In the end, the powerful bats of the Prince George Knights were just too much.
The kids from the northern capital ran the table on Tuesday from Nechako Park claiming the BC Minor Baseball 15U AA Provincial Title over the Cowichan Valley Mustangs 15-7.
After a rapid fire start to the game, which saw the score at 9-7 after the first two innings, the Knights settled down on the defensive side of the ball thanks to the effort by Preston Weightman who shut down the Mustangs offense thanks to some solid relief pitching.
He told MyPGNow.com the time commitment and sacrifice the team put in to get to this point was well worth it.
“What’s going through my mind is all of the work we have put in all season for this day, coming through and shutting it down to get this win.”
“I think it was really good that I had the chance to come in and strike out, I mean, I had an impact on us winning this game.”
Weightman actually accomplished that feat in more ways than one smacking a solo home run earlier in the game.
“I finally got a good barrel today when I hit my home run and I knew I had to stay confident because I would get my chance.”
“I feel this is something we’ve been doing really well this tournament is coming out strong in the first inning and then shutting it down getting the confidence boost to come our way.”
The victory feels especially sweet for Knights head coach Curtis Sawchuk who was a little lost for words after receiving his gold medal.
“I have never been more proud of these individuals because we have come so far and to actually show out on your home turf in front of your home fans is huge, these guys deserve it and they’ve worked hard. We pushed them to the brink where they didn’t want to play baseball anymore, we pushed them to see how far they could go and they responded very well.”
“They showed up the whole tournament, I have nothing to complain about because we played our best baseball all year.”
So what made this team so special?
“It’s the family kind of mentality that we have, these guys are brothers, we are all a family and I love them the same way I love my own kids and that goes for all the coaching staff. They are one close knit group and that’s what makes the difference between a championship team and a team that just does well,” added Sawchuk.
Sawchuk who was a longtime player in Prince George is now giving back much like his assistants Doug Clark and Justin Fillion but admits it can be a lot more nerve-wracking.
“It’s a lot harder being on the other side, you know, you have no control over the game and the biggest thing is putting them in the best position to succeed and it’s up to you to make that decision.”
The Knights move on to Chilliwack for the Baseball BC Provincials, which begin on Thursday.