Kaitlyn Ross is a member of Canada's women's national baseball team, winning bronze at the 2024 Women’s Baseball World Cup. The two-sport threat who is also the starring goaltender for Mount Royal University, and recently won ice hockey silver at the 2025 World University Games.
Kaitlyn Ross is a member of Canada's women's national baseball team, winning bronze at the 2024 Women’s Baseball World Cup. The two-sport threat who is also the starring goaltender for Mount Royal University, and recently won ice hockey silver at the 2025 World University Games.
Fresh off winning a silver medal at the 2025 International University Sports Federation (FISU) Winter World University Games in Torino, Italy, goaltender Kaitlyn Ross is still reflecting on her experiences.
“It was unreal, it’s kind of hard to put into words,” said Ross, with a smile on her face. “It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, for sure.”
She appeared in two games and did not allow a goal, heavily contributing to Team Canada’s 3-0 win against Japan and 16-0 win against Chinese Taipei.
While she says it is “a little bitter” to take home the silver medal rather than gold, she found the tournament was a unique experience to evaluate the differences in play from the participating teams.
“It’s always interesting to go to an international event and see the different styles of play from the different countries,” said Ross. “To also see where Canada fits in on that, and see our style of play and how we played in that tournament.”
The netminder has now returned to Calgary to return to the Mount Royal University (MRU) Cougars, where she has only allowed 16 goals in the 12 games she has played so far. She has a 10-2 record with a .946 save percentage and 1.22 goals against average, placing her in the top five nationally in both categories.
What makes Ross different from other athletes is that she has her eyes on another prize.
She is also a catcher with Canada’s national women’s baseball team, winning bronze at the 2024 Women’s Baseball World Cup.
She does not remember a time where she just played one sport, in fact she can remember being as young as five years old playing both hockey and softball, which has now catipulated her to playing both sports nationally as a university student.
“Playing for team Canada definitely helped me and how I handle pressure, and my leadership experience, that helped me play hockey for team Canada too,” said Ross.
She does find similarities in being both a catcher and goaltender, especially surrounding her catching glove.
“A catcher is very similar to a goaltender, so the reflexes and everything is very similar,” said Ross. “I will find myself in [hockey] practice doing something and my goalie coach will ask ‘what are you doing?’ and I’m like ‘I don’t know!”
Ross credits how she has maintained a healthy balance between transitioning from one sport to another when the seasons change.
“I prioritize whatever sport I am in for that season,” said Ross. “If it is hockey, my focus is hockey, and if it is baseball, my focus is baseball.”
A big part of her transition between sports has been time off, which she values greatly.
“That month or two after hockey ends and baseball starts, I soak that up to its fullest,” said Ross. “I rehab and try to keep my body at the best health it can be.”
While playing for Canada was a big moment in this season, Ross is already looking at bringing home a national championship. She won the U Sports Women’s Hockey Championship in 2023 with the Cougars.
“We know it’s not going to be easy, but from day one that has been our goal,” said Ross.