The top softball teams in Canada are in the Okanagan this weekend for the 2021 Canadian collegiate championship.
The six-team tournament runs Friday through Sunday, and Monday if needed, at High Noon Ball Park on Old Vernon Road in Kelowna, behind Kelowna International Airport.
The field includes the host UBC Okanagan Heat, who went 17-2-1 in league play this season despite being in just their third year.
Action got underway Friday at 9 a.m., with the St. Clair College Saints (16-0) of Windsor, Ont., playing the Humber College Hawks (7-3) of Toronto, and the University of Calgary Dinos (22-8) playing the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees (6-1). The University of Regina Cougars (12-13) round out the field.
The Canadian Collegiate Softball Association (CCSA) is the governing body for university and college softball in Canada.
Regionally, UBCO plays in the Western Collegiate Softball Association, and last weekend, the Heat won the league championship, going 3-0 in the seven-team tournament last weekend in Calgary.
The Heat defeated host Calgary twice, 5-4 and then 1-0 in the championship game, with UBCO pitcher Jessica Podskalny throwing the shutout.
Information about the national championship, including tickets, can be found on the UBCO Heat Athletics website.