Coach Dwight Heppner and several local ball players proudly joined Team Manitoba, and took part in a prep tournament at Canada Cup in Vancouver, where the team played exceptionally well, while also getting some great life lessons for the future.
"It was an incredible experience, for sure," Heppner says proudly. "The team did amazing. We finished our Round Robin 6-0, which was a huge statement, and a big confidence boost for all the girls, it was special. We ended up finishing 7-2 in the tournament, losing one of the games to Chinese Taipei, who went on to win the whole event. I couldn't be prouder of the girls, and all they were able to accomplish."
To put it into better context, Heppner broke down the event, the level of competition involved, and why it was so special to do what they did as a team. "It was our prep event for the Canada Summer Games coming in August. It was a week long event in Surrey, British Columbia. We left early on the Sunday, we got an exhibition game in against Team BC, then basically we had a game or two a day for the week. After the round robin, we got into bracket play, and that's where the double knockout starts. There were teams in the U19 pool that were amazing, like Chinese Taipei was there, a softball team from Israel was there, a lot of Washington teams, and then Team Ontario, Team Sask, and Team BC. It was a really good tournament, and the kids got to see some really good ball, plus they got to watch the Team Canada Olympic Team, which was a pretty amazing experience."
Going up against some incredibly talented team from all over the world, Heppner admits it was quite eye opening for some of the team, but they held their own, never feeling like they were outmatched. "Absolutely, I would say it was some of the best ball I've ever watched, or had the pleasure of coaching. Every team you meet up there, they all had top notch pitchers, elite hitters, and they don't make mistakes. That's what we wanted, we wanted to go out there and play against those teams that challenge us in every game. We definitely got what we needed."
Another special part to the whole event was that this team of incredible athletes got to spend some time together, Heppner says it was also to gain an understanding of what is yet to come. "It's one of the reasons we wanted to do it. We're going to be away at (Canada Games) for like ten days, living in dorms in a housing facility in the athletes village, and we tried to give them that experience during (the tournament). We wanted them to learn what it was going to be like rooming with the same three or four girls for a week, getting to do stuff together the whole time. Whether it was watching other games, or we went bowling one day, we just wanted them to bond. These girls don't get this opportunity, they all play on several different teams, so to see them come together and bond, they really gelled throughout the week, it was exactly what we needed."
For Heppner, it's not just preparing these players for the Canada Summer Games, but also giving them a look at what it might be like at college or university, especially preparing for a different life on the field. "I think the biggest thing for us is, we have 15 elite athletes out of Manitoba, and on their club teams in Manitoba, they're playing every inning of every game. They're always in it. On a team like this, we can give them an adjustment of, maybe their a bench player for a game and they have to come in late as a pinch runner or hitter. Some of those things came into light in a couple games where we needed a clutch hit. Those are the discussions we had with them, because when they move onto the next level, they may not be the top player on their team, but they will be needed. It's making sure they're mentally ready, all the time. I think that's very important for the next level, that they're always in the game, and prepared."
Being examples to the next generation of young girls in the game is something Heppner knows the local girls especially take a lot of pride in. "I think it's been great, you can see it within our organizations. (Sunday) I went to the U13 gold medal game and a bunch of our girls are here watching. That's because of what these girls were able to do as younger athletes, and moving up through the ranks. It promotes the sport in our area, and I think it's done an amazing job at this point of time in doing that. These girls always want to give back, they want to help. I'm hopeful that when they're done, they want to come back and be coaches, or help give back in ways to the organizations."
Dwight Heppner and Team Manitoba will have a few weeks of work leading up to the Canada Summer Games.