Three Mapleton youths are part of a provincial baseball championship team.
Moorefield residents Owen Ottens, Ethan Culling and Cody Frook are members of the Listowel Rookie Ontario Baseball Association (OBA) squad.
The team is constructed of boys born in 2008 and 2009.
The Listowel team qualified for the 2017 OBA Provincial Championships held in Wallaceburg, from Sept. 1 to 4, finishing the tournament with a perfect 6-0 record.
Exhibiting exceptional defensive play, the team only surrendered 16 runs total in the tournament, officials say.
Listowel topped a team from Wyoming in the final game 11-3, earning championship rings for their efforts.
“Along with great coaching this was a special group of boys with a ‘team first’ mentality which was one of the main reasons for their overall success,” Ethan’s father Jeremy Culling told the Wellington Advertiser.
“Our three local boys were the youngest players and integral players on the team.”
The team went also undefeated in league play this season, competing against teams within the Western Ontario Baseball Association.
Team members include: Ethan Culling, Owen Ottens, Cody Frook, Jaxon McLaughlin, Kaleb Schouten, Tate Berfelz, Preston Henhoeffer, Noah Kaye, Liam Biesinger, Ryan Antoniadis, Kai Wick and Henry Meulensteen.
Coaches include Curt McLaughlin, Chad Kaye and Curt Berfelz.
