Early deficits and late-inning rallies were common for Team South East in softball during the Estevan 2016 Saskatchewan Summer Games.
Team South East went 1-3 to finish sixth during the tournament, which was staged from July 28 to 30 at the Pleasantdale Softball Diamonds. The host entry trailed early in each of their games, and managed to win only once, a 13-11, extra innings decision over Team South West in their opening game.
The South East trailed 8-5 through six innings in the opening game, but rattled off four runs in the top of the seventh to lead 9-8. Team South West scored once in the bottom of the stanza to tie the game, but the South East scored four more times in the eighth to win.
In their next game, South East lost 4-2 to Regina. Regina scored twice in the first and third innings, and while the South East was able to get single runs in the fourth and the sixth frames, they couldn’t plate the tying runs.
Their third game was another 4-2 loss to Rivers West. Once again, the South East fell behind 4-0, this time after five innings. They scored twice in the top of the sixth to cut the deficit in half, and appeared to add another, but the umpire’s call was reversed, negating the third run.
“I thought that was a huge turning point in that game,” said coach Jody Waloshin.
The loss left the South East in the fifth-place game against Prairie Central. The host team scored one in the top of the first inning, but Prairie Central scored four in the bottom of the first, and six more in the bottom of the second to chase two South East pitchers from the game.
“We tried to get all our pitchers involved in our games, and those were the last two pitchers who, pretty much, didn’t see a lot of time for pitching,” said Waloshin. “They were pitching great, but the batters for the other team just found the holes.”
Team South East turned to Taris Rae of Carlyle to pitch, and she allowed just one walk in the final four innings.
The local team chipped away at the lead. They scored three times in the fourth and twice in the fifth to make the score 10-6. And after they were blanked in the sixth, the first three hitters in the top of the seventh reached base.
But Prairie Central retired the next three batters to end the game.
Waloshin was pleased with the way his team stayed together, and celebrated each other’s accomplishments.
“It wasn’t just one person making the big difference, it was everyone,” he said.
He noted that Rae and Shanelle Rioux of Estevan were outstanding on the mound throughout the tournament, and minimized the number of runs allowed.
Team South East had 14 players from eight communities, including four from Estevan. Mackenzie Skuce was among the Estevan players on the team. She thought it was a fantastic experience to compete in the Games at home.
“I was really excited to be picked for the team,” said Mackenzie, who has been playing softball since she was eight years old. “I didn’t think I had that good of a chance, so this was cool.”
She believes the team came together quickly. The first practice was tough, because she didn’t know anybody, but the sense of unfamiliarity didn’t last long.
“It felt like we had been playing for years with them, instead of just a couple months,” she said. “They’re close friends.”
Team Saskatoon wound up taking the gold in softball with a 3-2 victory over Team Lakeland in extra innings. Regina edged Rivers West 6-5 to win the bronze medal.
