The Moose Jaw Ice had all sorts of questions as to how competitive the Little League Canadian Regional would turn out to be heading into the four-team tournament in Victoria, B.C. this weekend.
Where would they stand, would they be able to hold their own and if so, could they contend for a national title?
The answer appears to be plenty positive after their first three games of the round robin.
The Ice opened with a 13-3 victory over Quebec before dropping a hard-fought 3-1 decision to Alberta in their second game Friday and falling 6-0 to B.C. in their lone game Saturday.
In other words, they’re right there -- and with a bit of luck in the semifinal on Sunday afternoon, could find themselves playing for a right to represent Canada at the World Series in Greenville, N.C. in two weeks’ time.
The Ice did almost all their damage in the opener against Quebec in the second inning, scoring eight runs on five hits and five walks and sending 12 batters to the plate in the process. The inning was marred by Trois-Lacs LIttle League starter Kenza Wafdi being hit in the head by a line-drive comebacker that left her on the ground for several minutes before being helped off under her own power. She ended up with a dented mask and a bump on the forehead, but was back in action on Saturday.
All but two of the 12 Ice players who stepped to the plate had a hit, with Avery Funke going 2-for-3 with two runs as the lead-off hitter, Jayden Babich 2-for-3 with two runs and three runs batted in and Georgia Fowler 2-for-2 with a run and two RBI.
Avery Garthus got the start in the circle and allowed a run on a hit in two innings of work. Avery Funke finished things off, also surrendering two runs on a hit in two innings, striking out four.
Game 2 on Friday against the Alberta reps from St. Albert was the kind of low-scoring battle you’d expect at a Canadian tournament, but came with a rather strange outcome.
Three Moose Jaw pitchers -- Aurora Wingenbach (first inning), Callie Heinrichs (second and third inning) and Garthus (fourth through sixth innings) -- combined to throw a no-hitter but the Ice still took the loss.
Alberta used three walks, a hit batter and a couple of wild pitches to put up a pair of runs in the third, and took advantage of a dropped third strike, wild pitch and an error to put up a run in the fifth.
That was all it took in such a close game, with Moose Jaw only getting three hits.
The Ice used their own plate discipline to score their lone run, drawing three walks in the second inning before Funke drew a free pass to score Heinrichs.
That set up their meeting with the host team from Victoria’s Hampton Little League and another close contest. Hampton scored single runs in the first and second and tacked on another in the fourth to lead 3-0 before picking up three insurance markers in the fifth.
The game had no bearing on the standings, though, so the Ice worked players into different positions and rested their elite pitchers for the championship round.
The Ice had only two hits in the contest, those coming off the bats of Bryn Montgomery and Lilly Novak. Moose Jaw had runners in scoring position in the second and third innings thanks to walks, but couldn’t find the key hit.
Funke started and allowed two runs on two hits over three innings, Wingenbach tossed the fourth and surrendered four runs on three hits, Chloe Strueby recorded the final B.C. out.
With their 1-2 record, the Ice will finish third in the round robin and take on B.C. in their semifinal at 2 p.m. Moose Jaw time Sunday. The winner of that game advances to the Little League Canadian Regional softball final at 5 p.m.
