Announcement
After the completion of the 32-game regular season, interrupted by a record number of postponed games, the Dartmouth Moosehead Dry, the Halifax Pelham Molson Canadians, the Kentville Wildcats, and the Sydney Sooners look ahead to the playoffs, hoping to finish off the year with a league championship.
The Dry, first place finishers during the season, and the Sooners who captured the final playoff spot on the last day of their season by defeating the Truro Bearcats, have set this Sat., Sept. 17 for the start of the best-of-five series. The Dry will give up home field advantage for travel and cost reasons to host the Sooners at 3:00 and 7:00 at Beazley Field. The Dry will travel to Sydney to complete the series on Sat, Sept. 24, and if necessary, on the following day. Games Sat. are 3:00 and 7:00, while Sun. is scheduled for a 1:00 start.
The Canadians and Wildcats will start their semi-final at Mainland Common on Wed., with the first pitch at 7:30.
Here a look at the match-ups for the two series:
Dry (25-7) vs. Sooners (10-22) – Season series, Dry 8-0; Dry/Sooners RF/RA 85/16
The Dry bring a balance of superb pitching and loads of power to the series. Craig Langille, 7-1, Steve Nelson, 7-2, Jason Bailey, 5-0, and closer Jeff Reeves, 4-1, with 64 strikeouts in 39 innings, will see most of the action. Chris Head (.385, and a league record 43 stolen bases) and Matt Thomas set the table for sluggers Joel Irvine, Darren Doucette, Greg West , and Colin Johnson. West led the league in hitting at .421, Irvine and Johnson tied for first in RBIs with 37, Doucette in home runs with 13.
Sydney is a huge underdog heading into the series. The team will look to pitchers, Justin Brewer (4-6) and Paul Doucette (2-4), both of whom have pitched better than their records indicate, to provide some wins. Cory Christie has had an MVP-type season and was among the offensive leaders in many categories all season long (.378, 6 HRs, 31 RBI). Veterans Jason Snow, Matt Denney who appears to be regaining his batting eye, and Doucette will be counted on for offense.
Canadians (21-11) vs. Wildcats (16-16) – Season series, tied 4-4; Canadians/Wildcats RF/RA 48/45
Fans expect this series to be very close and competitive as the 4-4 record and runs scored and runs against indicate. The Canadians will rely on the league’s winningest pitcher, Mark Haverstock (9-4), Steve Ivey (3-3), and lefty stalwart, Barrett Bellefontaine, who missed considerable time this season due to an arm problem. The offense will come from Ryan Veinot (.368), Mark Pelham (.391), Adam Lucas (.398), Shawn Peverill, and Scott Willgress
Veteran Wildcat hurlers, Kevin Nichols and Curtis Falls, and Shayne Conrad all won 4 games this season and will the backbone of the staff. The Lockhart brothers, SS Ian (.377) and Mike (.333), veteran Kevin Matheson (.381), and Falls (.320) will provide the offensive clout. Outstanding rookie Corey Shrider has returned to college in California and will be missed.
