The Williams Lake Lakers marched away from Kamloops the winners of the first ever Octoberfest slo-pitch tournament.
The event, held Oct. 6-7 at the new Tournament Capital Ranch softball complex, featured teams from Kamloops, Merritt, Burns Lake, Bella Coola and Fort St. James.
The Lakers, made up of players from the Williams Lake Slo-Pitch League’s Lakers, Ratz and Rookies, combined to crush the Kamloops Easton Fections 16-6 in the tournament final. For the win the Lakers brought home $1,600 cash.
“We were a team of predominantly Williams Lake slo-pitch players — rivals from the Williams Lake Slo-Pitch League,” said team member Pam Nichols.
The Lakers battled through a four-game round robin where they won two, lost one and tied one.
“We had a slow start trying to work out the kinks and get to know each other and find some cohesion,” Nichols said. “This put us into the playoffs ranked seven out of 12 teams.”
In the playoffs, the Lakers didn’t lose again.
They dominated Merritt by 10 runs, beat the Easton Fections by one then won a two-run decision over the Kamloops Big Sticks in the semifinal.
Notable performances came from the bat of Glen Camille (two-run homer to win the semifinal in the seventh inning), Shaun Ackerman (pitcher — walked just four batters in eight games), Paul Grinder, Mike Tomlinson and ladies Tanya Hatt, Tanya Iachetta, Jorgenson and Lacey Loewen, who provided solid defence and solid hitting to keep the team in the running.