11U Creemore Cardinals win provincial championships
The Creemore Cardinals won the Ontario Select Championships after posting a 6-0 record in the tournament last weekend in Hamilton.
Creemore got started in the tournament Friday night with a 14-2 win against the host West Mountain Cougars. Dylan Rayburn led the offense with two hits including an RBI double in the fifth inning. Paul Twiss tied the game in the third inning with an RBI triple and scored the go-ahead run.
Game 2 would be a closer contest when the team was matched up with the eventual runner-up North York Blues. Creemore would win 9-4, but North York had the bases loaded with no outs in the second inning when Reece Fuller came in to pitch in relief and struck out three consecutive Blues to get out of the inning. Keenan Reynolds led the way at the plate with two hits including a three-run homer into the parking lot in right field.
Collingwood was the next opponent and the Cardinals quickly got out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning before winning 14-4. Thomas Weldon shut down Collingwood with seven strikeouts in two 2/3 innings of relief.
Creemore needed to win three games on a cold and wet Sunday to become the champs and the first game at 10 a.m. would be against the undefeated London West Tincaps. A 12-7 victory was the result with Drew Hamilton contributing two hits, two RBI and scoring twice.
Brayden Foulds started the semi- final game against the Milton Mets and was dominant over five innings, giving up just one run and striking out 12. Hayden Goodfellow-Oster was three- for-three with a double, RBI and two runs for the Cardinals who won 12-1. The championship game was a re-match with the North York Blues who would need to defeat Creemore twice to win the double knockout format tournament. The Cardinals, however, would win the first game and claim the championship. Jack Hutchison reached base three times including a double and scored twice. Evan Wells started on the mound and threw four 2/3 innings allowing just one run, no walks with eight strikeouts. Cooper Duits would come in to pitch with two outs in the last inning and close out the game with a strikeout to complete the championship run. The Creemore 11U’s finished the season with a 46-3 record and were champions of six tournaments. An outstanding season for a remarkable group of kids.
Creemore Minor Baseball would like to thank our sponsors Creemore Home Hardware, Fennario Meadows, Hamilton Brothers Farm and Building Supply and Lisle Livestock and Fresh Market. Tryouts for next year’s rep and select teams will take place over the next two weeks. Registration for local league teams for players aged 6-10 will be in February. Visit creemoreminorbaseball. com for more information.
Contributed photo: The Creemore Cardinals 11U team held a victory parade on Mill Street Monday after winning the Ontario Select Championships in Hamilton.
