Sundre Minor Ball is having a good season so far, the organization’s president said last week.
Stacey Johnson said teams are out on the fields either playing games or practising during nearly every afternoon and evening of the week.
Although each team ideally usually schedules one game and one practice per week, that sometimes changes, she said, adding anyone who is interested can generally catch a ball game just about any evening at one of the three diamonds behind the schools.
“If it’s not a practice it’s a game and if it’s not a game, it’s a practice.”
But starting after about 4 p.m., there is almost always some activity that lasts until later in the evening, she said.
This year, there are four girls’ softball squads. There is a U-10 team with 12 players, two U-12 teams comprised of 17 players in all, and a U-19 team with 11 players, she said.
On the boys’ side, there are a total of eight teams: three rookie teams for a total of 30 players aged 8-9, two mosquito teams making up 20 players aged 10-11, two peewee teams amounting to 24 players aged 12-13, as well as a bantam squad with 13 players aged 14 and 15, she said.
“We don’t have a midget team but we would love to have a midget team,” she said, adding Sundre Minor Ball would also welcome U-14 and U-16 girls' teams.
The girls play under the Softball Alberta banner, while the boys play in the Chinook Baseball League under Baseball Alberta rules against other teams from the central part of the province, hence the difference between terms such as midget or U-19, she said.
All of the teams prepare their own individual season wind-up events and there are no local tournaments planned this year, although some of the teams will be competing in events out of town, she said.
While the opportunity to join any team has come and gone for the season, organizers are hoping to see the local minor ball association grow moving forward, she said.
“We’ll be looking for more players next year for sure.”
