Round robins come to an end at National Championships
By: Riley Quigg
Canadian Baseball Network
Ottawa, ON – With the round-robin coming to an end at all four National Championships, teams battled it out looking to secure a spot in the medal round. A total of 25 games took place on Saturday, including three quarterfinal match-ups.
Here's a look at some of the action:
13U National Championship
Saskatchewan and Brampton both sit atop their respective pools with perfect 4-0 records and have guaranteed themselves a spot in the medal round. Having won pool A, Saskatchewan will face Mauricie in the first semifinal of the day tomorrow while Brampton, the top team in pool B, will take on London.
Saturday's action started off with a bang as the two first games ended with a walk off. Alberta scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth to top Québec in extra innings. Tag Weder (Calgary, AB) went 2-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs scored to contribute offensively in the win. Saskatchewan picked up the win over Barrie in dramatic fashion as well scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh. Boston Buckberger (Saskatoon, SK) went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored.
Mauricie and Brampton played for first place in pool B as both went in to the game with perfect records. Jonas Press (Toronto, ON) went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored to provide the bulk of the offense and help Brampton remain undefeated. Starting pitcher Joel Palmer (Waterdown, ON) struck out eight over four innings in the win.
Scores:
Alberta 8 Québec (QC3) 7
Saskatchewan 9 Barrie (ON2) 8
Brampton (ON1) 10 Mauricie (QC2) 6
London 20 Atlantic 10
Rive-Sud (QC1) 4 Barrie (ON2) 3
Québec (QC3) 9 British Columbia 1
15U Championship
The semifinals are set for Sunday in Summerside, PE. British Columbia earned the last semifinal spot up for grabs with a 17-0 win over Newfoundland and will face Ontario tomorrow. Alberta and Québec make up the other semifinal. Alberta is the only team to remain undefeated in the tournament with a 5-0 record.
Alberta remains perfect after edging out Summerside despite a late comeback attempt from the host team. Michael Brisson (St. Albert, AB) homered in the win driving in three and coming across to score three times to carry more than his weight of the offense in the win.
In a must-win situation, Justin Thorsteinson was almost untouchable on the mound striking out eight of the nine batters he faced over three perfect innings. Thorsteinson stepped up at the plate as well going 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs to help British Columbia secure a spot in the semis on Sunday.
Scores:
Québec 11 Ontario 4
British Columbia 6 Prince Edward Island 1
Alberta 8 Summerside 6
Manitoba 16 Newfoundland 1
Prince Edward Island 6 New Brunswick 4
Nova Scotia 7 Saskatchewan 3
British Columbia 17 Newfoundland 0
Senior Men Championship
New Brunswick and Ontario 1 will face off in the first semifinal set for Sunday. Ontario 1 secured the spot by finishing 1st in pool A while New Brunswick had to beat British Columbia in the quarterfinals. Fredericton, the top team in pool B, will face BLANK in the second semifinal matchup of the day.
New Brunswick took the first quarterfinal match-up over British Columbia thanks to a strong performance on the mound from Jordan Stevenson (New Glascow, PE). Stevenson struck out seven in the complete game win while teammate Kris Keating (Miramichi, NB) provided some much needed run support with three RBIs going 2-for-5 with a triple and a double.
Ontario 1 defeated New Brunswick earlier in the day to secure 1st place in pool A thanks to a complete game win from starting pitcher Kyle Breitner (Brampton, ON). Breitner held New Brunswick to one run over seven innings. Brandon Gignac (Lasalle, ON) contributed offensively going 2-for-2 with a double and two RBIs.
Scores:
British Columbia 5 Ontario (ON2) 1
New Brunswick 5 Alberta 3
Manitoba 4 Newfoundland 3
Fredericton 3 Nova Scotia 2
Québec 6 Ontario (ON2) 3
Ontario (ON1) 6 New Brunswick 1
New Brunswick 9 British Columbia 3
Ontario (ON2) 7 Alberta 5
Senior Women Invitational
As the only team to remain undefeated, British Columbia will take on fourth seeded Québec in the first semifinal scheduled for Sunday. Alberta and Ontario will face off in the second semifinal match-up having finished second and third, respectively.
British Columbia protected their perfect record on Saturday with an 8-3 win over Québec. A big six-run inning in the bottom of the fifth really sealed the deal in this one as pitchers Stacy Fournier (Langley, BC) and Rhianna Pettapiece (North Vancouver, BC) shutout the opposition over the final two innings.
Melissa Armstrong (Saskatoon, SK), now tied for the tournament lead in hits, picked up two more as she went 2-for-4 with three runs scored in Alberta's win over Québec. Emilie Laliberté (Granby, QC) had a strong performance at the plate as well going 3-for-4 with two doubles. Starting pitcher Lauren Rooney (Regina, SK) picked up the win striking out four over 5.1 innings.
Scores:
Alberta 10 Québec 9
Ontario 6 Prospect Team 4
British Columbia 8 Québec 3