Central Energy’s U13 squad battled through seven games in four days to claim a fourth-place finish at the 2025 Softball Manitoba Provincial Championships held in Friedensfeld from July 17–20, capping their run with a hard-fought 9–2 loss to Westman Magic in Sunday’s bronze medal final.
The result marked a strong showing for the young club, which went 4–4 over the course of the tournament and delivered some of their most competitive ball of the season against top-tier provincial opponents.
“What stood out the most is that they were able to battle and compete incredibly strong versus the top two teams in the province,” said head coach Jenn Smith. “They only lost by one run in the round robin to Eastman, who got silver, and held the Phillies to six runs. To be this close to the top two and fall just short isn’t what we wanted, but it shows how strong our team was as a whole.”
Central Energy opened their championship run Thursday with a dramatic 5–4 comeback win over Winnipeg Lightning. Trailing 4–1 in the fourth, the team rallied to tie the game on a double from Emma Shantz and ground outs by Lindsay French and Madison Kahn. Collins Vrooman was perfect at the plate with two hits, while the team stole 11 bases and played error-free defence.
Later that day, U13 Energy unleashed a dominant offensive performance in a 15–1 win over the Manitoba Angels. Jaidyn Smart crushed a three-run home run in the first and tripled in another run in the third, finishing with four RBIs. Brady Wiebe collected three hits and two RBIs, while Addison Driedger struck out five over three no-hit innings.
Friday’s matchups brought tougher tests. In a thrilling back-and-forth game, Energy fell 7–6 to Eastman Wildcats on a walk-off error in the sixth inning. Lindsay French led the way with two RBIs, and Smart and Reese Fotheringham each had two hits.
In their next game, Central jumped out to a 4–0 lead against Westman Magic but couldn’t hang on, eventually falling 9–5. Wiebe and Beaudry English drove in early runs, but Westman responded with a seven-run outburst. Despite the loss, Energy remained competitive throughout.
“Despite not always getting the result we wanted, our at-bats were incredibly strong,” Smith said. “We made opposing pitchers throw a lot more pitches than we had to when they were in the box. When we got to two strikes, we dug deep, fouled off pitches, and made them throw to us—not chasing what they wanted. It shows the grit the girls have and their discipline in the box, which will be so important as they continue to play.”
Saturday began with a bounce-back 9–2 win over Smitty’s Terminators, powered by a six-run sixth inning that included RBIs from Shantz, Vrooman, Kaitlyn Baldwin and Fotheringham. Driedger and Shantz each had multi-hit games, and Central again committed no errors.
Later that day, Energy ran into a red-hot Interlake Phillies squad and dropped a 6–1 decision. Interlake jumped ahead early and limited Central to five hits, one each from Wiebe, Smart, French, English and Driedger.
Sunday’s bronze medal match was a rematch with Westman, and for three innings, Energy held them off. Central took a 2–0 lead in the third on a wild pitch and an RBI single from Fotheringham. But in the bottom of the fourth, Westman stormed ahead with a six-run frame, sparked by a solo home run from Brielle M. The Magic added three more in the fifth to seal the 9–2 win and claim bronze.
Vrooman pitched three scoreless innings to start the game, striking out three and allowing just three hits. Shantz, Fotheringham, English and Driedger each had a hit in the loss.
Throughout the weekend, U13 Central Energy showed remarkable poise, power and balance, scoring 61 runs while committing few errors and showcasing depth from top to bottom. Friesen played a steady role throughout the tournament in the two-hole, while Kinley Cleaver—though sidelined with a broken finger—remained on the bench cheering on her teammates every step of the way.
Vrooman’s efforts didn’t go unnoticed by the competition either—she was named runner-up for Most Outstanding Player of the weekend, an honour voted on by opposing team coaches.“I think the biggest growth we’ve seen is the confidence in each other—but also in themselves,” said Smith. “That confidence impacted all aspects of our game. It allowed our pitchers to throw changeups consistently, our outfielders to make diving catches, and our hitters to battle against any pitcher they saw.”
“As a coaching staff, we reminded them that although it’s not the result they wanted, we want them to look at the season in its entirety,” she added. “They made incredible improvement throughout the year and they get to carry that knowledge and skill into their next season. A medal is nice to have, but what’s more important are the memories and friendships they’ll take with them. I have no doubt these girls will continue to grow and enjoy the sport of softball—which is all we want as coaches.”
Meanwhile, the U17 and U19 Central Energy teams were forced to pause their provincial championship bids as air quality concerns from wildfire smoke prompted Softball Manitoba to postpone the remainder of their playoffs. Both teams had built strong momentum leading into the weekend.
The U17s notched key wins over Interlake and Westman, highlighted by home runs from Mya Richard and clutch hitting from Ava Bonik. Central U19 rode dominant performances from pitcher Nelia Fehr, who struck out 11 in a 7-2 win over Winnipeg Lightning and followed it up with a four-RBI outing in a 9-5 victory over the Angels/Phillies.
Softball Manitoba is expected to announce revised dates for the U17 and U19 playoff rounds once conditions allow.
U15 AAA Central Energy went 3–1 over a busy weekend of softball, notching back-to-back victories over the Interlake Phillies before splitting a Sunday doubleheader with Westman Magic.
On Saturday, Central topped Interlake 13-6, breaking the game open with a five-run fourth inning. Hailey Baldwin, Kylie Wiebe and Sinead Convery drove in early runs, and Shyanne Goertzen delivered a two-RBI single to cap the big inning. Convery finished with three RBIs, while Ella Conrad and Bree Pearce each had two hits.
Shayna Driedger earned the win in relief, allowing just one run over three innings with two strikeouts.
Later that day, Central rallied from a 4-0 deficit to defeat Interlake 11-4. An eight-run third inning included key hits from Zoey Shantz, Baldwin, Amelia Wytinck and Goertzen. Shantz tripled and drove in two, while Conrad added a solo home run in the fourth.
Kylie Wiebe picked up the win with five strikeouts through three innings. Goertzen tossed two scoreless frames in relief.
On Sunday morning, Central blanked Westman 10-0 behind a one-hit shutout from Goertzen, who also homered and went 2-for-2 at the plate. Convery and Payton Manness each drew bases-loaded walks in a six-run second inning. Baldwin also added two hits in the win.
In the rematch, Westman turned the tables with a 9-0 win, scoring seven runs in the second inning. Central managed just four hits—two from Goertzen—as Westman’s Hadley Robertson pitched a complete-game shutout with six strikeouts.
Blaine Wiebe took the loss, allowing six runs—five earned—over one and a third innings.
U15 Central Energy return to action Tuesday as they host Winnipeg Lightning Slatch U15.
