The Innisfail U15 Hawks girls softball team gave a valiant effort but ultimately had their season come to an end at the Junior Little League Canadian National Championship.
If they won the tournament, which ran July 26-28 in Victoria, B.C., they would represent Canada at the Little League Softball World Series in Washington.
However, head coach Ray Bergeron explained in an email his team lost in the semi-final 10-4 after facing a strong pitcher from Calgary. With the loss, the girls won the bronze medal finishing third in the Canadian National Championship.
During round-robin play, the Hawks lost to a team from Victoria 10-2 but bounced back against Calgary beating their fellow Alberta team 25-12.
“This was an extremely well-run tournament. The field was beautiful and meticulously maintained. Every game had a four-person umpire crew and they were excellent. While we didn’t get the result we were looking for, the girls got to see a whole new level of play and learned a lot. We will carry this into next season and will only get better,” Bergeron said.
He added his team needed to hit much better as the level of pitching at the tournament was excellent. Strikeouts were an issue and other than in one game they didn’t produce enough offence.
Leading the way on offence for the Hawks was Gracie Mydland who had five hits, five RBIs, four runs scored, and four stolen bases. Sophie Bergeron also had a great tournament with four hits, five RBIs, four runs scored, and three stolen bases. Brenna Taylor had two hits, and four RBIs with a .400 batting average.