Mosquito Indians three-peat at AA Provincials
The Swift Current Mosquito Indians capped an incredible season with a third straight Provincial AA title in Martensville.
Swift Current opened the tournament with a 130 mercy rule win over the host Martensville Mustangs Friday evening.
They tossed a second straight no-hitter in a 12-0 win over the North East Selects. Swift Current finished the round robin with a loss to Weyburn to place second in their pool.
They advanced to the gold medal game with a 4- 1 win over Lloydminster in the semi-final.
The Indians defeated the rival Weyburn Beavers 11-3 in the final to clinch a third straight provincial title.
“We are really excited,” said head coach Brad Bell. “The kids just had a super weekend ... We played our best game of the season in the final for sure and beat Weyburn 11-2.”
Mac Gross pitched four shutout innings in the gold medal game. Reed Jacobson went in and pitched the final two innings to preserve the win.
“We hit the ball probably better than we have hit
Pictured are the Swift Current Mosquito Indians. it all year. We have been waiting for that and we knew it was coming. We had three or four highlight reel defensive plays, just some super plays by some second-year kids defensively that were just excellent,” explained Bell.
The Indians had also got the better of Weyburn in the Regina AAA League championship game two weeks earlier after struggling to beat their rivals throughout the season.
“It really did make it better,” admitted Bell. “We battled with them all year and we really felt all year that we were better than them. It just all came together yesterday.”
The Mosquito Indians had four players back from last year’s provincial championship team.
Bell said they added a couple of strong second year players who didn’t play last season and that the first-year players were very strong as well.
“It took us a little longer to get to where we wanted to because we were a little inexperienced. But we could see it over the last two or three weeks that it was really coming together.”
Three straight provincial titles is a pretty strong indication of a minor ball system that is working in Swift Current, agreed Bell.
“I think the program is really strong. When we play against Saskatoon teams, Regina teams, when we play against Weyburn teams we feel really good going in there. We know we can compete with anybody anywhere in the province.”
He credited Joe Carnahan, coach of the Western Major Baseball League’s Swift Current Indians, for helping strengthen the minor ball system.
“Joe Carnahan is putting a ton of time in with these kids in the fall and the early spring. These kids are really falling in love with the game I think, along with lots of coaches who have put in a lot of time throughout the year.
“I think Joe has really made a huge difference with regards to his enthusiasm with baseball. You see him around the diamonds when we are practicing and he knows all these kids by name.”
Bell also noted that his players made a big commitment this summer.
“I think it is really growing. The kids that want to be there are there because it is a huge time commitment for these kids, basically three months straight. So you are getting 12 players that love the game and they get better fast.”