Canada’s National Women’s Baseball Team opened play at the III IBAF Women’s Baseball World Cup with a convincing 19-9 win today over Hong Kong. “This win was a good start for our team, but we know we can play much better defensively,” said André Lachance, Field Manager for Team Canada. “We showed some nerves early in the game, but our players responded positively and we finished strong.” “Pitching and defense will win championships”, said Lachance. “We have some new players this year and it was important to get them into a World Cup game early in the tournament.” Veteran Marie-Josée Tremblay (QC) pitched the first inning; newcomers Shelby Gordon (AB) and Louise Harris (ON) finished the game which was shortened due to the five-inning mercy rule. “I am confident in our offense”, added Wayne Parro, hitting and first base coach. “We get better every year and we will compete against every country with our offense.” Leading the offense against Hong Kong were veterans Nicole Luchanski (AB) and Mel Harwood (ON) who were both two for two with two walks. Canada plays Japan on Monday evening at Botchan Stadium in Matsuyama in game two of the preliminary round. “We expect a large crowd in support of the home Japanese team, but we are ready for them!” said Lachance. The game is scheduled for 7:00 pm local time, immediately following the tournament’s opening ceremonies. Box Score
OTTAWA – On the final day of the Baseball Canada National Championships, two more teams, one in the Senior Men division and the other in the peewee division, earned the title of National Champion. But first, the medal matchups had to be decided. In the Senior Men Championship in Brandon, Manitoba, two quarter-final games started the day’s activities and it took 11 innings to decide the day’s opening contest as Ontario would drive in the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning to move on to the semis with a 5-4 win over Manitoba. Thomas Grubb (Wheatley, ON) was 3-for-4 with an RBI for Ontario, while Rory Tycoles (Reston, MB) was 3-for-5 with an RBI for Manitoba. In the other quarter-final, it was Nova Scotia holding on for the 6-4 win over Alberta. Nova Scotia took a 6-1 lead into the top of the seventh, but Alberta would rally to score three runs against starter Jason Bailey (Dartmouth, NS). Bailey however would regroup to earn the complete game win and send his team to the semi-finals. In the semis, Nova Scotia took on Québec and ran into the hot hand of Steven Bélanger (Trois-Rivières, QC). Bélanger threw a complete-game, two hit shutout on route to a 4-0 win to give Québec a birth in the Gold Medal Game. In the other semi, British Columbia scored five runs in the bottom of the first and then scored six runs in the bottom of the fifth to mercy Ontario 11-1. Matt Gunning (Victoria, BC) was 2-for-3 with an impressive seven RBI and two runs scored. So now British Columbia would square off with Québec for the gold. British Columbia would take command early as they would take a 6-0 lead after three and a half innings. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Québec would get on the board, scoring three runs to cut the lead in half. After both teams scored four runs in the fifth inning to make it 10-7 for British Columbia, Québec would add one in the sixth to cut the B.C. lead to two but that is as close as they would get as British Columbia would win the gold with a 10-8 win over Québec. Lance Burrows (Victoria, BC) was 2-for-5 with four RBI and three runs scored for British Columbia, while teammate Jon Bosnick (Burnaby, BC) was 4-for-4 with four runs scored and an RBI. Danny Girard (Trois-Rivières, QC) was 3-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored for Québec. In the Bronze Medal Game, Ontario would score five runs in the third inning and never look back as they would defeat Nova Scotia 10-4 to earn the bronze. Kris Klassen (Harrow, ON) was 4-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. At the Peewee Championship in Vaughan, Ontario, the semi-finals were all set as British Columbia took on Ontario and it was the host team from Vaughan taking on Québec in semi-final number two. In the first semi-final, it was British Columbia all over Ontario as they would move on to the Gold Medal Game with a 7-1 win. In the second semi-final, it was Québec earning a birth in the Gold Medal Game edging Vaughan by a score of 5-4. For bronze, it was an all Ontario battle as Team Ontario was too strong for the host team from Vaughan as Ontario captured the bronze medal with an 11-5 win. In the Gold Medal Game, it would be Québec who would take home the title as they would go on to defeat British Columbia by a score of 6-2. Click here for complete Baseball Canada National Championships coverage.
