Fourth place at the U13 Baseball Canada championship was better than expected for the St. Albert Cardinals.
Fourth place at the U13 Baseball Canada championship was better than expected for the St. Albert Cardinals.
The Baseball Alberta peewee AAA Tier I champions finished 2-3 overall after losing Sunday's bronze-medal game 6-2 to the host team from London, Ont.
“At the start of the season, when we were in a blizzard for our first game, if you had said we would have finished fourth in the country I would have looked at you and said that's a pretty big accomplishment and that's what we've done,” said Mark Brisson, head coach of the 36-12 Cardinals, in a phone interview Monday from the site of nationals. “I'm very proud of the players in getting here, first of all winning provincials but to finish fourth with a club team going against an all-star team I think that's a very successful accomplishment.
“Although we wanted that bronze medal, and the boys were disappointed not to get it, we should have smiles on our faces and hold our heads high.”
In pool A the Cardinals defeated the Saskatchewan champions from Regina 10-2 and knocked off Quebec 3-1 before losing 13-2 to London.
In the crossover semifinals the Cardinals hung tough with Ontario before falling 15-8.
“We had a very successful weekend,” Brisson said of the Cardinals' first trip to nationals since 2006. “To make the medal round is very tough. We had to knock out the Quebec provincial champions and eighty or ninety per cent of the population for Baseball Canada comes out of Quebec and Ontario – that's a pretty big feat to do that with a team.”
Brisson described the semifinal as “bittersweet” as Ontario scored six runs on five hits and one error in the bottom of the fifth to lead 10-6.
In the sixth the Cardinals replied with two runs on three hits but left the bases full and Ontario replied with a five-spot on two hits and one error.
Both teams collected 10 hits, including one home run apiece. Starting pitcher Kalen Glockzin, a pickup from the Sherwood Park A's, went yard in the fourth with a solo shot to knot it at four.
Jared Gilbeau batted 2-for-4 with two RBIs and Mike Brisson went 2-for-3 with one RBI.
Ontario reached base seven times on walks.
“It was tough because we were up on the national champions (Ontario edged B.C. 11-10 for the gold) and we basically ran out of pitching arms,” Brisson said. “I was very proud of the boys to take on a huge team like Ontario. It was the first time in the tournament that they were under pressure and I think we were the first team in the tournament to hold them scoreless for three straight innings (after Ontario scored four runs on three hits in the first to lead 4-1).”
In the bronze-medal playoff it was 4-0 for London when the Cardinals got on the board with a run in the bottom of the sixth. London tacked up two in the seventh and the Cardinals added one more run in their last at-bat.
“It was an excellent game,” said coach Brisson. “In essence three hits changed the outcome of the game. One was a two-run homer (with one out), a real good shot by one of the London guys, and it opened the third inning otherwise we had three scoreless innings. The next one, two innings later, they happened to hit a gap with a hit and that scored one and another came in after that (to make it 4-0) and then we were trying to catch up.”
Liam Froment and Gilbeau combined on a six-hitter while striking out eight.
Logan McKinley and Ryan Marples scored and Gilbeau and Evan Bourassa drove in the runs.
The Cardinals were limited to four hits and both teams committed one error.
“It was a really good defensive game and well pitched by our guys and well pitched by their players. It was actually a very quick game (one hour and 41 minutes),” said coach Brisson. “We were in it all the way but we could not get some runs past home plate.”
Froment was the Cardinals' top hitter at nationals with six singles and .429 average in 14 at-bats. Mike Brisson and Gilbeau chipped in with five hits apiece. Gilbeau also banged out two doubles and drove home a team-high four runs. Brisson also swiped a team-leading four bases.
The Cardinals used eight pitchers in the tournament. Froment struck-out nine in seven innings of work and Tyson Kowaluk and Gilbeau posted wins.
“We played exceptional defence and we pitched very well,” said coach Brisson. “One of the bigger challenges when you come here is having enough pitching to get through the tournament. Another challenge is being able to hit some of the very strong pitching. We haven't seen curveballs all year because we don't have curveballs in peewee in Alberta so I think the kids did fairly well but it is a big adjustment for them.
“The teams in Ontario and Quebec and B.C. also come with 18-man rosters and they have a lot of strong pitchers and that was our challenge in trying to have the bats to kind of keep up with all of it.”
The Cardinals graduate 12 players off their 13-man roster.
“It's a special group of kids and very athletic. When we're picking a baseball team we try to pick athletes first and foremost and then baseball players after that and I think it works out for us in our program,” coach Brisson said. “The kids are also very dedicated and they work very hard. We had optional practices throughout the year where players could be there or not because it's a busy year and they were always there at every practice.
“The other thing that adds to this is we had a great group of parents which dedicated themselves to make sure their children are there and they're working hard.
“I was very lucky. I had a great set of kids, very supportive parents that worked very hard for the team and a good coaching staff that helped support the program moving forward.”
