The stage has now been set and it will be a re-match of last season's SESBL championships between the Willowbrook Royals and Yorkton Junior Cardinals.
"Absolutely (I'm excited), offers Jeremy Hrebenik. The Willowbrook Royals' player/coach said his team didn't have the greatest start to the 2011 season but none of that matters now because they are one of two teams fighting for the title.
"We want to give it our best. We are playing some good ball right now."
Hrebenik's Royals just came off a 2-0 series sweep of the Canora Supers. Canora finished four points (two victories) ahead of the Royals in the regular season.
The series should be interesting to see play out; the same two teams went at it last season in the South East Senior Baseball League (SESBL) finals, won by Yorkton. Hrebenik pointed out that of Yorkton's two losses this entire season, one was against his Royals (a 10-4 loss on July 6) and the only other Yorkton loss came against Canora.
This year's league final also has a possibly huge break in the schedule.
With the finals opener slated to have started last night in Yorkton, the Junior Cardinals' plate will be as full as the King of Scotland's during a feast. Yorkton plays Willowbrook to start the finals. Two and a half days later, they take on the top Junior-level cities in the province as the Junior AAA Provincials are held from Friday through Sunday in Yorkton.
Willowbrook's Hrebenik says it could be an advantage depending on how you look at it.
He suggested that Yorkton's pitching is going to have an awful lot of work in the next week or so. He added that the break in the schedule should give his team a chance to add to the one and only practice they've been able to hold going way back to the start of the season.
"We mighty be able to get a practice in, says Hrebenik.
He adds that he likes his team's chances against a powerful, younger Cardinals squad that will likely have energy to burn at the most important time of the season, he said.
"I like our chances. I think we're at our best when we score early."
Gary Lamb, co-coach of Yorkton, said Willowbrook isn't a team to be taken lightly.
"They won't lie down and pass it up. They're a good ball team right now."
Last year, Yorkton won the series 3-0 with wins of 4-2, 4-3 and 5-2.
