Taylor Nearad, Maddie Hansen, Lexi Kinnaird and Morgan Frost of Kirkwood were four of the top junior college softball players in the United States the past two years.

Now they hope to shine on an international stage as well.

Nearad, Hansen, Kinnaird and Frost are members of the NJCAA National  Team that is playing in the Canada Cup International Softball Championship in Surrey, British Columbia. Kirkwood Coach Joe Yegge is a member of the coaching staff for the NJCAA all-stars.

The tournament begins today and will run through July 17.

Nearad, a center fielder, was a two-time All-American and two-time National Player of the Year at Kirkwood. She hit .516 with 19 homers and 80 RBIs this season.

Hansen, a catcher, also was a two-time All-American. She hit .534 with 19 homers and 92 RBIs this year.

Kinnaird, a pitcher, compiled a 30-4 record and 1.47 ERA with 285 strikeouts. She led the nation in wins, strikeouts and shutouts (12) and was named an All-American.

Frost, a left fielder, hit .495 with eight homers and 64 RBIs and was named an All-American in 2016.

Nearad will attend Iowa State, Hansen is headed to North Dakota State, Kinnaird is going to Wisconsin-Green Bay and Frost will play at Missouri Western.

The NJCAA National Team features 18 of the top junior college players in the United States. They were all sophomores this past season.

The NJCAA all-stars are scheduled to play their first two games on Saturday night.