By Robb Fenton
The Lloydminster Pee Wee AA Twins left no doubt in anyone’s mind who the top team in the province is.
This past weekend, as the favourites and the hosts, the Twins hit Legion Ball Park and dominated all five opponents on their way to their second straight pee wee AA provincial title and a trip to the Western Canadian Championship.
“It’s great. This is the third time we’ve won with this group in the past three years and they get harder and harder to win after you’ve won. The teams keep coming at you and it’s always a different experience,” Twins coach David Keck said. “This time we were the favourites, we’ve never been the favourites coming into a tournament and sometimes that can be tough. This was a really great experience.”
For the second straight year, a number of Twins can celebrate a pee wee provincial title, something that doesn’t get old.
“I’m really excited, this is my third time and it feels really good,” Twins veteran Jerad Coghill said.
Keck admitted there was extra pressure on his team and at times it was noticeable.
Despite a few moments where the coaches had to relax their team, the weekend was pretty much perfect and ended with a convincing 9-4 win over the Swift Current Indians in the finals.
“There was a fair amount of pressure, the kids can feel the pressure. Every once in a while they start to hold the bats a little tight and become a little tense, but as soon as they get out on the field and make a play or get a hit, everyone starts to loosen up and we played some pretty good ball,” Keck said.
While it was a total team effort and it was hard to find something the Twins didn’t do well, Keck said the offence has been the biggest reason for their success this season and the provincial tournament was no different.
“We tend to score a lot of runs. We try to score early and often and throughout the year we’ve done that. We have a good record and it comes from our bats,” Keck said.
In five games, the lowest number of runs the Twins scored was nine and they even put up 24 against Martensville in their second round robin game.”
Coghill agreed with Keck, noting the bats really carried the team all year and this past weekend, but also commented on how strong the pitching was to support the offence.
“Our bats and our pitching were going good and we had a tonne of momentum,” he said,
The hard work, hours of practice and dedication all these kids have put in has been rewarded and that’s something Keck and his coaching staff are proud of.
“It feels really good. The parents can be very proud of these kids. They work hard, they’re disciplined. They do their warmups on their own, they stretch and get ready on their own,” Keck said. “These kids work hard and we really feel they deserve this win and they got it.”
The next step for the Twins will be a trip west to face Western Canada’s best pee wee baseball teams.
Having been there last year gives the Twins knowledge of what they can expect and what they need to do to be successful.
“Now we’re off to Surrey, B.C. We won (provincials) last year in Swift Current, which was kind of a surprise, so we went to Surrey as a bit of a learning experience,” Keck said. “This year we know what to expect, we know the calibre of ball and we know what it’s all about. So we feel good about our chances.”
“It’s my second time in a row, last year we didn’t do that well, but we’re planning on doing good this year,” Coghill explained.
The Western Canadian Championship runs from Aug. 12 to 15.