Back Row: Jim Smith (coach), Carmen Fotheringham (assistant coach) Allie Huck, Addy Driedger, Thea Voth, Madelyn Nikkel, Reese Fotheringham, Myla Froese, Jenn Smith (coach) & Jamal Cleaver (manager)
Middle Row. Kaitlyn Baldwin, Kinley Cleaver, Taylor Roller & Abigail Nelson
Front Row: Peyton Ross & Claire Thiessen
The Central Charge U13, U15 & U17 teams brought home medals from Softball Manitoba AA Provincial Championships in late July.
“Overall, I’m very happy and proud of how much time and effort these teams put in,” texted Central Charge president Keith Graham. “It’s a bit of a short season, so coaches and players put a lot of work into making sure they are ready to go by provincials. To be able to medal in three out of four age categories is something very special and that show how strong our Central region is as a whole.”
“I think what makes this program so successful is the fact that there are multiple towns who put a lot of work in their “A” ball programs,” noted Graham. “Our area does a very good job at developing young athletes whether it’s throughout the winter during skills camps or getting going early in the spring. The numbers are strong though out the region which brings us a lot of different talent at our AA program. We like to host camps later in the winter to get everyone going. It also helps us determine what our numbers will look like for tryouts. This year we had around 130 girls come to try out for four different age categories. I hope to see this program continue to grow the way it is and can’t wait to see what next year brings us.”
Charge U13 Purple went undefeated at the Provincials in Brandon. Charge defeated Southwest Strikers 16-1; Eastman Blaze (Sawatsky) 7-6; Westman South Storm 7-6; Manitoba Reapers 18-3 and Interlake Maroons 7-6 in pool play. Central beat Bonivital 10-3 in the semifinal and then rallied from a seven-run deficit and rallied for a 16-15 victory over Parkland in the gold medal game. In a relatively short season, the team practiced hard and relentlessly improved. Players on the team came from Portage, Oakville, Carman, Morden, Winkler and Altona. Although from many communities, the players came together and played as one throughout the provincial tournament.
Back Row: Matt Victor (coach), Patrick Hildebrand (coach), Avery Mangin, Cali Hillier, Shayna Driedger, Madeline Bergen, Blaine Wiebe, Brielle Thiessen, Ella Victor & Jason Wolfe (coach)
Middle row: Payton Manness, Nevada Wrixon, Presley Wolfe & Ava Bonik
Front row: Amelia Wytinck & Kali Hildebrand
Charge U15 also captured gold at the Provincials in Brandon. Central, who lost to the Westman Storm in the final of the AA Showcase in Hamiota in mid-June, defeated Eastman Blades 7-2; Bonivital Bolts 18-0; Manitoba Reapers 8-0 and lost their round robin finale 8-2 to Westman Heat. Shayna Dreidger homered as Charge beat Westman Storm 10-3 in the semifinal. Brielle Thiessen tossed a one-hit shutout as Central blanked Westman Fury 13-0 in the gold medal game.
Back Row: Erin Peters (coach), Kayla Nikkel, Madison Guthrie, Austin Wiebe, L.M, Raegan Peters, Ivy Hildebrand & Keith Graham (coach)
Front Row: Megan Preteau, Samara Hildebrand, Carys Hamilton, Sophie Cenerini, Hannah Graham, Alexa Desrochers & Ella Harkness
Charge U17 earned silver at the Provincials in Morden. Central defeated Bonivital Bolts 8-3; Westman Heat 2-1; Eastman Blaze 14-7; Parkland Power 7-0 and Manitoba Reapers 14-6. Charge outscored Bonivital 8-6 in the semifinal and then dropped a 10-2 decision to Westman Heat in the gold medal game.