After going all season without losing a single game, the Central Alberta Baseball League (CABL) Stettler Midget baseball team hosted the league championship game on home turf Wednesday, June 24.
There, while facing the Midget team from Lacombe, Stettler continued the trend, winning 21-5 against the visitors, claiming the league championship title.
“There was no mercy rule because it was a championship game,” coach Jeff Lee said. “It went all seven innings.”
The Stettler team's 10 season wins was double that of the second-place team from Lacombe, who only had five all season.
This pitted the Stettler team against the Edmonton Rural and Recreational Basbeball League (ERRBL) champions from Devon for unofficial bragging rights.
However, because the Devon team's players had scattered already for vacation, the team was unable to gather enough players to play, and so Stettler faced the second-place team, Northeast Zone Ligo Lago – which had only lost to Devon by two runs, Lee said.
The game was held on Telus Field in Edmonton on June 28, and the Stettler players came back after trailing for the first three innings, eventually winning the game 16-10.
“All the kids want their turn (on a field like that),” Lee said of the stadium. The team cycled through every pitcher so they all had a chance to see action during the game.
Stettler Peewee hosts tiering games
The Stettler Peewee AA team stepped up to the plate when Calgary couldn't host the most recent weekend of games as planned, hosting games on Saturday, June 27 and Sunday June 28 at West Stettler Park.
On Saturday, the Stettler Peewee Storm hosted the Red Deer Braves 2, beating them 17-7.
After the Saturday games were done, Stettler Regional Fire and Rescue came and sprayed down the field with water, ensuring the next day's games wouldn't be a “dustbowl,” coach Kevin Burkard said.
Early Sunday morning, the Storm got off to a rough start with the Olds Spitfires, fumbling balls, walking batters, or missing the ball entirely.
The Spitfires took advantage of the Storm's early morning fumbles to steal their way to several runs, with Stettler ending down 8-2 after three innings.
After a quick pep talk and a chance to shake off the few innings of rough play, the Storm regrouped and woke up, chipping away at the Spitfire's lead to eventually win 15-11.