KAREN Baugh, president of Netball Jamaica (NJ), says the federation is confident its development squad can defend the country’s netball title at the 2026 Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games.

The games are scheduled for July 24 to August 8 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Jamaica’s Sunshine Girls won the gold medal in netball at the CAC Games during the 2023 tournament held in San Salvador. They defeated Trinidad and Tobago in the final to claim the historic inaugural championship, while Saint Vincent and the Grenadines took home the bronze.

“The development squad had played in the recent Elite League as the JACE Riders. They have done very well; they had several close games, and I believe they have won one,” Baugh said.

“This is an important step for our players’ pathway; they got to participate at the highest level we can afford here in an organised competition,” Baugh told the Jamaica Observer.

The pathway got stronger last week when Kendel, part of the Cari-Med Group, came on board as the Sunshine Girls’ official nutrition, personal care, pain and vitamin partner, in a two-year deal valued at $20 million cash alongside products.

The partnership will support the Sunshine Girls’ preparations and participation at major tournaments which include the CAC Games; the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland; the 2027 Netball World Cup in Sydney; and the Horizon Series in November.

Under the deal, Kendel products will fuel meals, Confidence feminine care will handle personal care, Cetamol will manage pain, and Vigorton plus Hemafed vitamins will back strength and endurance.

“We are really happy that we put pen to paper and that the Cari-Med and Kendel brands are now part of Netball Jamaica,” Baugh said.

“We are hoping that this will be a partnership that will continue for many, many years to come. We have to give the girls proper nutrition and so, going forward, we know that a part of that expense will be covered by Kendel and the brands they represent. The girls will also get support for vitamins for pain care,” the president added.

Baugh said the JACE Riders squad being prepared for the CAC Games features mostly juniors, a few seniors, and several players from last year’s Under-21 World Youth Cup team. She believes they can defend the gold which Jamaica won last time with a more mixed team.

“With what we are seeing is that they will have a good chance at the CAC games to take home the gold medal. We estimated that some of these players will step up to the senior team, but they are doing pretty well so far and we are very pleased with their progress so far,” she stated.

On the subject of pressure faced as defending champions, Baugh said the round robin format should make the winner clear.

“Yes, there’s always pressure once there’s a regional competition; we always say that we should be in the finals, if not win the competition. This competition will not have finals, it will be played in a round robin format, and from there the winner will be pretty obvious.

“[What we feel is] not real pressure, because we know that we are higher ranked than the rest of the region. But we have strategically decided to send our development squad; we are hoping that they will step up to the plate and do well,” Baugh said.