Infielder Matsubara playing big role in UBC’s historic run Winnipegger and Thunderbirds open first World Series bid Thursday By: Joshua Frey-Sam Posted: 2:54 PM CDT Wednesday, May. 20, 2026

Jill Matsubara has been on the road for the last two weeks, but she’s not itching to return home.

If things go her way, she’ll happily continue to live out of her suitcase.

You see, the Winnipeg-born sophomore infielder is in the midst of a historic run with the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds, who are preparing for their first appearance in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Softball World Series in Columbus, Ga., this week.

It took a few timely hits and some good fortune for the Thunderbirds to reach the national championship tournament, but for Matsubara, this was the inevitable next step for the program after reaching the NAIA Championship Opening Round tournament — which precedes the World Series — for the first time last year.

“For me, it’s almost — I don’t want to say normal, but last year was my first year on the team and we made it to Opening Round, but I had nothing to compare it to, I had no idea of what it was when the season just ended,” said Matsubara, who is the only Manitoban and one of two out-of-province players on UBC’s roster.

“And then this year I was like, ‘Well, we’re gonna have to do it again, because I don’t know anything else.’”

To the note of the good fortune that has come their way, the Thunderbirds — who play against American programs in the Cascade Collegiate Conference — were convinced their season was over earlier this month after being booted from the conference championship tournament in short order following a pair of disappointing losses.

To their surprise, they were still selected to last week’s Opening Round in Oklahoma City, where they found their swing and won the tournament on a seventh-inning walk-off run over the hosting Oklahoma City Stars to punch their ticket to the World Series.

“I’m still mind blown, and it’s a little bit hard to wrap my mind around,” Matsubara said. “It’s something we’ve talked about so much, and that everyone’s believed in, and really wanted, but to actually see it come true is, it’s just amazing to see.”

Matsubara, who won back-to-back provincial titles with the Vincent Massey Trojans (2023-24), has been as big a part of the Thunderbirds’ run as any player.

After fighting for — and later winning — the starting job at third base last season, the 5-4 infielder has elevated into a prominent role, appearing in 52 games (19 more than 2024-25) and recording 38 hits (plus-17), drawing 23 walks (plus-15), driving in 23 runs (plus-20) and blasting two home runs (plus-two), all while holding a .270 batting average.

But those aren’t even her biggest areas of improvement, according to head coach Jen McKellar.

“The biggest change is leadership,” said McKellar. “As a freshman, there were no leadership expectations on her, and coming this year, being a younger team — over half the roster being underclassmen — we leaned on Jill and her leadership skills to step up.”

The daughter of Manitoba Baseball Hall of Famer and former Canadian Senior Men’s National Team pitcher Fred Matsubara, she was named an assistant captain before the season started, and has become an academic All-Canadian through her studies.

“She has been a leader on our infield from the beginning, and she really has grown in her ability to lead by example, but also be a voice that her teammates can rely on in the tough moments, and certainly in the positive moments,” McKellar added.

“Jill has no shyness when it comes to celebrating her teammates and their success, and I really feel like that’s been the biggest difference, and the joy of coaching Jill this year was watching her grow in her leadership.”

“She has been a leader on our infield from the beginning.”

In between her provincial championship runs in high school, Matsubara spent two seasons playing travel ball with Saskatchewan’s 222 Fastpitch and the Minnesota Renegades National showcase team, where she toured around the U.S. for several tournaments.

Matsubara was a shortstop at the time of being recruited out West, but McKellar believed in her arm talent and versatility to make the switch to the hot corner when she arrived.

After committing eight fielding errors in her freshman campaign, Matsubara made huge strides with the glove this season, registering one fewer error while playing in 19 more contests.

“I’m much more confident than I was last year, at third base, moving around, talking to people, and offensively, I think I got rid of the freshman jitters, the freshman nerves, and was able to just kind of settle into my place and take my offensive outcomes as they come and go,” Matsubara said.

“I think, as a freshman, you’re always trying to prove yourself and get your play for your next opportunity, whereas the position I’m in now is more just use my opportunities to the best of my advantage to not only help myself but help my team and not focus so much on my outcomes, but what I can do for those around me.”

UBC is guaranteed two games in the double-elimination bracket. They open their World Series bid on Thursday against the College of Idaho, whom they’ve faced five times this season, going 2-3. The NAIA World Series goes on Wednesday, May 27.

Whatever happens, they are certain that the pressure is on whoever they are facing. UBC believes they’re playing with house money.

“We are unranked, we’re the Cinderella story, we’re the underdog, so the pressure is not in our dugout, so we might as well shift focus to having fun with each other, playing free, playing light,” said McKellar.

“Honestly, I think it was something the girls were showing, and then the coaches took advantage of rephrasing it and making it intentional.”

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