Fitzpatrick: North Toronto Athletics attempting to qualify for Road to Okotoks
The North Toronto Athletics team that won the MNBA championship in 2025. Photo supplied.
April 15, 2026
By Trevor Fitzpatrick
Canadian Baseball Network
Of the teams participating in the upcoming Road to Okotoks qualifiers, the North Toronto Athletics are likely to be one of the youngest.
The tournament is open to players 19 and under, but the Athletics’ oldest squad in their program is their 17U group led by head coach Jamie Lekas (Toronto, Ont.).
To underestimate them would be a foolish decision though. This is a tight-knit ball club that’s had the same players together since their 13U days. They’re coming off back-to-back OBA championships in ‘24 and ‘25 in the 15U and 16U AAA categories respectively.
The 15U North Toronto Athletics team that won the 2024 OBA title. Photo supplied.
On top of that, they won seven tournaments last season, including the Toronto Baseball Association and the Elite Baseball League of Ontario.
They have a great chance ahead of them now to continue their winning ways into their 17U season.
“The players’ initial reaction was more than excited (for the chance to play in the Road to Okotoks),” recalled Lekas, “Based on the teams entering and everything that has been advertised, it was the right place, right time for this tournament to come around.”
A big bonus was the proximity of the qualifiers, explained the team’s admin Tara Coccimiglio.
“Originally, we hummed and hawed a little bit,” she said. “It’s a very expensive tournament to enter. Knowing that it’s GTA, for the qualifier anyways, I was like, you know what? It’s not as bad as I thought. We’re all very excited about the opportunity.”
On top of the team’s great run of the Ontario circuits the last two seasons, they’ve gotten off to a great start in 2026 with spring training.
They went on a trip to Florida and went 7-0 against a variety of competition. What makes the success even more impressive is the small size of their team.
While many around them during the Road to Okotoks will be fielding large rosters with pitcher only players, the Athletics roster features less than 15 players at the moment, meaning many of them pitch and play in the field.
When asked about who they’d like to highlight on the team heading into the tournament, Lekas and Coccimiglio lit up, and gave this list:
-“Our infield, Griffin Miller (Toronto, Ont.) at third, Daniel Coccimiglio (Toronto, Ont.) at short, and Gil Sernick (Toronto, Ont.) at second. They all thrive off each other and are leaders in the clubhouse,” explained Lekas.
-“Luke DeBoni (Toronto, Ont.) has been our southpaw, and ace for the last two seasons. He had over 100 strikeouts last year and a sub-two ERA,” continued Lekas.
-“Someone else that is a big presence on the mound is Blake Barbowski (Thornhill, Ont.),” said Coccimiglio, “He’s a huge presence for us, if you don’t know about him, you will definitely hear him,” Lekas chimed in.
-“While we’re on that topic, two guys who will have a huge impact on the tournament are the Cabrita brothers, Ben and Dexter (Toronto, Ont.). Dexter is our lefty leadoff hitter and Ben is our catcher, controlling the pitching staff,” Lekas said.
“We have 90% returning players this year, then added some more onto our roster, but people don’t want to leave our team,” Coccimiglio said proudly, “It’s a really great place to be. We’re excited to come out there and show everyone why it doesn’t matter what age we are, we can do it all.”
An exciting part of the Road to Okotoks qualifiers will be all the teams from different leagues, such as the OBA and CPBL, playing against one another.
While the tournament will be somewhat of an experiment, being in its first year, having top teams in Ontario playing one another is a great start. Before, they often wouldn’t run into one another unless it was by happenstance at a US tournament.
“We’re always trying to play the best teams and whether it’s scheduling issues or different leagues, it’s been challenging to get games with teams in different leagues,” Lekas explained, “We’re looking forward to playing and looking forward to that competition.”
The Road to Okotoks qualifiers take place May 28-31, with the Athletics aiming to be one of seven Ontario teams to advance to the championship round in Okotoks July 14-19.
***
Links to other “Road to Okotoks” stories:
Fitzpatrick: Terriers prepare for "Road to Okotoks"
Fitzpatrick: Etobicoke Rangers aiming to qualify for Road to Okotoks