OTTAWA – The playoff picture is now set at the Senior Men and Peewee championships after some more intense action at the Baseball Canada National Championships. Both British Columbia and Québec finished their preliminary schedules undefeated at 4-0 at the Senior Men Championship in Brandon, Manitoba. Both teams earned berths into the semi finals and are awaiting their opponents. But first the quarter-final matchups had to be determined. Manitoba earned their spot in the playoffs after playing three games today and winning two, first against Ontario 2 where Jeff Thomson (Grande Point, MB) pitched a complete game shutout to earn a 5-0 win. Then, Manitoba held off a surging Newfoundland & Labrador for a 9-7 victory. Mitch Stephens (Brandon, MB) went 3-for-4 with three RBI. Ontario would earn their spot in the quarters with a 4-0 win over New Brunswick. Steven Carter (Windsor, ON) threw a complete game, one-hitter to help send his team to the playoffs. Alberta had to win their final game of the day to earn a spot and they did just that, holding off a resurgent Brandon team for the 3-2 win. Brandon scored their two runs in the top of the seventh inning, but Craig Tomas (St. Albert, AB) got the final out and the save. Finally, Nova Scotia earned the fourth quarter-final berth in virtue of their bottom of the seventh, 3-2 win over Ontario 2. Darren Doucette (Dartmouth, NS) drove in a pair of runs for Nova Scotia. At the Peewee Championship in Vaughan, Ontario, the quarter-final matchups were set and both Ontario and Québec were awaiting their opponents for the semi-finals on Sunday. Two teams established their dominance in the quarter-finals as both matchups were lopsided affairs. First, British Columbia would blank Manitoba 10-0 to earn a date with Ontario, while the host team from Vaughan earned their spot in the semis and a matchup with Québec with an 8-2 victory over Saskatchewan. Click here for complete Baseball Canada National Championships coverage.
OTTAWA –Rain was a factor at the Senior Men Championship while some more high scoring contests at the Peewee championship to round out the day of competition at the Baseball Canada National Championships. Only three games were completed in Brandon, Manitoba at the Senior Men Championship, but they were all exciting matchups as all three were decided in the final inning. Alberta scored an insurance run in the top of the seventh inning to give them a 2-0 lead, and it turned out they would need that run as New Brunswick came back and scored one run in the bottom of the seventh on a RBI from Craig Betts (Moncton, NB) to score Ryan Barry (Miramichi, NB), but that would be all they could get as Alberta defeated New Brunswick 2-1. It took ten innings for Ontario 2 to complete their comeback as they would score the go-ahead run in the top of the frame and hold on to win against Newfoundland & Labrador by a score of 2-1. Bobby Kent (St. John’s, NL) threw all ten innings in a losing cause, allowing two runs on eight hits. He walked one while striking out seven. Ontario thought they had a comfortable 4-0 lead going into the bottom of the seventh against Brandon, but the host team would make things interesting by scoring three runs with the help of RBIs from Kevin Levandosky (Neepawa, MB) and Ian Hockin (Neepawa, MB), but that’s as close as they would get as Ontario held on for the 4-3 win. At the Peewee Championship in Vaughan, Ontario, a repeat of the first day with some lopsided scores, but some one-run games started the day. Québec defeated British Columbia by a score of 5-4 in the first game of the day. The host team from Vaughan beat Alberta 9-8, while Prince Edward Island held on to a 7-6 win over New Brunswick. Then, the scores became a little more one sided. Ontario beat Manitoba 13-5, Saskatchewan topped Newfoundland & Labrador 19-9, British Columbia was all over Prince Edward Island 23-8 and Manitoba defeated Nova Scotia 14-5. It was Québec over Vaughan 16-7, but there would be one more one-run game before the day was out as New Brunswick edged Alberta 5-4. Click here for complete Baseball Canada National Championships coverage.
