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I’d Hit That wins memorial ball tournament

I’d Hit That was crowned victorious at the fifth Wilfred Victor Louie Memorial Slo-Pitch Tournament.
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I’d Hit That claimed the championship May 22 at the Wilfred Victor Louie Memorial Slo-Pitch Tournament at Sugarcane.

I’d Hit That was crowned victorious May 22 at the fifth annual Wilfred Victor Louie Memorial Slo-Pitch Tournament at Sugarcane.

The 10-team tournament saw the eventual champions win from the winners side of the draw in the final, 14-9, over the Rookies, after they defeated Prince George’s Brew Crew 12-10 in the semifinal to reach the championship.

Tournament organizer Byron Louie said it was a great weekend of ball, and noted the tournament is held annually in memory of his dad, Wilfred.

“He passed away about six years ago,” Byron said. “We do this as a family event. Our intention is just to get friends and family together and just have a good time. My dad used to play slo-pitch here at this field well into his 50s so we wanted to honour him in a way that was justified and this seemed to be the most logical choice.”

Each year 10 teams compete as cash and prizes are up for grabs.

“At the height of the day we’ve got 300 people surrounding the field and watching the games and we’ve got other teams that are cheering everyone on so it’s a fun-filled weekend.”

Additionally, Louie noted the Williams Lake Indian Band has been awarded a grant of $90,000 from the Toronto Blue Jays Foundation to upgrade the field.

“The intention is to redo the infield and have it up to a high standard and then redo our bleachers, as well,” he said.

He also said having a thriving sports community can be a big deterrent in keeping kids out of trouble.

“The biggest thing is trying to stop the kids from being in town all the time,” he said. “A lot of them are at home on electronics, as well. Trying to get the field up to par and being able to use it for things other than baseball is something that’s envisioned when all the work had begun a few years ago, so hopefully that can all be followed through with as well.”

WLIB Coun. Willie Sellars said both baseball and hockey are a big part of the community, and added Allteck of Williams Lake is also chipping in funds to install lighting at the WLIB ball diamond.

“We grew up playing ball, and ball hockey — that’s a big one for us,” Sellars said. “A lot of the younger kids don’t play a lot of ball so once our diamond is ready and once we have an established following I think we’ll get people coming out in droves to play.

“We’re just super excited to see the success of this one annual tourney and continue that once we get the diamond done. The future looks good for baseball in our community and hopefully with the partnerships we pull together we can resurrect some fastball, or just baseball in general, in our community. It’ll be one of the nicest diamonds from Kamloops to Prince George.”

Louie, meanwhile, thanked all the spectators, players and fans that came out to watch the tournament.

“They make it entertaining, as well, because all the teams I’ve talked to said one of the biggest things they’ve noticed is how many people are surrounding the field,” he said.

“They hear the fans, and they really enjoy it.”



Greg Sabatino

About the Author: Greg Sabatino

Greg Sabatino graduated from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops with a Bachelor of Journalism degree in 2008.
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