Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Adam Donnelly

MEN'S FASTPITCH

STK Fastball team helping to grow the game of men’s fastpitch softball in the area

Jun 12, 2023 | 4:55 PM

KAMLOOPS — They say the hardest thing to do in sports is hit a baseball; whoever ‘they’ are hasn’t seen the best men’s fastpitch players in the game.

With pitches coming in at around 80 miles per hour from less than 40 feet away, it’s the most challenging game on dirt. Anyone lucky enough to be down at Charles Anderson Stadium over the weekend was treated to some of the best ball that Kamloops has seen in decades.

Justin Schofield is one of the top pitchers in the world in the game of men’s fastpitch softball. This weekend, he was in Kamloops, along with a handful of other National team players, participating in the first annual STK Fastball Invitational tournament.

“First time in Kamloops, period, and it is beautiful,” Schofield told CFJC Today. “The setting here – they could definitely host nationals or a major event here. The backdrop of the mountain behind us is beautiful, it’s gorgeous. A beautiful field and some nice fans here, it’s great.”

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Schofield was in Kamloops because of Benny Anthony. A member of the Neskonlith First Nation near Chase, he started STK Fastball to create an opportunity for young local fastball players to compete at the top level of the game in North America.

“I think a lot of [young indigenous ball players] don’t get the opportunity to see these players. A lot of the [top] players come from back east,” Benny said. “Also, it gives them a different outlook at the opportunities they can have long term if they want to pursue the game even further.”

As part of the tournament, players on the STK team held a clinic for young fastpitch players from the area on Friday night.

“It was a good opportunity with our team’s players to bring them out and give back to our community,” Anthony explained. “The whole focus is to try and promote the game, bring it back to Kamloops, and we’ve got to start with the younger generation.”

The event also served as a seeding event for the 2023 Men’s National Championships, which will take place in Surrey later this summer. That drew the top teams in BC to the event, including the Sooke Loggers, a lineup laden with former and current National team players.

“There is some really, really talented youth here. The future of the game is bright, and then there are some veterans out on the field that are impressive,” Schofield said. “There are some great ball players here, and hopefully for those young guys, they can get the same exposure I got over the years, and get selected for their trip to New Zealand or wherever the world championships may be.”

Lyle Normand has played the game at the top level across Canada and has two sons playing with STK. As one of the coaches of the team, he believes in the vision that this program was founded upon.

“Last year, his goal was to win the Canadian Native championships – we’ve done that,” Normand explained. “This year, the goal was to add more players when we could and travel and compete internationally, and we’re doing that. The three-year plan is to compete in the [International Softball Congress tournament] in Surrey next year. That is our plan.”

For Normand, it was an easy decision to give his time as a coach with the STK program, when saw what Anthony is trying to accomplish.

‘He’s just doing what he can to try and grow the game,” Lyle Normand, one of the coaches of STK Fastball said. “Credit to him for doing it.”

Sooke and STK met in Sunday’s championship game at Charles Anderson Stadium. STK won the final by a 6-3 score