It has been five years in the making for the Wilmot Softball Association. After years of planning and coordinating, Wilmot is prepared to host the U15 Boys Softball National Championship this coming August. With eight teams in the tournament coming from as far east as Newfoundland and as far west as Saskatchewan, tournament board member John Vleeming says the quality of play will be something special.

“We have the best players in Canada at the U15 age level coming to this tournament. There is definitely some talented players.”

The Wilmot Softball Association while fairly new in its formation, has over 350 member players. The inception of the association came about when neighbouring New Dundee, Baden, and New Hamburg came together to make a more competitive and inclusive association. Vleeming says there was a desire to make the best teams possible in the region.

“There was a willingness to bring all the competitive clubs from around the region together to make the best association possible.”

While Wilmot is not the only Ontario team that will be represented at the tournament, tournament coordinator PJ Poirier says that the teams that come out of Wilmot and surrounding areas are always competitive, stating that a few years back Wilmot finished second at the national tournament.

“Wilmot and southwestern Ontario has always been competitive in the softball ranks at the national level and this year is no different.”  

The tournament will have thirty games over five days as well as a player and parent banquet on Tuesday August 2^nd with the opening ceremonies kicking off the tournament on August 3^rd. The tournament committee have done an excellent job bringing some high-profile attendees to the event including a number of government officials and is headlined by guest speaker Tyler Pauli of the Canadian Men’s Pan Am Softball team.

“There is a lot of excitement around the event from within the community. We want to showcase the talent of the players but also bring together the softball community.”

The tournament will be held at the New Hamburg Ball Diamonds (291 Jacob St. New Hamburg) from August 3rd to 7th, 2022 (Games 9:00am to 9:00pm). The fee to enter is $10 a day or get an event pass for $40 available at the gate upon entry to the fairgrounds. Event Souvenirs will be available, and the New Hamburg Optimist Club will be providing a Food Booth throughout the tournament. Come down and see some amazing athletes and enjoy some great softball. Additional information can be found at https://softball.ca/u15boys.