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The Boissevain Centennials have won the last three South West Baseball League championships and manager Jay Pringle believes the group can do it again this year.
Heading into his 14th year with the Centennials, Pringle says the excitement of a new season never gets old. "It's good, we're always anxious and looking forward to it. We always seem to have quite a bit of success in ball, so everyone gets antsy when the weather gets nicer. Thankfully this year, it was pretty warm for our first game."
Looking back over the years, Pringle says it's been amazing to see the program grow in Boissevain and this year, they'll be celebrating in a special way. "We're doing a big alumni event this year, we're doing a golfing weekend. We have a game on the Friday night and a golf tournament Saturday. We're expecting 160-180 guys between golf and just coming out for the day and supper. There's a long history in town with baseball in general and the Centennials are a big part of the reason for that. It keeps the young kids involved and wanting to play ball. The success we've had is because of every single guy that has played or help organizing and we're very lucky to have that and continue that as best as we can."
Winning three straight championships has been a highlight for Pringle but the way the team's have gone about it also stands out to the veteran baseball manager. "Whether it's ball or hockey or any sport, when you win the previous year, you get the other teams' best coming at you, they really want to beat you. We've been very lucky, we have a ton of depth that helps a lot, we can shift guys in and out to adapt. Over the last couple of years, we've had two young guys or more just jump in and really fit along with the older guys that have the experience who help out. We can shift guys in and out, we can give it our best and defend."
Being with the Centennials has always meant a lot to Pringle personally. "I started when I was young. There was kind of a stretch where they went through some tough times with some short numbers. Myself and Junior Brake, he's still our head coach. Josh Wood, Skylar Canada and Dallas Foote help out with the organizing, we try and keep it straight that way and keep the ship rolling."
Pringle is quick to point out how the community of Boissevain has been a huge part of the championship runs but also the program overall. "It's crazy, everyone says they have the best fans but we truly do have the very best. We're a couple hundred fans a night, they crowd around the outfield fence and fill the bleachers. We wouldn't be anywhere near the spot we are without them. Everyone loves to play in front of people and it helps a ton to have them there every night, no matter the weather, they are there to support and it's huge for us."
Along with building the program, the Centennials have also built up some wonderful rivalries with other teams, something Pringle believes brings out the best in everyone. "A couple of years ago, there was a north/south, so you saw the north and the south in the finals which kick started a rivalry for a bit. The last couple of years, it's gone back to one big division. The last few, we've played Deloraine a couple times and Wawanesa a couple of times in the finals. When you're 20 minutes away or 40 minutes away and you're playing in the finals, the crowds get bigger and the rivalries get better, especially when you play the same team a couple of times in a row."
Starting this season off on a positive note, Pringle says he can see some magic within his ball club and even though they will be the hunted, they are ready for the challenge. "We feel good, we're lucky, we basically have everyone back plus some young guys that played significant roles in the playoffs last year ready to take a step for us this year. They'll be bigger parts of the teams, they'll be around it more with being done high school ball, so we'll get more out of those guys. There's always a challenge when everyone is gunning for you but we're believing we can keep doing that we've been doing and continue with the success that we've had."
The Boissevain Centennials will next see action on Sunday, June 1st as they host Hamiota at 6:00 p.m.