OTTAWA- All four National Championships were underway early today as teams look to position themselves for playoff spots.
Here’s a look at the early action with a full report to come later this evening.
13U
Ontario 10 Atlantic 9
Ontario scored five runs in the third and held off a late Atlantic rally to record a 10-9 win. Joshua Palmer (Waterdown) got things going in the third when he doubled in a run, while Austin Bertrand then followed with a double to score Palmer. Palmer was in the thick of it again in the seventh when he entered the game on the mound with Atlantic mounting a comeback, but managed to record three outs to preserve the win. Rory White (Fall River) and Ryan Munro (Timberlea) drove in a pair of runs each for Atlantic.
BC 1 Québec (2) 0
Pitching was the story of this game as BC’s Jesse Makaj (Vancouver) was brilliant over seven shutout innings; scattering four hits to go along with nine strikeouts to lead his team to a 1-0 win. Makaj also accounted for his teams’ only run when he belted a solo homer in the top of the seventh. Québec’s Viktor Bergeron (Lanaudiere) was equally impressive as he pitched five and third scoreless innings and recorded nine strikeouts before being lifted from the game.
London 10 Saskatchewan 1
Coming off a late inning victory the previous night against Quebec, London showed no signs of slowing down on day two. London once again got hot in the late innings, scoring 5 in the sixth and adding 3 in the seventh for a 10-1 win. Brandon Deans (Mississauga) did his part with the bat recording two hits, while Josh Hudvagner (Cottam) Noah Roberts (Cambridge) and Bradley Verhoeven (St. Thomas) all registered 2 RBIs.
Alberta 3 Quebec 1
Quebec opened up the scoring with a solo home run from catcher Deven Lacerte-Desmarais (Mauricie) in the bottom of the first. The score remained 1-0 until the seventh inning thanks to some good pitching from both starters Tyson Kowaluck (St. Albert) and Olivier Dubuc (Quebec). Alberta put up four hits in the top of the fourth and recorded three runs, which proved to be just enough for the 3-1 victory.
15U
New Brunswick 9 Saskatchewan 8
New Brunswick survived a late scare from Saskatchewan hanging on to win 9-8. Up 6-0 in the fifth, Saskatchewan pulled to within two before New Brunswick regained a comfortable lead only to see Saskatchewan score four more in the seventh. Adam Estey (Fredericton) led New Brunswick’s offence with a 2-for-3 game at the play including a double and two, RBI while Tyrel Poore (Fredericton) pitched three and two-thirds shutout innings and also contributed a double and scored a run. Jaden Shewchuk (Saskatoon) went 3-for-4 with a double, triple and two RBI for Saskatchewan.
Nova Scotia 13 PEI 3
Nova Scotia put the finishing touches on a mercy rule win scoring seven runs in the sixth on their way to a 13-3 victory over PEI. Zack Zinck (Bridgewater) went 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored and two RBI for Nova Scotia and Jarrett Dinn (Halifax) added three hits, scored two runs and drove in one. Garrett Nicholson (Sydney Mines) and Ryan O’Toole (Bridgewater) combined to strikeout nine batters. Kallum Muirhead (Charlottetown) went 3-for-3 with a triple and RBI for PEI, while Logan MacDougall (Summerside) had a pair of hits and scored one run.
Manitoba 6 Newfoundland & Labrador 0
Rheal Letain (Dauphin) was the story of this game as he tossed a complete-game shutout allowing only four hits, while striking out eight as Manitoba beat Newfoundland and Labrador 6-0. Letain contributed on offence as well hitting a RBI triple, while teammate Victor Cerny (Winnipeg) tripled in a run as well. Chad Picton (Winnipeg) went 2-for-3 with a double and one RBI for the winners.
Vaughan 10 Ontario 3
In an all-Ontario match-up, host Vaughan pulled away from Ontario with three runs in both the third and fourth frames en route to a 10-3 victory. Tyler Hopper’s (Hillsdale) single in the third scored three runs in the third before Matteo Digiulio’s (Maple) triple scored two to highlight the three-run fourth. Diego Dominguez (Maple) pitched a complete-game for Vaughan that included five strikeouts.
BC 4 Québec 3
BC rallied from three runs down to score three in the bottom of the sixth before Sami Shoemaker’s (White Rock) single in the bottom of the seventh scored Rhys Cratty (Surrey) with the winning run. Tim Walters (Gibsons) tossed two innings of scoreless relief for BC with four strikeouts, while Cratty struck out four through one and two-thirds innings of work. Pierre-Olivier Avoine (Gatineau) drove in a run for Québec.
16U Girls Invitational
Ontario 19 Newfoundland & Labrador 0
Hailey Boyd (Port Dover) turned in four no-hit innings and struck out seven as her Ontario side defeated Newfoundland and Labrador 19-0 in a four-inning mercy rule game. Boyd also did plenty of damage at the plate driving in five runs going 2-for-3 at the plate. Mia Valcke (St. Marys) added a triple and scored two runs, while Jessica MacPherson (Essex) had three RBI.
Nova Scotia 11 Québec (2) 1
Nova Scotia has yet to play a seven-inning game after two days of competition at the 16U championships, and that’s a good thing. After beating Saskatchewan 16-0 on Thursday in a game that took only four innings, the girls were back at it with a decisive win over Quebec 2 on Friday. Maria Roy (Hammonds Plains) struck out six and gave up only three hits in 6 innings of work. The run support came courtesy of Jenna Jackson (Steam Hill) and Brogan MacNeil (Lower Sackville), both getting two hits en route to the 11-1 victory.
Senior Men
Manitoba 12 Newfoundland & Labrador 1
Mitch Olsen (Deloraine) knocked in three runs and Eric Truscott (Brandon) went 3-for-3 with a double and one RBI to lead Manitoba to a five-inning 12-1 mercy-rule win over Newfoundland and Labrador. Paul Thompson (Pierson) started and pitched three innings without giving up an earned run to go along with six strikeouts, while Austin Brereton (Virden) was solid giving up only a pair of walks through two shutout innings.
Alberta 5 Ontario 1
Dustin Northcott (Edmonton) tossed a complete-game gem allowing only one run on five hits, two walks, while he fanned four to lead Alberta to a 5-1 win over Ontario. Curtis Lambkin (Lakeshore) put Ontario out to a 1-0 lead in the third with a solo blast, but Alberta responded with three runs in the fourth and added two more in the seventh to come out on top. Aaron Dunsmore (Spruce Grove) led the offence with a 2-for-3 game at the plate including a home run and three RBI, while Jason Chatwood (Red Deer) drove in the other two runs.
New Brunswick 4 St. John’s 0
Darren Hardy’s (Miramichi) sac-fly in the second inning scored Jody Peterson (Fredericton) for all of the offence that New Brunswick would need as they defeated St. John’s 4-0. Mike Washburn (Fredericton) belted a three-run homer in the third and Robbie Murphy (Saint John) was impressive through six innings on the mound scattering seven hit and a walk, while striking out three.
British Columbia 10 Nova Scotia 2
British Columbia wasted no time in this one, getting the early 9-0 lead after only three innings. Catcher Sean Hotzak (Coquitlam) and third base Robert Foerster (Aldergrove) led the way offensively, recording three and two hits respectively, while combining for 5 RBIs. Pitcher Shawn Schaefer (Pitt Meadows) pitched 7 innings and struck out 6 in the process.
Notes: All Baseball Canada National Championship events can be followed with live scoring courtesy of Pointstreak. The Senior Men has live streaming available. Visit baseball.ca for details.
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