In 1931, Sudbury's baseball team, sponsored by the Sudbury Canoe Club, challenged the Rinky Dinks of North Bay to a match for the coveted Ferguson Cup, the championship cup of the Northern Ontario Ladies' Softball Association.  Unfortunately, they were defeated.

However, in 1932, Sudbury once again competed for the cup against the North Bay Vitality and won the match, putting them in position to challenge for the provincial title.  In a cruel twist of fate, the team's officials had failed to submit the 50 cent affiliation fee to the provincial association, thus making Sudbury ineligible to compete.

The Sudbury team did not let disappointment stand in their way.  In 1934, Sudbury's baseball team won their first provincial title against Windsor.  The title match consisted of two games, the first to be played in Sudbury at Queen's Athletic Field, the second in Windsor.  Thanks to the heavy-hitting bat of Thelma Jo Walmesley and the magic pitching of Gerry Fitzgerald, Sudbury annihilated the competition in both games with scores of 24-8 and 22-9 respectively.  In honour of their victory, the players were all given diamond rings from a member of the Sudbury legislature.

Throughout the next four years, the ladies from Sudbury dominated the Northern Ontario competitions and in 1938, the renamed Sudbury Diamonds had won their second provincial title.

Provincial titles eluded Sudbury's team for three decades until in 1966, the Sudbury Nickelettes once again brought the championship home.  The Nickelettes were the only northern team to compete in the Provincial Women's Softball Association Junior B playoffs and as such, were given a bye to the final game against the yet to be decided southern champions.  Sudbury played the town of Shakespeare for the title and won both games with scores of 13-6 and 13-5.

• A Sport for the Future