They Set a Goal in the Winter. On a Sunday in Orillia, the Simcoe Giants 13U Finished What They Started.
There is a moment at the end of a championship season that every coach chases and most never find.
The final out. The rush of players from the dugout. The realization, somewhere between the last pitch crossing the plate and the pile forming on the infield, that everything you set out to do at the beginning of the year is now done.
Richard Long found that moment Sunday morning at Kitchener Park Diamond 1 in Orillia.
His Simcoe Giants 13U team had just beaten the Orillia Royals 10-8 in the OBA Provincial Championship final. Four games over three days. Four wins. An OBA Provincial title that this group had been chasing since the first day of winter ball practice.
"The feeling was a range of emotions," Long said. "Relief and happiness come to mind. Relief that we completed our season mission and happiness for the kids. They worked hard all year to get to that game."
Season mission. Those two words say everything you need to know about how this team was built and how it was run.
How the Weekend Unfolded
The Giants came to Orillia with a 26-16-1 record and a season's worth of preparation behind them. They had competed all summer in one of the most demanding 13U circuits in the province, facing programs like the London Badgers AAA and travelling to tournaments across Ontario. By the time September arrived, there was nothing left to prove about whether this team could compete at the highest level.
The only thing left was to win.
Friday night they opened against the host Orillia Royals and won 6-2. Dexton took the ball and threw 3.1 innings of shutout ball. Blake followed with 2.2 more scoreless innings. Madden led the offence going 2 for 4 with 2 RBI. A professional performance from start to finish.
Saturday brought two more opponents and the Giants showed the rest of the field exactly what they were capable of. In the morning game against the Kawartha Cubs, Evan threw a complete game masterpiece, 5 innings, 1 earned run, 4 strikeouts. Isaac was everywhere in that lineup, going 3 for 3 with 4 RBI. Dexton scored 3 times. The Giants won 11-1 and it was not close.
The afternoon game against the Chatham Diamonds was even more decisive. Jackson took the mound and threw a complete game shutout. The Giants scored in bunches. Madden hit a triple. Nathan had 2 doubles and 2 RBI. Chase hit 2 doubles. The final score was 15-0 and the Giants had run-ruled their way into Sunday morning.
But the Orillia Royals were waiting.
The Championship Final
The Royals were not the same team the Giants had beaten 6-2 on Friday night. They had fought through the double elimination bracket and come back hungry. This was going to be a game.
It was exactly that.
The Giants and Royals traded blows all morning. When Nathan launched a home run it shifted momentum. When Jase drove in 4 runs it tilted the game. When Jackson went 3 for 3 it sealed it.
Final score 10-8. Back to back wins over the same team in the same tournament, the second one when it counted most.
Simcoe Giants. OBA Provincial Champions.
What Made This Team Different
The Giants finished 26-16-1 on the season against a schedule that would have broken lesser teams. Long was direct about what that record meant heading into Orillia.
"The season taught me that we can compete against some of the best teams in the province. Playing in such a competitive league with high calibre teams and players is one way we were prepared for the games that matter most. We also stressed throughout the season about supporting each other and controlling our emotions on the diamond. The team did very well at this when push came to shove."
Control your emotions. Support each other. Two things that sound simple and are impossibly hard for a group of 13 year olds in the middle of a championship weekend.
These Giants pulled it off.
Long also pointed to something that did not show up in any box score all weekend. The pitching depth that nobody had to touch.
"Our depth is a huge contributor to this win. We know when our bats are going we are a force. I believe our biggest area of depth is pitching. The fact that we went into the championship game with only 3 players unavailable to pitch was huge. We won that tournament and hadn't thrown our 1A lefty pitcher all weekend. We had pitching for another 2 games if needed."
Read that again. They won the OBA Provincial Championship without ever having to use a top pitcher. That is not luck. That is a program.
The People Who Built This
Rich Long was quick to name the people who deserved to share this championship.
His coaching staff of Brad Stark, Paul Whitford, Aaron LaPorte, and Ian Fehrman brought something different to the diamond every single day. For those who follow Hometown Sports Network, Ian Fehrman's name needs no introduction. The Townsend native and newly inducted ISC Hall of Famer brought a lifetime of championship experience to this group of 13 year olds and it showed in how they competed when the games mattered most.
The sponsors who believed in this team from the beginning. Sierra Construction Group served as the main sponsor all season long. Townline Interiors sponsored the home tournament and went above and beyond, purchasing practice shirts for the entire team.
And the families. Long was emphatic about this.
"Our parent group is fantastic. Very supportive families. We have grandparents travelling all over to watch us and support us. It has been an absolutely amazing group to be with and I am very fortunate to have the support. I received many messages throughout the season and this past weekend from coaches and other parents. It is a very special group and I am very fortunate to be a part of it."
The Goal They Set in the Winter
Everything about this championship traces back to one conversation. One goal. One commitment made before the first pitch of the 2026 season was ever thrown.
"We set a goal in the winter ball practices," Long said. "We knew a championship had slipped past us the previous year and we weren't going to let it happen again. The kids stayed focused all season right down to our final out of the championship game."
A championship had slipped away the year before. They remembered. And they came back and did something about it.
"I also hope they realize what a special team they are and the potential they have moving forward. They have bonded so well and become great friends on top of teammates and champions."
Teammates and champions.
That is what the Simcoe Giants 13U built this summer. Not just a roster. Not just a record. A group of kids from this community who decided they were going to finish what they started and went to Orillia on a Friday night and did not leave until they had the title.
Simcoe, this one is yours.
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