Moose Jaw Ice loses in opening game of Softball Canada U19 national championship

MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM — The Moose Jaw Ice didn’t get the result they hoped for in their opening game of the Softball Canada U19 National Championship in Saskatoon on Wednesday afternoon.

Ontario champion Aurora Diggers scored four runs in the third inning and five more in the seventh for a 10-1 victory that gave the Ice their debut in the 21-team tournament.

Moose Jaw qualified for the national championships after finishing second at the provincial championships in mid-July. The team now plays as Sask 1, thanks to provincial champions Saskatoon Prairie Dog Selects, who are hosting.

Despite the lopsided final score, things were relatively close throughout the game. Moose Jaw trailed by four runs for most of the game, until Aurora played their final inning and pulled away for good.

Ava Unser got the start in the circle for the Ice and allowed four runs on seven hits in three innings, walking three and striking out two. Katelyn Zukewich took over in the fourth and was stung by a handful of defensive blunders — Moose Jaw committed five errors in the game — and would allow six unearned runs on five hits the rest of the way.

The Ice had eight hits in the game, with Macy Litzenberger going 2-for-3. Rayelle Cooley scored their lone run in the fifth inning.

Tanya Limbani went 3-for-4 for the Diggers with a double, a run scored and two runs batted in, while Natasha Limbani, Logan Forman and Jacqueline Vona all had two runs.

Jayde McGahan started for Ontario and held Moose Jaw to no runs through four innings, while scattering five hits; Grace Churchill surrendered one run, but allowed just three hits the rest of the way.

The Ice will be back on the court later on Wednesday when they take on Alberta bronze medalist Drumheller Southern. Their tournament continues with games against Manitoba champion Smitty’s Terminators (1 p.m.) and bronze medalist BC Cloverdale Fury 06 (6 p.m.) on Thursday, before concluding their round robin against the Ontario 4 Vaughn Vikings and silver medalist BC Fraser Valley Fusion 06 on Friday.

The twelve best teams from the preliminary round will advance to the championship play-offs, which will begin on Saturday morning. The remaining teams will play in the consolation final for thirteenth place.

The championship game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex in Saskatoon.