        The Â鶹ÊÓƵeast A's Bantam AA baseball team represented well at Tier 1 Provincials in Unity this weekend. After the completion of league play on Tuesday in Swift Current in the Regina AAA league, the A's did not let their poor league standing hinder the effort at Provincials
                The team is made up of only three second-year players and eight rookies from all over the southeast corner of the Province: Kipling, Whitewood, Wawota, Carlyle, Oxbow, Carnduff, and Bienfait. Only one player was from Alameda, where the team is based out of and where Head Coach Trent Dorrance began this team three years ago. Dorrance held tryouts this season and was very motivated to pluck talent from anywhere to create a group of players that compete at the highest level in their 14& under age division. Dorrance recruited assistant coaches Murray Lyons, Lloyd Bendtsen, and Kevin Perkins and they worked hard all season on skill development and baseball sense.
                On Friday, the team opened provincial tourney play with a game against the Sask5 Giants. Cade Bendsten started on the mound and struck out 8 before Kieren Stewart took over in the 6th inning when the A's were in the lead 8-5. Kaiden Lyons batted 3 for 4 and Jesse Schill smoked 2 doubles. Noah Perkins and Carter Beattie batted 2 for 4. Game ended with Kieren throwing out a runner stealing 3rd for final score of 8-7.
                Saturday morning the A's took an early lead against the Muenster Redsox with Bryson Andres on the mound and score was 4-0 after 5 innings when Ben Thompson took over. They ran into some trouble in the 6th with a couple errors and the Redsox scored 4 runs and then scored the go ahead run on a baulk. In the bottom of the 7th, with the A's in scoring position, Noah Perkins got caught stealing to end the game. Final score was 5-4.
                Saturday afternoon against the Lloydminster Twins, the boys from the Â鶹ÊÓƵeast had a slow start. After 2 complete innings they were down 3-0 and had left 4 runners stranded. Kaiden Lyons got the start and was steady in the strike zone. Bryson Andres cracks a double and gets 2 run RBI after the 3rd inning and Noah drives in the tying run in the 4th. Jesse Schill left the game due to ankle injury. In the 6th inning, the Redsox scored 3 more runs and Bryce Gibson left the game with an injury after a dive in the infield. After 6 innings the A's were down 6-3 and Noah Perkins took over the mound. In the top of the 7th the A's bats lit up and they took the lead 7-6. In the Bottom of the 7th Perkins struck out two but then walked in the go ahead run on a baulk. With the game tied at 7's the extra inning was played with international rules. The A's rallied hard and everyone hit. Kieren Stewart and Noah Perkins both hit double RBI's and Carter Beattie also hit an RBI. In the bottom of the extra inning, Noah Perkins struck out the first batter and then Kaiden Lyons caught a line drive to third and made an easy double play. The A's earned their way to the semi finals.
               The A's got an early jump in the game against the Prince Albert Royals. 10-0 after 2 innings with Ben Thompson on the mound. Levi Cooley and Jesse Schill closed the game. Ryland Maier with a triple to start off the hot streak. The Royals bounced back in the 6th inning battled hard. Final score was 12-8 for the A's!
               Gold medal game was a rematch against Lloydminster and Jesse Schill fought through an ankle injury to take the mound. He managed 8 strikeouts before Kieren Stewart took over in the 5th inning. Lloyd scored one run in the first and the A's answered with 2 runs in the 2nd. By the 5th inning the score was 5-2 for Lloyd and then the A's loaded up the bases for in the 5th for Jessie Schill and Ben Thompson to both get double RBI 's. The back and forth continued and the A's were still leading 8-7 after 6 complete. A 2 run home run in the 7th inning changed the game. The A's left the tying run stranded on first base when the game ended. Final score was 9-8, sending Lloydminster to Western Canadian Championships in Kamloops, BC.
               The Â鶹ÊÓƵeast A's were complimented by Baseball Sask for their sportsmanship and class throughout the weekend. The silver medal was well earned.
