Background
She was born in Regina, Saskatchewan to Emillien and Edith (Evans) Berthiaume, and married her childhood sweetheart, Bill Wicken, after he left the navy at the end of World World War World War II
She was born in Regina, Saskatchewan to Emillien and Edith (Evans) Berthiaume, and married her childhood sweetheart, Bill Wicken, after he left the navy at the end of World World War World War II
Listed at 5" 2", 115 pounds, Wicken batted and threw left handed. Elizabeth was one of the 57 players born in Canada to join the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in its twelve years history. She entered the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in 1945 with the Grand Rapids Chicks, playing for them one and a half year before joining the Muskegon Lassies in the 1946 midseason.
A good defensive outfielder with a strong throwing arm, she batted a.182 batting average in 117 games and reached the playoffs with Grand Rapids in 1945.
In four postseason games, she went 4-for-15 for a.267 average. Following her baseball career, Elizabeth returned to Canada and worked as a newspaper office manager and a school secretary for many years.
Her 60 year loving marriage lasted until Bill"s death in 2005. Since 1988 she is part of Women in Baseball, a permanent display based at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York, which was unveiled to honor the entire All-American Girls Professional Baseball League rather than individual baseball personalities.
She also gained an honorary induction into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998.
Elizabeth Berthiaume Wicken died in Vancouver, Canada, at the age of 83 years.