OTTAWA – The final leg of the Baseball Canada National Championships got under way today with the Senior Men and Peewee divisions. The Peewee championship will see some added strategy as a new pitch-count rule is in effect for pitchers. At the Peewee Championship in Vaughan, Ontario, the final game of the day between Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan was suspended due to a malfunction with the lights on the field and will be completed on Friday. As for the rest of the schedule, all games were completed on time which was mostly high scoring affairs. Québec opened their tournament with a pair of lopsided wins, first by a score of 11-1 over Alberta, then a 24-6 drubbing of Prince Edward Island. The host team from Vaughan also went undefeated on day one the Peewee Championship with an 11-7 win over Prince Edward Island and then outlasting New Brunswick by a score of 15-11. The Ontario came out on top in their lone game of the day, a 14-0 shutout of Newfoundland & Labrador. In other action, British Columbia defeated New Brunswick 10-0, Nova Scotia crushed Newfoundland & Labrador 19-4 and Saskatchewan trampled Manitoba 14-3. At the Senior Men’s Championship in Brandon, Manitoba, Rob Mancini (Windsor, ON) got a two-RBI pinch hit in the bottom of the sixth inning to lift Ontario over Alberta by a score of 2-1. Ontario 2 was not as fortunate as British Columbia would jump out to a 5-0 lead and hold on to win by a score of 6-3. Jon Bosnick (Burnaby, BC), Steve Bailey (Victoria, BC) and Lance Burrows (Victoria, BC) all scored a pair of runs in the game. Buddy Mayert (Brandon, MB) was 3-for-3 with two runs and an RBI in a losing cause as his Manitoba team would fall to Nova Scotia by a score of 9-5. Nova Scotia scored four runs in the top of the seventh to take this tightly contested matchup. In other action, Québec went 2-0 to open the tournament with a 3-1 win over New Brunswick and a 7-3 victory over host Brandon. Nova Scotia would also jump to 2-0 with a 6-2 win over Newfoundland & Labrador in their second game. Newfoundland would not fair any better in their second game as they would fall to British Columbia by a score of 5-3. Click here for complete Baseball Canada National Championships coverage.
BEIJING – There would be no story book ending for the Canadian Olympic Team, despite their best efforts. Canada came back to force extra-innings, but they could not hold off Chinese Taipei as the Canadians would suffer yet another one-run loss in their final preliminary game at the 2008 Olympic Summer Games by a score of 6-5 in 12 innings. New rules installed by the IBAF for the Olympics state that after the 10th inning, the offensive team would put runners on first and second in order to try and speed up the finish. So with the game tied at 5-5 in the top of the 12th inning, with runners on first and second to start the frame, Chih-Hsien Chiang drove in the go-ahead run off of Chris Reitsma (Calgary, AB) to give Taipei a 6-5 lead. With Matt Rogelstad (New Westminster, BC) on second and Scott Thorman (Cambridge, ON) on first to start the bottom of the 12th for Canada, Fu-Te Ni and Chih-Chia Chang combined to strikeout the side and preserve the win for Taipei. “Well, it certainly isn’t what we baseball people are trained to compete in, but it is what it is,” says Olympic team Manager Terry Puhl of the new extra-inning format. “Do I like it? No. Nor would I like it even if we win.” Taipei got on the board first in the top of the first inning on a sacrifice fly from Kuo-Hui Lo to give his team the early 1-0 lead. Canada responded in the bottom half of the inning on a pair of RBI singles from Nick Weglarz (Stevensville, ON) and Thorman to give the Canadians a 2-1 advantage. That lead was short lived as Taipei would score four runs in the top of the second inning on the strength of two home runs, a leadoff solo-shot from Chih-Sheng Lin and a two-run blast from Chun-Chang Yeh to give Taipei a 5-2 lead. But Canada would start chipping away at that lead in the bottom of the second when Adam Stern (London, ON) led off the inning with a single and would come in to score on a pair of throwing errors on a sacrifice bunt from Emmanuel Garcia (Montreal, QC) and cut the lead to two. Stern and Garcia would pair up again in the fourth inning when Stern hit a triple, followed by an RBI ground out by Garcia to bring the Canadians within one. The Canadians would complete the comeback in the seventh inning when Stubby Clapp (Windsor, ON) hit a solo-home run, his first of the tournament, to tie the game 5-5. “We played a good game and we battled back,” says Stern, who was 2-for-5 with a triple and two runs scored. “It was awesome to see Stubby hit a bomb and in the end we played good baseball to win.” “The whole at-bat I was trying to hit the ball hard, maybe get a double, but I just got lucky and got on top of it and away she went,” says Clapp of his home run. Although Canada was able to erase a three-run deficit to force extra innings, they were unable to carry that momentum into the extra frames and Taipei was able to capitalize in the 12th inning and end up on top. Canada finishes their second Olympic tournament with a 2-5 record, but all five losses were by one-run which is a statement to the symmetry of the competition at the Olympic tournament. “This was the deepest Olympic tournament, talent wise, ever,” says Clapp. “These guys know that they can compete with the best in the world and win. When you really look back at it, we were one hit away from going to the medal round, literally. It speaks volumes of this program and of these guys on this team.” “It’s difficult to say that there is really one team that is so much better than the rest,” says Puhl. “From game one to game seven, we played some really good baseball, but it just didn’t work out. I can never say anything negative about the effort that these players have given, not only for this team but for this country. I can never ask for a better bunch of guys.” The Canadian Olympic Team will make their way back to North America on August 24th where the players will return to their respective clubs and finish out the 2008 season. The next time the Senior National Team will get together will be for the World Baseball Classic which will take place in March, 2009.
