had been selected for the under-18s Australian softball team.

Having left Hedland in July 2018 to pursue her dream of playing in the Olympic softball team, Mackayla said she felt like the hard work was paying off when receiving the news of her first national call-up.

“It’s been a lot of hard work, of course there’s a lot of hard work left to do, but I feel like it’s really starting to pay off,” she said.

“I’ve been in five different State teams throughout the years. It’s always been my dream to make the Olympics and getting called up to play for Australia’s under-18s is the another step in that direction.”

Mackayla’s parents both moved to Perth with her in order to aid her success, a move her mother Rachael said they had no regrets making.

“It was a big decision, but seeing how Mack has grown and benefited from the move makes it all completely worth it,” she said.

“We can’t even put into words how proud we all are.”

The announcement of Mackayla’s selection came after the recent under-18s national championship, the Elinor Mckenzie Shield, where Mackayla represented WA, making it all the way to the grand final against NSW.

Having never won a national title, it was a little upsetting for Mackayla when WA took the silver medal, however the news of selection for the Australian team helped to soften the blow.

“We saw the report in the North West Telegraph last week; my brother, Josh, was at his first national champs and managed to win, something I haven’t been able to do across five attempts,” she said.

“He was pretty stoked with himself, and a bit chirpy with me, but when the news came through, I was like, hold on there, buddy.”

Mackayla will travel to South America in August to represent Australia to showcase her talent on the international stage.