Medicine Hat Junior Mavs in semi-final at Canadian Little League Championships

Mavs Coach Trevor Bishop said he feels the team has met expectation so far, with room to continue to improve.

“I feel defensively and on the mound we’ve done a very good job, the boys have really picked it up there. I would say the only place we’ve been having some struggles is on the bats,” Bishop said.

“That’s why we’re heading to a facility here today to go work on that for a couple hours just get some extra swings in and see if we can’t get back on track for the semis here because I know we’re gonna be up against a really good Ontario team,” he added.

“Obviously we faced them once already but that’s in the past now it’s a new ballgame and looking forward to the challenge for sure.”

The Mavs finished second in pool play with a 4-1 record representing Alberta Little League.

July 16 – Win over Quebec Little League 12-2
July 17 – Win over Atlantic Little League 10-0
July 18 – Win over Ontario Little League 11-5
July 19 – Loss to British Columbia Little League 10-0
July 20 – Win over Kingston Little League 10-4

They will now face off against a Ontario Little League team they defeated 11-5 in pool play on Friday for a spot in the finals.

The semi-final contest goes Tuesday at noon MST and can be viewed with a subscription through the HomeTeam Live streaming service.

The loser of the contest will play for bronze on Wednesday at 7 a.m. MST.

The winner plays for the national title at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.

On the line is also a spot representing Canada at the 2025 Intermediate 50/70 World Series in Livermore, Calif. from July 27-Aug. 3.

Something Pluta said he would look forward to.

“It’d be really exciting to go,” Pluta said.

Bishop has noticed the close bond the boys have had with their teammates and opponents.

“The teams are all staying at one hotel, the boys really get along with most of the teams, they hang out together in the evenings when there’s that downtime,” Bishop said.

“It’s something they’ll never forget, it’s not always the wins or the losses, it’s hey we were in Kingston, Ontario at Canadians, remember those guys how fun they were hanging around or they keep some of those relationships,” he added.

“When we got on the bus after we flew in, Team Atlantic right away one of their players the guys knew from last year came back on the bus and sat with our boys the whole entire trip and fit right in with them and joking around and it was quite something to see.”

Bishop said it’s neat to see how even though they are opponents they can still come together and make friendships.

“It’s been a great experience it’s been a good one for us coaches to honestly, you’re trying your best to give back what you can and it’s a real treat to be honest with you,” Bishop said.

Pluta said one of his favourite parts of being there is more than the baseball.

“Probably just hanging out with friends,” Pluta said.

“We’ve been hanging out with people from other teams. Atlantic, Quebec, Ontario, like all the teams probably,” he added.

“Just seeing new people around the whole province. I like the privilege of being here.”

Having played in Kingston the year before on the same diamonds there is a familiarity for Pluta and a number of his teammates.

“Yeah, I remember quite a bit about this place,” Pluta said.

“It feels like a similar group. We’re really close.”

Monday included a banquet for all the teams at the championships, after the batting practice the Junior Mavs took in.

Regardless of what happens on the field over the next few days Bishop said he is amazed to see how much the team has grown through the year.

“They’re a special group for sure, they just continue to grow, from the beginning of the season, the things that we needed to work on, how we got to grow in the aspects of this, the mental side of the game,” Bishop said.

“Some needed to get stronger arms and to just sit back now and talk about it the different players and how far they’ve come it’s crazy. I wish I could had video footage of the beginning of the season to be able to show them now where they’re at versus where they were at in the beginning,” he added.

“Credit to them they put in the hard work they put in all the the grueling hours the practice times. To watch these boys go through the season and get to this point is pretty special and hopefully we can complete what we came here for.”

Another opportunity at a winner take all national championship could be on the horizon for these young players from Medicine Hat.

by Jesse Gill

Medicine Hat Junior Mavs in semi-final at Canadian Little League Championships

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