For the first time ever, Smithers hosted the Provincial Boys Fastball Championships.
The event took place over the weekend and saw 21 teams make their way into the Valley for a shot at going home with a gold medal.
The list of group winners are as follows:
U-12 A Division:
- Gold: Clearwater
- Silver: Houston
- Bronze: Williams Lake
U-12 B Division:
- Gold: Hazelton
- Silver: Smithers
- Bronze: Barrier
U-14 Division:
- Gold: Terrace
- Silver: 100-Mile
- Bronze: Prince Rupert
U-16 Division:
- Gold: Barrier
- Silver: Terrace
- Bronze: Fleetwood
Event organizer Scott Groves says in terms of hosting, Smithers hit it out of the park.
“First and foremost we have to thank mother nature for providing us with a gorgeous weekend in Smithers. When you put on an event such as this for the first time, your learning curve can be quite steep. Overall I’d say it was an overwhelming success not only for the players but for the community as well. The out of towners loved coming here to play so it was a great experience for everyone involved.”
Groves says the tournament success wouldn’t have been possible without the help from some great local people.
“I have to extend a big thank you to everyone who came out and volunteered. A lot of the people who were out lending a hand didn’t even have kids playing ball so that says a lot about our community support. One particular group that sticks out in my mind was Aspen Traffic Control. We were scrambling for on-site first aiders and they provided an entire weekend of their time. I’d also like to send a shoutout to Billabong for helping prepare the fields the week prior to the tournament. All of our volunteers provided a great service and I can’t say thank you enough to those who helped out.”