Roxbury High School Student Heads to Germany with the USA U18 National Fistball Team

July 6, 2016 - Roxbury, NJ - Wearing #9 on the first ever U18 Girls National Fistball Team, 17 year old Alexx Berdej is preparing to head overseas next week. As a member of the U18 team she will be competing in Nürnberg-Eibach, Germany July 20-24, 2016 at the Youth World Fistball Championships.

When asked about trying out for the USA National Fistball Team, Ms. Berdej replied - “Volleyball and fistball are similar so I gave it a try.” Her other interests include writing, lacrosse, and ceramics, but she missed playing volleyball which she enjoyed in her younger years.

Being part of the team has been a learning journey for Alexx - “Expanding your horizons and comfort zone really leaves you with once-in-a-lifetime opportunities’ She was also surprised to learn that Fistball is not very popular in America, but in Europe it is a very evident activity.

What would she say to people who don’t know about Fistball? “It's a strategic game that will leave you with a lot of bruises and a desire to play again. “

The team has been practicing at the Swim and Sport Club at 272 Emmans Road, Roxbury, NJ since early May to compete against U18 Girl’s teams from Austria, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Germany, India, Kenya, Switzerland and Togo.

With partial funding from the United States Fistball Association, the team has been pursuing corporate sponsorships, individual donations and apparrel sales to help defer the extensive costs to the team members.

The teams Generosity Fundraising page is found at:https://igg.me/at/-OGgNYeM35I

Official USFA apparel with all proceeds going to the U18 Girls Team is found at the following link..http://ascuniforms.soccercorner.com/stores/usfajuly

Photo Credit: USFA U18 Girls National Team

Team Roster:

#1 Valerie Houghton - Maplewood, NJ
#2 Olivia Woodruff - Maplewood, NJ
#3 Christine Connelly (capt.) - Rockaway, NJ
#4 Kayley Moran - Hacketstown, NJ
#5 Kelli Vogel - Sparta, NJ
#7 Bayleigh Takacs - Sparta, NJ
#9 Alexx Berdej - Roxbury, NJ
#10 Kate Tagliareni - Hacketstown, NJ
missing in the picture #8 Kumali Schoen - Menlo Park, Ca.

For US National Team corporate sponsorship or other details please contact Bob Feid, President, USFA - bobf2@optonline.net

CLICK HERE to learn more about Fistball - http://usfistball.com/

CLICK HERE for information on their home field, the Swim and Sport Club - http://www.swimandsportclub.org/

CLICK HERE for more information on the Youth World Fistball Championships - http://u18wm2016.de/en/