The Greek Olympic softball team will include an Iowa Stater’s face when the team takes the field for this year’s Olympic Games in Athens.

ISU pitcher Kristen Karanzias will be one of the 16 softball players from the United States participating in this summer’s Games for the host nation.

“I’m really excited,” Karanzias said of her selection to the team. “We’re Greek citizens who are attempting to better what [native Greeks] have [in the way of the sport].”

By rule, the host nation of an Olympiad is allowed to field a team in every sport during that particular Olympiad. This allows Greece to participate in each event during this summer’s Olympics without needing to qualify.

Softball, as well as baseball, is a relatively new sport in Greece. Karanzias said softball has only been played in Greece for three or four years. As a result, the Greek government is allowing anyone with Greek ancestry as far back as his or her great-grandparents to obtain dual citizenship and play for Greece this summer.

Karanzias, whose great-grandparents emigrated to the United States from Greece, said she read a newspaper article in USA Today last summer about the formation of a Greek softball team.

“They were looking for women with Greek heritage to play, so I contacted the coach,” Karanzias said.

The team was put together last May and played exhibition games in Hawaii, Italy and Greece last summer.

Karanzias said she will leave Tuesday to join the team and play exhibition games against a collection of Amateur Softball Association All-Star teams.

The team then travels to Amsterdam to play exhibition games against the Czech Republic and Germany before leaving for Athens.

It will be the first time the team has been together since March, when Greece played in the International Softball Tournament in Athens.

Karanzias appeared in 13 games for the Cyclones as a sophomore, giving up 55 hits while striking out 23 batters in 37.2 innings pitched.

“I’m looking forward to representing Greece,” Karanzias said. “That’s my heritage. It’s an honor for me to do this.”

The Opening Ceremonies for the Summer Olympic Games are Aug. 13.