Lethbridge hosts Canadian Junior Little League championships

Lethbridge, Alta. -

Spitz Stadium has been temporarily transformed into the host venue for the 2023 Canadian Junior Little League championships.

The tournament champions will earn the right to represent Canada at the 2023 Junior Little League World Series later this month in Taylor, Michigan.

The Lethbridge Junior Bulls will serve as tournament hosts.

“We want to put on a good showing and represent our city well with showing the teams that Lethbridge is a good place to play and we’ve got good teams here. It's a great baseball city,” said Jr. Bulls assistant coach, Ethan Smith.

Six teams, including the Jr. Bulls, made up of players aged 12-14 will take the field to battle out for the national championship.

Volunteers and organizers have been working since mid-April to organize the tournament and prepare for the arrival of the visiting teams.

“We all worked hard to get here. There's just been little tidbits that you do here and there off and on. I often joke that it's like your wedding day, there's only so much that can be done the week of or the week before and it's all come together really nicely,” said volunteer organizer Glenn Ring.

Despite all the hard work for the organizers it will all be worth it in the end.

They know most athletes never get the chance to play in a national tournament, and they hope to make it a memorable experience for the lucky few playing in this year’s championship.

Ring said, “as a parent it's a great experience to be a part of. It's a lot of work.  A huge amount of thanks goes out to the host committee, Kevin Kvame and his team do a great job of taking care of everything off the field.”

So far the tournament hasn’t gotten off to the start the Jr. Bulls would’ve liked, losing to Ontario 9-8 in the lone game they’ve played so far.

But the Jr. Bulls' coaching staff feels confident the team can rebound and stands a good shot of winning the whole tournament.

“If we play like we did the first six innings, then I think we have a really good shot. (We) took care of the baseball, threw strikes, hit - and that's the way to win games. Catch the ball throw the ball - baseball can be simple some times,” said Smith.

Games will be played throughout the week with the championship game being held on Monday August 7th at 2:30 p.m.