U18 nationals
The St. Albert Red Cardinals are representing Alberta at the U18 Baseball Canada championship, starting Thursday in Fort McMurray.In pool B, the Cardinals play Etobicoke (Ont. 2) at 12 noon and the host Fort McMurray Oil Giants at 7:30 p.m.
Friday’s game against Nova Scotia starts at 12 noon and Saturday’s start time against Manitoba is 11:30 a.m.
The playoff round in the 10-team tournament begins at 7 p.m. Saturday and the Sunday’s medal finals are 3:30 p.m. for bronze and 6:30 p.m. for gold.
Visit www.old.baseball.ca for the schedule and results.
The Cardinals are 40-15 overall after winning the Baseball Alberta midget AAA Tier I championship Aug. 5 at Legion Memorial Park.
Five players are unavailable for nationals – over-agers Tylor Jans, the provincial MVP, and Danny Tkachyk – plus college-bound players Zach Froment (lead-off hitter/second baseman), Davis Pratt (clean-up hitter/third baseman) and Joe Karall (pitcher). Head coach Cam Houston also has a family wedding commitment this weekend.
Three Cardinals rejoined the team this week after competing at the recent U17 Baseball Canada Cup in Moncton and Dieppe, N.B.
Shortstop Mike Brisson batted .500, including one homer and seven RBIs, Brady Kobitowich tossed a complete game 2-0 win over New Brunswick, with seven strikeouts and no walks during the three-hitter, and Liam Froment threw 2.2 innings with four strikeouts for Alberta (4-2).
Senior B Miners
The St. Albert Miners are one win away from advancing to the senior B team's fourth President’s Cup in five years after beating the Calgary Mountaineers twice last weekend in the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League provincial final.Scores were 12-3 and 14-4 at Strathcona Olympiette Centre.
The best-of-five series continues in Calgary with game three at 9 p.m. Friday and game four, if needed, is 5 p.m. Saturday at Max Bell Arena.
If the Mountaineers force a fifth and deciding game, it will be played at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Strathcona facility.
Nationals are Aug. 26 to Sept. 2 at Nanaimo, B.C., and the Miners have won the last two Presidents’ Cups.
The Miners are 21-1-1 and the Mountaineers are 14-10 this season and in league play St. Albert defeated the Mountains twice in three games. The only loss was 9-8 in Calgary.
The Miners are also 78-3-2 overall in the regular season, playoffs and nationals combined after losing the 2015 provincial final.
