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| Michael pitching for the Junior Dust Devils C. Davis photos |
Pincher Creek's Junior Dust Devils hosted Cardston's Cougars at Sproule Field on the evening of Wednesday, April 30. It was the home opener for the Dust Devils, and the weather was perfect for it, sunny skies and a light breeze favouring the event.
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| Ethan connects |
Michael performed admirably as the Dust Devils' starting pitcher, surrendering the mound after 90 pitches to Deloy and Nick.
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| Nick pitching for the Dust Devils |
These two teams were remarkably well matched, as evidenced by the final score at the end of seven innings. The Cougars went home the victors with 13 runs to 12 for the Dust Devils. The Devils made some costly errors in the latter part of the game, but it really was anyone's game throughout, and a rematch between these teams is to be highly anticipated.
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| Brandon approaches third |
Good sportsmanship was evident from both dugouts as well, with coaches cheering good plays regardless of the color of the player's uniform.
According to Dust Devils coach Bryan Mackenzie the team is "Small in numbers, with different ages and stuff, but we've got a nice mix. At this stage in the game, you take what comes, we're a small town and we're competing with lacrosse, and soccer, to get numbers."
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| Parker batting for the Cougars |
The Dust Devils have two players from Claresholm to round out their 11-player roster. Unfortunately, there's no minor team in the Crowsnest Pass this year, so the competition has dwindled a bit.
"For what we lack in numbers, these kids make up for in heart. These kids have got big time heart. That's what I've always stressed. It's not always the score at the end of the game, but how you get there."
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| Zach heading home for Cardston |
Coach Mackenzie was pragmatic about the one-point loss to Cardston. "That might have been a bit of a coaching error, because I thought we were going nine. I'd have played that last inning a little differently, had we known we were going to seven."
"That was a good game," he said. "For a first night, that was a pretty darn impressive effort."
"It's my job as a coach to develop character. Not so much to catch the ball and throw the ball, that will come. It's character in these young people."
Bandon bunting (above and below)
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| Play Ball! Carl is umping again for his umpteenth season |
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Upcoming:
The Fort Macleod Royals are hosting a Little League Baseball Camp on Sunday, May 25 from 12:00-4:00 at the Westwinds Stadium in Fort Macleod. $10.00 per player, all ages are invited to attend. See Carrah Pinder-Walter to sign up.
Carrah is also looking for volunteers for the upcoming Southern Alberta Summer Games (SASG), including First Aiders, concession workers, score keepers, pitch counters, and grounds keepers. Also, visit the SASG website at www.southernalbertasummergames.com
The Minor Dust Devils will have a double header on Saturday May 10 vs Sparwood at 2:00pm and 5:00pm at Juan Teran Park Diamond C.
The Major Dust Devils will have a double header on Saturday May 10 vs Elkford at 2:00pm and 5:00pm at Lion's Park.
