Announcement
Southwest Juniors come together when it counts.
The Southwest Juniors participated in the Junior “C” Ontario Baseball Championships in Stratford. After spending the entire season battling various injuries and illness to key players and coaches, the team was finally healthy and ready to compete.
Southwest drew the Stratford Juniors in their first game and sent staff ace Brandan Farquhar to the hill. Farquhar’s calm and cool demeanor on the hill helped the team out as they were able to relax and not put too much pressure on themselves which led the Southwest Juniors to an 8-4 win. Farquhar pitched an impressive complete game striking out 10 Stratford batters. Offensively, leadoff sparkplug Chris DeVito forced the Stratford pitcher deep into counts every at bat and reached base 4 times scoring 3 runs. Darren Boyce was his usual 2 for 3 with 3 very big RBI’s.
In Game 2 the Southwest Juniors faced a powerful Georgetown team. In a game that can only be described as a nail biter, the Southwest Juniors again prevailed with a 10-9 win. The game see-sawed back and forth as Southwest went up 3-2, 5-4, trailed 7-5, then went up 8-7 when tournament MVP Chris Stewart blasted a 2 out 3 run home run. Southwest went up 10-7 in the top of the 7th only to give 2 back in the bottom of the 7th with no one out. Nathan Naylor, who had battled the Georgetown hitters all day, remained calm when Georgetown had the tying run on 3rd base with no one out. After getting the first batter out, Naylor made a spectacular stab off the mound that the runner was not expecting. With the runner frozen like a deer in headlights, Naylor chased him right into and out at the plate. Sealing the deal, Naylor finished the game off getting an easy ground ball to end the game. The offence was again led by Darren Boyce who was 4/5 with 2 RBI. Brant Cormier came off the bench to provide the spark the team needed as he smacked the ball all over the field to the tune of 3 hits. The at bat of the game went to shortstop Steve Truax who, after hitting a rocket of an out in his previous at bat, came through with a double that scored 2 very big runs. Thanks to the luck of the draw, the Southwest Juniors were off to the finals Sunday where they were certain they would be facing Georgetown in a rematch of the afternoon’s battle.
Sunday morning Southwest again matched up against Georgetown with the knowledge Georgetown would have to be beat them two times. Needing a pitcher to step up in game 3, the coaching staff turned to unsung hero Colin Noble to get Southwest through as much of the game as he could. Fortunately, Noble was able to relax as Southwest scored 5 runs in the first inning, shocking Georgetown. The highlight of the first inning was Rob Wydeven “getting lost” between first and second which allowed Steve Truax to scramble home from 3rd with the 5th run of the inning. Noble managed to battle through 3 innings, giving way to Mitch Iredale who provided just what the doctor ordered. Iredale provided a key hit offensively and fought through an inning and half which saved the arm of Nathan Naylor, who was forced into duty after throwing 5 innings the previous day. The offence put pressure on Georgetown every inning including a double by Midget aged CF Mike McGrath who spent the whole year starting in CF and playing world class defense. Brant Cormier came through again going 3 for 3 with 3 RBI’s. Chris Stewart proved again why he was not only the tournament MVP but the team MVP of the season going 3 for 4. The Southwest Juniors, in control from the start, beat Georgetown 11-4.
Not to be overlooked, exhausted and injured catcher Kevin Musty stepped up as the leader he is, catching in every game in the heat and coming through with big hits and great bunts whenever he was asked. The coaches would like to thank all those who stuck it out through a very tough year only to come through when it counts and show the true leaders these young men are.
Team members include: Chris DeVito, Chris Stewart, Darren Boyce, Shane “wrong way” Ely, Kevin Musty, Mike McGrath, Mark McLean, Brandan Farquhar, Mitch Iredale, Colin Noble, Steve Truax, Rob Wydeven, Brant Cormier, Nathan Naylor. The coaching staff was comprised of coach Andrew Mann, manager Bob Boyce, coach Lou Lenehan, and Tyler Ullerick.
