ORLANDO – The Junior National Team had the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning down by one, but could not cash in as they would fall to the Atlanta Braves by a score of 4-3 at the Disney Spring Training Camp.
With two outs in the ninth, the JNT were able to load the bases on three straight singles and had the tying run 90 feet away. But the Braves were able to get Alex Calbick (Burnaby, BC) to foul out to right and escape with the win.
The JNT got on the board first in the second inning. Rowan Wick (North Vancouver, BC) led off the frame with a single and would later advance to second on a ground out. From there Jordan Boston (Brampton, ON) stroked a double to left to score Wick to give Canada a 1-0 lead.
Mike Ellis (Surrey, BC) was masterful at holding the Braves offence at bay during his three innings of work. His only blemish was a hit batsman as he put up zeros across the board. He also struck out five in his outing.
The Braves however would tie the game in the fourth inning against Iannick Remillard (Valleyfield, QC), who came in relief of Ellis. Remillard gave up a leadoff walk then, after a pair of stolen bases, a wild pitch allowed the runner to score and make it a 1-1 game.
In the sixth inning, the Braves would take the lead after a one out double followed by a triple to go ahead by one.
The lead would increase to three in the seventh inning after a pair of hits and an error allowed two more runs to score to give the Braves a 4-1 advantage.
The JNT fought back in the top of the eighth by cutting the deficit to one. Emmanuel Forcier (St-Hyacinthe, QC) drew a leadoff walk and Dalton Pompey (Mississauga, ON) dropped a single to put runners on the corners. Kelly Norris-Jones (Victoria, BC) hit an RBI single to right to drive in Forcier and make it 4-2. With two outs and Pompey now on third, a wild pitch allowed him to score and make it a one run ballgame.
In the ninth, the JNT had the bases loaded with two outs, but were unable to bring any of the runners across and fell just short.
Of note, Boston was 2-for-3 with an RBI in the game, Pompey was also 2-for-3 with a run scored and Norris-Jones drove in a run in his only at-bat of the game.
The next game for the Junior National Team will be on Monday, April 19 at 1 PM against the Houston Astros at Champion Field at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports complex. Jonathan Paquet (Ancienne Lorette, QC) is scheduled to start on the mound for Canada.
