With the comforts and familiarity of home field on their side, the Kelowna Heat plan to take a run at a provincial title this weekend.
The host Heat will be one of 16 teams contending for the Softball BC U16B girls championship at High Noon Park.
Kelowna kicks off its four-game, round-robin schedule on Friday with games at 2:30 and 6:30 p.m., and will play again at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Coached by Michelle Webster, Brittany Smith and Ramon Lawrence, the Heat won two medals at tournaments this season—a silver in Cloverdale and a bronze medal in Ridge Meadows.
Based on their play this season against some of the province’s top clubs, Lawrence said the Heat has all the tools to be in the mix this weekend.
“The girls have been playing well and have shown they can play with any team in the province,” said Lawrence, who is also the president of Kelowna Minor Fastball. “In a tournament like this, it’s really anybody’s to win.
“We’re hoping to get into the top eight for playoffs, then go from there.”
While it may be anyone’s tournament to win, Lawrence expects the PoCo Ravens, Cloverdale Fury and Ridge Meadows to be among the favourites this weekend.
The opening ceremonies for the U16B girls provincial is set are for 12:30 p.m. on Friday. The playoffs begin Saturday at 6:30 p.m., with the championship final to be played Sunday at 6 p.m.
The provincials serve as a qualifier for the Western Canadian U16 Championships which will also be hosted by Kelowna, from Aug 8 to 12.
For more information on provincials, go to kelownafastball.ca
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