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Lyndhurst Baseball's First Female Athlete Is Among Best In USA

 Alexia Jorge isn't just the first-ever female athlete on the Lyndhurst Baseball Team.

Catcher Alexia Jorge, 14, is the first female athlete on the Lyndhurst High School Baseball Team.

Catcher Alexia Jorge, 14, is the first female athlete on the Lyndhurst High School Baseball Team.

Photo Credit: Tracy Jorge
Baseball is Alexia's first love. Her mom says she has been competitive and a natural athlete ever since she was a child.

Baseball is Alexia's first love. Her mom says she has been competitive and a natural athlete ever since she was a child.

Photo Credit: Tracy Jorge
Alexia's brother Victor, 17, convinced her to try wrestling. She came in second among the female division at War at the Shore two years ago.

Alexia's brother Victor, 17, convinced her to try wrestling. She came in second among the female division at War at the Shore two years ago.

Photo Credit: Tracy Jorge
"The boys have all played with her since they were young. They know it's Alexia and they can count on her -- they know she's a good competitor and can get the job done."

"The boys have all played with her since they were young. They know it's Alexia and they can count on her -- they know she's a good competitor and can get the job done."

Photo Credit: Tracy Jorge

She's one of the best. Not just on the team -- in the country.

That's likely the case for the nearly 60 other female baseball players she'll meet later this month in Florida, who were chosen to play for USA Baseball's Breakthrough National Team.

Being the lone female on the baseball team is nothing new for the 14-year-old catcher. 

She got her start as a child scoring runs on the T-ball field with her older brother, Victor.

"I'm definitely more competitive than other girls," the teen said. "I always want to be better than the next person. You need that if you want to be successful in sports."

Baseball is Alexia's first love.

Baseball decor covers the walls of her room, and if she's looking at her phone -- which is protected by a baseball phone case -- she's likely checking the score or reading up on baseball news.

The teen's mom, Tracy Jorge, isn't surprised her daughter turned out this way.

"I was a big tom boy," the elder Jorge said. "So is my entire side of the family and my husband. "Competitiveness was instilled in her from the get-go."

As a baby, Alexia never cried when she went for shots at the doctor's office.

That's when Jorge knew her daughter would be tougher than most. 

Then, when Alexia was five years old, she confirmed that for her mom.

"We were at a rock climbing birthday party and she climbed 40 feet up just because she wanted to touch a pink rock," Jorge recalled. "All the boys were too afraid to go that high.

"That's when I really knew. She doesn't back down from anything."

Alexia is so competitive that she joined the wrestling team two years ago just because her brother was teasing her about it. She took second place in the girls division at the War at the Shore tournament.

None of Alexia's teammates view her any differently because of her gender, she said.

Sometimes, competitors don't even realize that she's a girl until she takes her gear off after a game.

"She's a true competitor," the elder Jorge said. "The boys have all played with her since they were young. They know it's Alexia and they can count on her -- they know she's a good competitor and can get the job done."

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