OTTAWA – The host Prince George Axemen gave their fans something to cheer about after defeating Ontario to win the Senior Men’s National Championship. They are the only host team so far to win a Baseball Canada championship this year.
Over in Saskatchewan, the host Saskatoon Blue Jays looked to write the same script as Prince George and win as hosts, but they couldn’t get it done. The BC team from Cloverdale, BC, beat them to win the Peewee Western Championship.
Senior Men’s Championship
Gold Medal
Prince George 9 Ontario 5
After already losing once to Prince George in round robin play, Ontario was looking for some revenge in the championship final. However, it wasn’t meant to be as the host Prince George squad got the best of Ontario again, defeating them 9-5.
Ontario got on the board early with a run in the first inning to take the 1-0 lead, but Prince George quickly squashed that lead by picking up four runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning. Looking to climb back into the game, Ontario got within one run and looked like they had gained momentum, but it wasn’t meant to be. Centre fielder Brandon Hunter (Prince George, BC) hit a grand slam home run in the bottom of the fourth to give his team back the momentum as well as a 9-3 lead. Ontario would add two runs late but it wasn’t enough.
The host Axemen from Prince George lost only one game throughout the tournament and came together at the right time, ending with a championship and Gold medal.
Bronze Medal
Alberta scored two runs in the top of the seventh inning and then held on in the bottom half to steal the Bronze medal away from New Brunswick. With one run already in, Henry Duke (Toronto, ON) singled home Andy Herman (Sherwood Park, AB) to grab the lead, and Drew Boyer (Millet, AB) came in to register the final two outs to pick up the win. New Brunswick hit three home runs in the loss, including one from Derek Wilson (Fredericton, NB) who also had three hits and two RBI.
Semi-final #1
Prince George 4 Alberta 2
Sean Hotzak (Coquitlan, BC) hit a two-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to cap off a dramatic come-from-behind win over Alberta. The hosts trailed 2-0 heading into the sixth but managed to tie the game and then scored two more of Hotzak’s blast. Karnie Vertz (Sherwood Park, AB) pitched well for Alberta, but still took the tough loss throwing the entire game.
Semi-final #2
Ontario 14 New Brunswick 3
Ontario scored 11 runs in the first three innings to cruise past New Brunswick in five innings. Five Ontario players had at least two hits, including Kevin Mailloux (Tecumseh, ON) who finished the game with a two hits (one a home run) and four RBI. Matt Varacalli (Windsor, ON) was another, and also scored three times. Jonathan Saunders (Mirimachi, NB) had two hits and two RBI in the losing cause.
Peewee Western Championship
Gold Medal
BC 9 Saskatoon 5
After both teams won their semi final games earlier in the day, they were looking to capture that elusive championship crown. AS it turned out, BC came out on top with the 9-5 victory to go home with the gold while Saskatoon settled for silver.
The game started off conservatively as both teams tried to get a read off one another. Both pitchers were throwing well as the game remained scoreless through two innings. The offense would finally come, however, when Saskatoon took a 3-0 lead in the top of third inning off of a single, walk and hit by pitch. BC would quickly erase that lead in the bottom of the inning scoring four runs of their own.
The game went back and forth as Saskatoon took a two run lead into the bottom of the fifth inning, but BC quickly thwarted that lead as well and took over the game with a five run outburst over the next two innings to take a commanding 9-5 lead. Spencer Pawliw (Surrey, BC) finished with four RBI while Tre Pankratz
Bronze Medal
Alberta (2) 4 Alberta (1) 3
Spruce Grove, Alberta, or Alberta 2, came out on top in what turned out to be a close game. They defeated their rivals from Sherwood Park, Alberta, or Alberta 1, on the heels of a complete game performance from Logan Cameron (Stony Plain, AB). Cameron struck out seven over his seven innings of work. Ben Erwin (Stony Plain, AB) provided some offense with two RBI and two runs scored. Jack Hellquist (Sherwood Park, AB) went 3/3 at the plate in a losing effort.
Semi-final #1
BC got off to a slow start trailing 3-0 after the first inning, but picked things up the rest of the way by scoring eight runs in the next three innings en route to booking their spot in the championship final. Tanner Carmont (Surrey, BC) flashed his offensive potential with three RBI and a home run while Quinn Folick (Surrey, BC) scored three times and drove in two runs of his own. Kyler Charchun (Camrose, AB) was 2/4 with a home run and two runs scored for Alberta.
Semi-final #2
Saskatoon 16 Alberta (2) 2
The host Saskatoon Blue Jays made sure to make their hometown stick around for another game by hammering out a 16-2 victory to mark their spot in the championship final. They quickly disposed of Alberta by scoring 10 runs within the first two innings, including nine in the second to grab the win. In a game that featured a lot of offense, Jaden Shewchuk (Saskatoon, SK) stood out the most with two home runs and six RBI. Bretty MacMurchy (Estevan, SK) also added four RBI in the win.
Placement Games
Manitoba (1) 6 Manitoba (2) 1
Bonivital, Manitoba, or Manitoba 1, scored three runs in both the fifth and sixth innings to sail past some familiar faces from Winnipeg South, Manitoba, or Manitoba 2, 6-1. Ian Briscoe (Winnipeg, MB) showed his talents both offensively and on the rubber by hitting a two-run homerun and striking out 14 batters over five and two-thirds innings.
Saskatchewan (1) 18 Saskatchewan (2) 4
The Saskatoon A’s, or Saskatchewan 1, destroyed their city rivals the Saskatoon Cardinals, or Saskatchewan 2, 18-4 to capture the win. They scored eight runs in the bottom of the first inning and hit three home runs in the game. 11 different players scored at least one run in a total team effort.
