Parker: Bats get hot for Team Red in win over Team Navy

Team Red’s Hayden Payne (Lynn, Ont.), who plays for the Ottawa Nepean Canadians, high-fives the bat boy during Friday’s game against Team Navy. Photo: Samantha Gibbs, BCIT

September 18, 2026

By Robbie Parker

BCIT

Offence was the order of the day in Friday’s third game at the Blue Jays Academy Canadian Futures Showcase as Team Red doubled up Team Navy 8-4.

Navy actually scored the game’s first run in the top of the first inning at Nat Bailey Stadium, as Ethan Renaud (Okotoks, Alta.) scampered home on a throwing error by third baseman Ben Laughlin (Ottawa, Ont.)

Team Red took a 2-1 lead in the second after an RBI single from Maxime Lamarre (Terrabonne, Que.) drove in Lucas Carroll (Calgary, Alta.) and Nathan Bailey (Edmonton, Alta.) hit a run-scoring fly ball.

Defence and pitching took over in the third and fourth as the score remained 2-1 going into the fifth.

Then, offensive momentum seemed to turn for both teams as Navy’s Larson Accardo (Gilbert, Ariz.) hit a bloop double into shallow left and the shining sun. A hard-hit single by Nathan Zaretzky (King City, Ont.), and a wild pitch by Caleb Dupuis (Georgetown, Ont.) allowed Accardo to score.

Victor Lauziere (Greenfield Park, Que.) hit a line-drive double to bring home Zaretsky, giving Navy a 3-2 lead.

Team Red took the lead back fast in the bottom half as Joshua Holden (Mount Albert, Ont.) hit a two-run, stand-up double after a walk and wild pitch put two on base.

The double was almost immediately followed up by back-to-back RBI singles by Jackson Becker (Nepean, Ont.) and Victor Cauchon (Montreal, Que.) as Team Red took a 6-3 lead.

The two teams exchanged runs in the sixth inning. Renaud scored Navy’s fourth, and Carroll picked up Red’s seventh run. Team Red tallied one more in the seventh to make it an 8-4 final.

“We showed well today and we’re hoping to keep doing that for the next two days,” said Holden, who was named the Player of the Game after going 2-for-3 while driving in two.

He also stated what he wants to accomplish this weekend, “Keep putting together good at-bats, keep having team success.”

Red’s starting pitcher, left-hander Johann Sternberg (Toronto, Ont.), went three innings with five strikeouts, surrendering one walk and one hit. The starting pitcher for Team Navy was right hander Lucien Kovalcik (Burlington, Ont.), who also went three innings finishing with four strikeouts and two earned runs.

Both teams are back in action on Saturday. Red faces Black (12 p.m. P.T.) while Navy faces Grey immediately after (3 p.m. P.T.).