ESTEVAN - A number of local softball teams had a strong showing at provincial tournaments this summer.
The Estevan Elite under-14 (U14) team, which was comprised of players from Estevan and area, competed at the U14 Open Southern Provincial Championships that took place Aug. 6-8 in Regina.
Estevan went 3-1 in the round robin, defeating the Weyburn Wild 17-10, Carlyle Treaty 4 17-2 and the Okanese Thunderstrikers 15-0, but losing to the Swift Current Sonic 11-6.
The 3-1 record left them in first place with a semifinal matchup against the Gravelbourg Lightning the final day of the tournament. Coach Devin Aspinall said the Elite started slow and trailed early but turned it on late for an 11-7 victory, which earned them a berth in the final.
The championship game was a rematch with the Sonic and although the Elite battled hard and had the lead early, the Sonic bats were just too much, leaving Estevan with the silver medal after a 17-7 final.
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The Estevan U19 Elite went 0-4 at their provincial tournament, also from Aug. 6-8.
Coach Shawn Madsen said two teams they played had very strong pitching. Against the other two, Estevan couldn’t muster offence.
Scores for the tournament were not available. But Madsen the scores were not indicative of the games.
Still, the Elite had a blast and the whole team was grateful to be part of a tournament experience again.
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The South East Sun Devils U16 team won the bronze medal at provincials this year, thanks to what coach Morgan Walter said was their best showing of the year.
The South East entry started the round robin with an 8-7 victory over the Regina Saints, which Walter said gave them a lot of momentum heading into the second day of provincials.
“It was a big win for our girls, and we just had a lot of energy, and we’re pumped up for our second day round robin games,” said Walter.
In their two games on the second day, the South East won both times and the mercy rule was invoked. The Sun Devils won 16-9 in five innings against the Regina Aces, and 10-0 in four innings over the Saskatoon Phantoms.
The South East squad was the top seed in their pool entering the playoffs, but lost 6-2 to the Saskatoon Raiders in the semifinal round. They beat the Saints 6-5 in the bronze medal game.
“It’s something to look back on for a long time now,” said Walter.
The Sun Devils played as a team throughout the weekend. It took all 14 of their players to win those games.
“If it wasn’t for us carrying 14 on our roster, I’m not sure if we could have won all of those games,” said Walter.
The Sun Devils won their first two games of league playoffs, beating the Regina Royals 8-7 on July 26 and the Saints 13-7 the following day. Then they lost 10-3 to the Moose Jaw Ice on July 29, putting them into a must-win game against the Lumsden Cubs, but they dropped that one as well by a 7-0 score.
“It was a huge accomplishment for us, once again, as a new team and playing in a new league. We ended up placing higher in the league than we went in ranked. We went in ranked fourth and ended up finishing third,” said Walter. a
