The Smitty’s Terminators were the class of Manitoba’s softball scene for much of the 90s.
During a time when there were no catchments to regulate where players played, the Terminators recruited a group of standouts on the diamond that would become the team’s core and go on to dominate at the local, regional and national level for years.
“We wound up our team to be the best team we could have, and it was an amazing — literally legendary — team because we won a number of national championships,” said Melanie Fernandes, the team’s longtime shortstop.
The Terminators junior female squad from 1997-98 was particularly powerful. They represented Manitoba at the Canadian Junior Championships both years, winning silver on each occasion with a balanced squad that could shutout opponents from the mound or run up the score on any given occasion.
There was no junior league in the province, so the team of 17-21 year-olds got their playing time in the Ladies Fastpitch League of Winnipeg, against adult teams, and travelled to play other senior squads around the country.
One of the club’s highlights came in 1997 when they travelled to Saskatchewan and defeated Saskatoon’s senior women’s team, a dominant squad in their own right that went on to win the senior nationals later that year. That game has stuck with players decades later and was a testament to just how strong this group of girls were.
“Probably, (that) was my favourite team I ever played on,” Fernandes said.
Several members of that special Terminators team took their final bow together on May 11 as they were inducted into the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame. Also in the Class of 2024 were athletes Kevin Bartley, Shelly Bohn, Nathan Giesbrecht, Mandy Greenberg and Ron Taylor; builder Steve Mymko; all-around contributor Fran Giesbrecht; and fellow teams, the 1979-80 Brandon Westman Merchants and 1974-75 St. Vital Flocking Ducks.
Fernandes and Leanne Papineau, who was the team’s catcher, were both in attendance for what was each of their fifth inductions into a softball hall of fame. The St. Andrews residents were enshrined into the Manitoba hall together as members of the 1994-96 Smitty’s midget girls team in 2014, and again in 2015 into the Canadian Softball Hall of Fame.
Fernandes is also in the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame with the 1993-97 senior women’s fast pitch team and 1995-97 team, which, in 2004, become the first female softball team to be inducted into those hallowed halls.
Papineau is one of the only players from those glory years to be enshrined as a player, which came in 2019.
“Junior is a really tough age group,” Papineau said. “You only have two years of junior, whereas you can play senior for (years). So, with junior only having two years to really be successful is quite challenging. That is part of why we were inducted.
“The people were probably the most memorable for me” she continued. “When you’re practising two to three times per week, playing two times per week and then we really only had one weekend off in the summer from beginning of May all the way to the end of August, they become your friends, then your teammates and the before you know it, they really do become your extended family.”
Papineau, who has a laundry list of accomplishments from the diamond next to her name, grew up in Winnipeg’s north end and began playing softball at 12 for the Terminators.
She was a leader on the team, guiding with her words and her actions, while having the time of her life playing the sport she loved.
“I’m just reflecting and thinking how much time and work it was, but it didn’t feel like work, like at all. We had baseball every single day and before we went to nationals, for two weeks leading up to that, it was twice a day,” she said.
“It was a huge commitment but the energy that the girls brought all the time, it really never felt like work. I can honestly say that it’s something that I think I feel so grateful to have been a part of and to have experienced because I can bring myself back there in that moment at any time.”
It was during those years that she was also introduced to her Indigenous culture. Papienau, who is Métis, explored her heritage while playing at the North American Indigenous Games, where her teams won gold in 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2009. She also won at the Canadian Native Championships in 2008 and 2009 as a member of the Northern Lights.
“The opportunities are endless… but I think one of the biggest things is just really the places that I got to see and the people that I’ve met,” she said. “People say to me all the time, ‘How do you know so many people?’ And I always say, ‘Well, I’m not really quiet,’ but I think that softball has created such a rich experience with meeting people and connecting.”
Fernandes was raised in the west end of the Manitoba capital, taking to baseball as a 10-year-old.
She was fearless on the diamond, playing with boys for a couple of years and being assigned to play high-pressure positions like pitcher and shortstop, which she loved due to it being a hub for the action on the infield.
She was quickly scouted to play at higher levels and fit in seamlessly as the competition grew.
“We thrived on the competition,” Fernandes said. “We’d have lots and lots of people watching our nationals, sometimes hundreds, under the lights. That was really cool back then to play under the lights, you didn’t get to do that (often) like you do nowadays.”
These days, many of the players from the Terminators days remain close and still play slo-pitch together. Papineau hung up the cleats for good last year but has coached softball and remains a trusted resources for youth who are developing in the sport.
Fernandes has also broke into the coaching ranks and recently joined softball hall of fame board of directors, a position she will begin officially this fall.
At the end of a near-30-minute conversation, Fernandes reflected on what softball has meant to her. The success on the field kept her interested, she admitted, but her love for the game has grown deeper than the wins and losses.
“I guess it’s all the things that gives you all the feels: learning resilience, being taught work ethic, the hardships of winning and losing and just the climb — really having to train with intent and reach your goals,” she said.
“It has so many aspects to it,” she continued. “Yes, the friendships that resulted from that, but just the sport itself kind brings you in. When you’re in it and playing, it’s just like a euphoria.”
