Photo courtesy of Scott Roblin

By Scott Roblin

Striking Gold

U12 Thunder write perfect final chapter, win provincial gold medal at home

Jul 15, 2019 | 6:33 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – A redemption story a year in the making was completed on Sunday for the Medicine Hat U12 Thunder girls softball team.

Taking to the diamonds at the Moose Community Ball Complex with a provincial U12 ‘D’ gold medal on the line, the Thunder dug deep to comeback against the St. Paul Storm to win the Alberta banner at home.

Trailing by a 5-2 score after three innings, a switch turned for the Thunder to dominate the fourth and fifth innings as they earned a 12-8 victory over the Storm.

A picture perfect result for outfielder Charlize Forbes and her teammates.

“It was very difficult to come back because they are a strong team as well,” said Forbes. “But, we could get the runs in and just be able to find a way.”

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Medicine Hat capped off a magical week hosting the province’s best young softball talent, rolling through the provincial tournament with an undefeated record.

It all concluded with a Maia Petersen strikeout in the bottom of the seventh inning, causing an explosion of cheers to erupt from the hometown fans.

“My parents could come and all of our families could come out because it’s in our home city,” said Forbes. “Winning it here felt very, very special because this is where we are from.”

Receiving the traditional Gatorade bath following the final out, head coach Scott Butterfield said the team’s resilience and ability to stand up to pressure was impressive.

“A lot of pressure, a lot of fans, but the girls played well and gave it their best,” said Butterfield. “Last year we had to go all the way up to Edmonton, we came up really short and it was a long drive home. This year Edmonton has to take that drive home and we know how it feels.”

That provincial tournament in Edmonton left a sour taste in the mouths of those returning to the U12 squad, but eventually provided the team fuel that they used over the weekend.

“They can back from last year and played hard,” said Butterfield. “They knew what they had in mind and we knew we were hosting. It’s just the whole culmination of it all put together. They wanted to take it at home and they did, so I’m proud of them.”

The U12 squad wasn’t the only local team to win a provincial medal at home, as the U14 Thunder rebounded from a semi-final loss to Sylvan Lake to lay a 15-5 licking on Didsbury to win provincial bronze.

As for the U10 squad in Medicine Hat and U19 team in Irma, they both were eliminated in the round-robin stage of their respective provincial tournaments.

Presented with the gold medal she spent all year working towards, Forbes said it’s a medal she shares with her sisters on the Thunder.

“The strength that all of them have,” she said. “From the pitches, the back-catchers, the third basemen, the second [basemen], the first [basemen], the short stops, the fielders, they all have important places in ball.”

“We all bonded because we’re all alike, we all love the game of ball.”