It's been a strong and fun year for the U11 AA Winkler squad, and coach Josh Krahn is happy with what's been and excited for what's to come.
"To be honest, we've just been trying to keep it loose," Krahn says about the days leading up to provincials starting. "We know what the task at hand is, we're focused on winning it all, but at the same time we think that if we keep it loose, we try to have fun, not take anything too seriously, we believe our team can hang with anybody. So, we're just trying to keep it like that."
At the start of the season, Krahn says there was a buzz and a sense of something special right away. "I'm not going to lie, I was blown away. I coached U11 A last year, and that was a learning curve. From my experience, 18U was my last year playing, so everyone kind of knew what they were doing, so going back to the basics and kind of learning how to play baseball. This team, everyone knew what they were doing, I was king of shocked. I didn't have to do a lot of coaching, but it's been a lot of fun. They're all very close, all very good buddies, all great to each other, and they all love to play baseball, which is the most important thing."
Having grown up in sports himself, Krahn knows how important those friendships and bonds are, and how they can last a life time. "It was very cool. I know I'm not that far removed from playing, and it brought me back to when I was growing up, and I'm still friends with guys that I played with. It was very cool to almost look back and remember when I was at that stage, and what that was like. Now, it's exciting to see these guys make friends that they'll have for a lifetime, and the memories that they'll make. It's a ton of fun."
As provincials start, Krahn says the team is in a good place, especially in key area. "I think it's our hitting. That would be our strong suit, but I don't think there's an area where we're overly weak. But, our hitting is unbelievable. I wasn't expecting us to be that good at hitting as a team, but everyone, one through ten, everyone can hit, everyone knows what their job is, and how to get it done. It's very impressive, so I'm really looking forward to the weekend and seeing what we can do against some tougher competition."
Hosting the U11 tier 1 and tier 2 provincials is a point of pride for the organizers, the community and Krahn says for the team, too. "It's a lot of fun, more so for the coaches than the players. I know the players always want to travel, they want to go to Brandon or wherever and stay in a hotel, but I think as they get older, they'll understanding hosting provincials is a cool thing. We really appreciate it and we're looking forward to showing off Winkler and how good of a baseball town this is. We want to show off to our fans, as well."
Making things extra special this year are the people around the team, according to Krahn. "The families have been great. I know a lot of them have played on other teams together, so they're familiar with each other. They've all been super nice to me, everyone gets along, and I know a lot of the kids that once they're done practice, they go to each other's houses, all hanging out. It's a family vibe we have as a team, and it's pretty cool."
Krahn says a big boost would be seeing the community come out to cheer on the boys as they go for a provincial medal. "It would mean everything. The more fans, the more people we have cheering us on when we're doing great things, it just motivates us more to keep going. When there's not as many people, maybe we don't feel appreciated, and it doesn't get us going. If we have fans there, it'll be an extra boost and hopefully, help us win it all."
The U11 AA Winkler team starts their provincial journey today at 11:30 a.m. and again at 5:00 p.m. On Saturday, they play at 11:00 a.m. and again at 5:00 p.m. Playoff Sunday schedule to be determined based off Friday and Saturday results.