BEIJING – The Canadian offence came alive and the Canadian pitchers were virtually untouchable as Canada would put one in the win column with a 4-0 victory over the Netherlands at the 2008 Olympic Summer Games. After being blanked the previous game, Canada returned the favour today with an outstanding performance from their pitchers, combining to give up only a pair of hits and one walk, while striking out eight Dutch hitters. “It was a more complete ballgame today,” says Olympic team Manager Terry Puhl. “That was one of our better pitching performances. (Brooks) McNiven set the stage. We put a few runs up and closed it out and played a complete ballgame.” The aforementioned Brooks McNiven (Vernon, BC) got things started on the mound and went six strong innings, allowing only one hit with a pair of strikeouts. McNiven had a no-hitter going until Roel Koolen stroked a single in the sixth inning to break up the no-no. “I just tried to go out there and get ahead of them,” says McNiven, who picked up the win. “The difference for me today from the game against Cuba is I was ahead and threw alot of first pitch strikes and I pitched for ground balls.” Then, three different hurlers would finish what McNiven started as Jonathan Lockwood (Toronto, ON), Rheal Cormier (Moncton, NB) and T.J. Burton (Ottawa, ON) would each pitch an inning to help preserve the win. Lockwood struck out two while retiring the side in order in seventh. Cormier gave up a walk, but struck out Sidney de Jong and got Eugene Kingsale to ground into the double-play to end the eighth. And Burton allowed a leadoff single to Percy Isenia, but he would then strikeout the side to end the game. “Our bullpen came in and they did good work,” says Puhl of his relievers. “Our bullpen has one of the strengths of this team in this tournament and today they proved that again.” Offensively, Canada put some points on the board in the third inning. Matt Rogelstad (New Westminster, BC) drove in Emmanuel Garcia (Montreal, QC) on a ground out to give Canada a 1-0 lead. The Canadians gave themselves a cushion in the fourth inning by scoring a pair of runs on a RBI triple from Emerson Frostad (Calgary, AB) and a sacrifice fly from Brett Lawrie (Langley, BC) to put Canada up front 3-0. “We were able to put guys on and cash them in today”, says Frostad, who was 2-for-4 in this game. “We played a good game and capitalized on our chances.” A two-out RBI single from Jimmy VanOstrand (Richmond, BC) to score Mike Saunders (Victoria, BC), who had doubled, in the eighth inning completed the scoring for the Canadians, giving them a four-run lead. Canada, who is still mathematically in the hunt for a spot in the medal round, will now look to finish strong in their final preliminary game against Chinese Taipei. “We’re still going to go out there and take care of business,” says Matt Rogelstad, who drove in the winning run today. “We want to go out and prove that we are one of the top teams here, even though the standings may not be indicative of that, but we still want to go out and play for the country and make Canada proud.” Canada will take on Chinese Taipei on Wednesday, August 20th at 6:00 pm, local time in Beijing. For those following in Canada, game time is at 6:00 am Eastern time on Wednesday morning.
BEIJING - The Canadian offence could not get anything going as it now becomes a steeper climb for Canada to make the medal round at the 2008 Olympic Summer Games as they would be shutout by Japan by a score of 1-0. In what was an eerily similar game than their third contest of the Olympic Games against Korea, Canada could not solve the pitcher on the mound for Japan Yoshihisa Naruse as he would go seven strong innings, allowing only two hits while striking out 10. “It was a well pitched ballgame on both sides,” says Olympic team Manager Terry Puhl. “We just need to create some offence. Whatever you need to do to get more opportunities to score is what we need.” Canadian starter Chris Begg (Uxbridge, ON) was solid in the loss, going pitch for pitch with Naruse. Begg would allow only one run, a fourth inning home run to Atsunori Inabi over five and one third innings on the mound. “He was outstanding for us today,” says Canadian captain Stubby Clapp (Windsor, ON). “Unfortunately we didn’t do anything to help him out today. We couldn’t get on base and when we did we couldn’t capitalize.” Canada did not generate any offence in this game, threatening only once in the bottom of the fourth when Emmanuel Garcia (Montreal, QC) and Mike Saunders (Victoria, BC) were on second and third with one out. But Naruse would get out of the jam by striking out Scott Thorman (Cambridge, ON) and Nick Weglarz (Stevensville, ON) to end the threat. David Davidson (St. Catherines, ON) and Steve Green (Longueuil, QC) kept Canada in the ballgame in relief. Davidson allowed only a walk in two and two thirds innings with a pair of strikeouts. Green pitched the ninth where Japan threatened to add to their lead with a runner on third and nobody out, but the right-hander got Masahiko Morino and Takahiro Arai to ground out and struck out Shuichi Murata to end the inning. However, the Canadians could not get anything going in the ninth as Japanese closer Koji Uehara retired the side in order to preserve the victory and give Canada another one-run loss. “All we can do now is go back and see how it all plays out,” says Puhl. “We’ll come out tomorrow and compete and play the way Team Canada is supposed to play.” Canada now needs help to keep their medal hopes alive and must win their remaining two games, starting with the Netherlands on Tuesday, August 19th. Game time is at 10:30 am local time in Beijing. For those following in Canada, game time is at 10:30 pm Eastern time on Monday night.
