The 100 Mile 'N' Hour Squirt Rep team topped off a great season with 13 wins and nine losses by placing fifth at the 2013 U12 Softball Provincial Championships in Clearwater, July 5-7.
They had a tough start in Game 1 against a strong North Surrey team, losing 12-2, with catcher Ryan Allan capturing the team’s MVP award.
The team was hot as the 25 C weather in game 2, taking out Merritt, 38-12. 100 Mile held a 12-5 lead after the first three innings, with every player on the roster registering at least one hit. With the score at 17-11 in the fifth inning, the team exploded for 21 runs. Brayden Glen had four hits and scored four times to win the team’s MVP honour.
Game 3 on Saturday morning had 100 Mile challenging the tournament favourites and eventual champions Cloverdale Hurricanes.
Cloverdale took the lead with five runs in the first inning but strong pitching from Tanner Hooper and Hayden Prodnuk, along with good defence by Marshall Tessaro slowed Cloverdale's pace for the rest of the game.
Allan hit a grand slam to give 100 Mile a brief 7-5 lead, but the team found itself down 8-7 in the bottom of the sixth inning where Cloverdale scored an additional two run to secure its victory.
“The kids took this loss hard,” says 100 Mile coach Cale Tessaro. “It was the best game they played all year.”
A round-robin win in game 4 versus South Surrey put 100 Mile as fifth seed in the double-knockout playoff round, with the first game against Clearwater, which they won 13-8.
They met Surrey again for round 2 on Sunday morning, taking a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but eventually losing 14-2. Their final match with Fleetwood ended in a 12-4 loss.
“Tanner Hooper pitched great for us all weekend long and Ryan Allan got great praise from all teams for his great back catching. The team played really well and never gave up all weekend,” says Tessaro.