Virden’s Georgia Koop and Hadley Robertson and the Oak Lake area duo of Mckenzie Masson and Rose Cochrane were all part of the successful regional team. At the Friedensfeld Community Centre, the Magic fell to the Eastman Wildcats, 6-5, in two extra innings in the final game of the July 13-16 provincial tournament, which was altered by rain and a tornado warning.
“The girls worked so hard in our time leading up to provincials on learning the game and understanding situational play,” Magic coach Jill Twordik said. “We were a new team this year, returning only four players, which meant this was a season focused on developing the player as a whole - learning and practicing many different positions and later zoning into a position or two where each girl could be of the most help to the team.
“We came into provincials with expectations to make it to Sunday. I think everyone felt we had a chance to be top three, and after that it would be anybody's ball game. We continued to rise and play better ball each game as the weekend went on. We truly peaked in the last game, and I couldn't be more proud as a coach. We were errorless, everyone contributed, and we just came up short. We really thought we had it, up 3-0 going into the bottom half of the last inning and we liked our chances with the batters we were facing, but unfortunately for us they fought back and scored three runs to tie and send it into extra innings. Needing two extra innings to decide a winner was exciting and heartbreaking to be on the wrong side of the finish. Our girls were outstanding the whole weekend, we peaked right when we wanted to, we had them on the ropes the whole game, it really was a tough game to lose.”
The Magic had two minor-aged players this season – Robertson and Koop. Robertson was used as an outfielder in the provincial tournament. Twordik sees her developing into a very strong utility player in the future.
“She has excellent mechanics as a pitcher and is powerful and throws the ball hard for her age, so I know she will be a force on the mound next year,” the coach said. “She is a skilled fielder and made some game saving catches for us as well as had some very timely hits during the weekend.”
Koop saw time both in the outfield and at second base for the Magic.
“Her confidence grew as the year went on, and it was amazing to watch her grow as a player,” Twordik said. “She will be a great major aged player next year. She has seen a ton of reps in both the infield and outfield which means she too will be a great utility player. Georgia has a strong arm that continues to become more powerful. She too had some very timely hits during our last few games.”
The versatile Masson was used on the mound, at first base, and in the outfield.
“’Mac’ is a wonderful kid,” Twordik said. “She is soft spoken and goes about her game quietly. She came in to throw some very crucial and pressure filled innings for us on the mound, and she was stoic. I enjoyed getting to know Mckenzie. She grew as a player, and it was exciting to watch. She is a left-handed pitcher which is an asset to any teams, and she has shown a significant amount of poise for her age.”
Cochrane spent much of the season as one of the Magic’s catchers. Later in the campaign, she saw time at third base when not behind the plate.
“She is a fearless player who is going to give you 110 per cent at all times,” Twordik said. “She knew her job and she crushed it. Her bat came alive, and she was a dominant player for us.”