OTTAWA – The gold and bronze medal games took place today at the Junior Championship in Charlottetown, PEI as Baseball Canada crowned its sixth National Champion of 2008. Québec and British Columbia battled it out for the gold. Québec would jump out to a 3-0 lead, scoring two runs in the first inning and one in the third inning off British Columbia starter Eric Brown (Vancouver, BC). British Columbia would respond in the bottom of the third by reducing the lead to one on a double from Scott Belinski (Kelowna, BC), a wild pitch by Mathew Langton (Pointe-Claire, QC) and three straight singles, including an RBI single from Cory Smith (Kelowna, BC) to make it 3-2. However, that would all the scoring in the game as Québec would hold on to capture the gold medal in a 3-2 win. It would take nine innings to decide the bronze medal game between Ontario and Québec 2 as Josh Federico (Amherstburg, ON) would come score in the top of the ninth to break a scoreless tie on a RBI single from Brian Simone (Amherstburg, ON) and they would hold on to win the bronze medal by a score of 1-0. It was a pitcher’s duel between Mike Delong (Windsor, ON) and François Lafreniere (St-Bruno, QC). Both would pitch the complete game, but Delong would come out on top of this battle of hurlers. Delong gave up only three hits and three walks, while striking out 11. Lafreniere allowed one run on seven hits with nine strikeouts over eight and two thirds innings. Click here for complete Baseball Canada National Championships coverage.
OTTAWA – Two National Champions were crowned at the Baseball Canada National Championships, while one champion will be decided on Monday due to rain today. Ontario captured the Baseball Canada Cup in Medicine Hat, Alberta on the strength of two three-run innings and a three RBI performance from Andrew Firth (London, ON) to defeat British Columbia 8-6. New Brunswick scored eight runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, highlighted by a bases clearing double by Daniel McNeil (Salisbury, NB) to cash in three runs on route to capturing the bronze medal in a surprising 13-8 win over Québec. Ontario and British Columbia would battle it out for gold at the Bantam Boys Championship in Mascouche, Québec with this time British Columbia coming out on top to take home the gold with a 4-3 win over Ontario. In the bronze medal matchup, it would be Lanaudiere who come out on top, solidifying third place with a 6-3 victory over Saskatchewan. The Junior Championship in Charlottetown, PEI saw some inclement weather push back the gold and bronze medal to Monday, but not before the matchups for those games was decided. A wild pitch in the bottom of the tenth inning allowed Scott Belinski (Kelowna, BC) to score the winning run and put British Columbia in the gold medal game with a 2-1 win over Ontario. Brandon Kaye (Langley, BC) was outstanding on the mound for B.C. as he would pitch nine innings, allowing only one run on five hits with a pair of strikeouts in his outing. It was the battle of Québec in the second semi-final, but Québec would score ten runs in the first inning and never look back as they would move on to the gold medal game with a 14-2 win over Québec 2 in five innings. Guillaume Dupont-Duguay (Trois-Rivières, QC) threw the complete game for Québec, allowing two runs on six hits with seven strikeouts. Jonathan Lussier (Ste. Thérèse, QC) led the way offensively with four RBI. British Columbia will take on Québec for gold on Monday at 12:00 pm, while Ontario and Québec 2 will battle it out for bronze at 9:00 am. Click here for complete Baseball Canada National Championships coverage.
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