The Prince George LTN Contracting Peewee Knights made history last weekend.
The Knights became the first team from the Prince George Minor Baseball Association to play in a triple-A provincial championship game when they hosted the 2013 Under-13 Peewee Triple-A B.C. Championship, which ended Sunday with the Cloverdale Spurs earning their second straight title with a 24-3 win over Vancouver Minor in the final.
Jim Swanson, coach of the Knights, said he thinks fans who took in some of the weekend action enjoyed the calibre of play where all teams but one went into the final day of the round robin with a chance to earn a spot in one of the two semifinal games.
"I think they've been surprised at the level that has been played here," said Swanson.
"I think they were surprised at how much this was like real baseball. The kids can make plays. The kids can hit the ball and steal bases and get people out. It's just a miniature version of the game, played by younger kids.
"I'm hoping that other - we're the first Prince George team to ever go triple-A and the first team to ever win a game in triple-A - groups coming up can take the same drive and aspire to the same levels," he added.
The Knights won their first ever provincial championship game when they beat the Victoria Red Eagles to open the tournament, and they were the first team to score runs against the powerhouse Spurs during the round robin. After falling behind early, the Knights rebounded against the Spurs bullpen and had something going in the sixth inning when they loaded the bases, but were unable to bring home the runs.
Swanson said it's difficult for a team based in Prince George to compete at the higher levels.
"We have a struggle to find games because we're so far away," said Swanson. "We can't play in the provincial league, it just doesn't logistically make sense, travel-wise and all the things involved. Every game that we get is golden to see that level of pitching and play."
The Knights finished the tournament with a 2-2 record before dropping the semifinal game 14-11 against Vancouver Minor. In their final round-robin game against the Nanaimo Pirates, where the winner would earn the final playoff spot in Pool A, the Knights played solid in a back and forth game to earn the 8-7 win in an extra inning.
"The biggest thing for us is we told the kids we had a huge advantage, because all other nine teams had to drive here, and we wanted to make that advantage as much ours as we could," said Swanson. "I think the kids took that to heart and did a really good job.
"They've come to realize they belonged here and it's possible playing with just a touch more confidence we could be playing in the final game rather than
watching," he added.
In the semifinal against
Vancouver, the Knights fell behind 10-2 after the Lower Mainland team bounced the ball through a couple of holes to record a big inning. But the Knights rebounded in the top of the sixth to take an 11-10 lead, with some gutsy base running and timely hits as they sent all nine batters to the plate, before succumbing 14-11.
"We've been down in other games throughout the season and found a way to come back," said Swanson. "We definitely knew we could find a way to gut it out."
The Knights prepared for their first foray into triple-A provincials by playing in tournaments in Kamloops and Kelowna in addition to hosting a three-game series at Spruce City Stadium against Vernon in June.
Of the 12 players on the Knights team 10 will move up to the bantam level next season. Only Tommy Kreitz and Soren Erricson will return to peewee.
"We're very proud of the kids, they played their hearts out," said Swanson. "There was some adversity on our team through the year, and in the tournament, but they just never quit."
Swanson said he's on the fence about whether he'll return to coaching next season, having walked away from his position with the B.C. Senior Baseball Association earlier this year and stepping down from the B.C. Minor Baseball Association board as well.
