The Wheat City Whiskey Jacks were the only team in the Expedition League to have a female on the diamond this season.

Zoe Hicks, of Boissevain, Manitoba, played second base for Wheat City this year and says the team had a hot and cold season but notes when they played their A-game they could rarely be beaten. Hicks outlines how she benefited from the experience.

"For me, it's just more reps on the diamond and more eyes on my swing," says Hicks. "If I am working out with my teammates and they see little tweaks I can make, that just makes me ten times better. So, competing against them is one thing but having those different guys that bring different experiences to the table, that's what's been the biggest progressor for me."

Hicks says she just finished her senior season of softball at Louisiana Tech University prior to playing for Wheat City. She says, typically, she will come back at play for Team Manitoba's baseball team in the summer but notes that didn't take place this year, which is why the Whiskey Jacks is the spot she landed to start the summer.

She notes she had to make quite a large adjustment every time she went from softball to baseball or vice versa but adds most of it was mental.

"With softball, you have to be dialled in for first pitch to last pitch and you have to ramp up the intensity," Hicks explains. "Baseball is more skill-focused. It's slower-paced and you can focus on your breathing. So, the challenge for that is staying locked in the whole game."

Hicks played her last game for Wheat City last week as she has now signed a contract with a softball team in the Netherlands. She describes her biggest takeaway from her time with the Whiskey Jacks.

"The people who say 'a girl can't do that' or 'women can't compete in men's leagues.' Those are not the people who understand the ins and outs of sports," says Hicks. "There's not a single person, I don't think, in that entire league that looked at me and said 'she can't be here' or 'she can't do this.' They watched me play baseball and thought 'oh she's a baller' just like anyone else out there."

Hicks says now that she has seen the type of success she can have in a men's league she is even more confident in her softball/baseball journey going forward. Hicks is set to begin her next step overseas this week.