The Boissevain Centennials are Softball Manitoba Provincial U11 A champions.

The Centennials won eight straight games this past weekend at Buhler Park in Winnipeg and brought home gold medals. 

"It's an amazing group of girls,” noted head coach Dustin Mansfield. “It's a long grind. There were 54 teams so it's intimidating from a small town I think going in there when you're starting out playing in pool play. They went in their excited for an experience. A lot of them were able to make it in there last year but a few didn't for Provincials. This is a cool experience making it through pool play and then putting in basically four back-to-back games on Sunday and ending it with a positive note. There were some pretty big smiles on some pretty tired faces. I was proud of them and so were their parents. It was pretty awesome."

Boissevain defeated Kirkfield-Westwood 12-1; downed Neepawa 14-4; beat Guild Insurance Comets 8-1 and downed Carberry 14-2 in pool play on Friday and Saturday.

The Centennials ran the table on Sunday.

Boissevain beat the Corydon Comets 11-1 and blanked Headingley 11-0 in their first two playoff games.

The Centennials then outscored the Winkler Panthers 9-6 in the semifinals.

"It was a really good test for them,” said coach Mansfield. “A really strong team on the other side and they battled through it. We talked a lot about where we made it already, top four out of 54, and to just put any challenges that came up in the game aside and just focus on the next play and they were able to do that. It was hot. That was right after lunch and the sun came out. Those are hard games on the pitchers and catchers for sure grinding through those innings especially against a team that put up really good at bats. The girls battled through and were able to carry that momentum into the final."

Boissevain jumped out to an early lead and defeated the Altona Angels 11-4 in the gold medal game.

"They really came out on the bats in the first inning against a really strong pitcher from Altona and were able to put up six runs and sort of set the tone at that point," remarked coach Mansfield. "The game kind of settled in after that first inning I would say with some back and forth, but the girls were able to chip away and add a few extra runs on and ultimately put it way in the top of the fifth."

Boissevain’s Kyree Hart was named the tournament MVP.

“U11 and U13 are big years for keeping kids in sport and experiences like this are huge,” coach Mansfield said. “They had a lot of fun as a team all the way around. It was a lot of fun for me as a coach to see each one of the girls contributing to the success throughout the weekend with hits, plays in the field, everything. I just hope it really spurs on not just for the team here but the teams behind them. The younger girls in the community that will see this and to stick with the game and keep the numbers up because the more opportunity to play, the better it is for everybody."

As for a role model or two – this Centennials gold medal winning team have two exceptional athletes from their hometown to look up to who got their start in the sport at a young age and they are Zoe Hicks who spent 2023 playing softball and baseball for Team Canada and Danika Nell who helped the Boissevain Broncos and the Vincent Massey Trojans win the past three Provincial High School Fastpitch Championships and will be playing at Boston University this fall.

"No question it has an impact on where they go and what they do,” said coach Mansfield. “This is maybe another story with what these girls accomplished this year that will feed that for the girls that are coming up for the next five or 10 years as well but there is no question those successes of those talented athletes have a major positive impact on situations like this."