March 26, 2024

By Matt Betts

Canadian Baseball Network 

With Major League Baseball’s Opening Day just hours away, the Canadian stars of tomorrow continue to impress across the college baseball scene. 

Take a look at who stood out and why over the past week. 

Marsh masterful for Mineral Area 

Left-hander Matt Marsh (Havelock, Ont.) worked six innings and gave up one run on four hits as Mineral Area College downed St. Louis Community College 3-1 in Game 3 of their series. Marsh issued three free passes and struck out four. 

Favretto fuels Kansas Wesleyan offence 

Kansas Wesleyan University head coach Bill Neale (Collingwood, Ont.) relied heavily on Tyler Favretto (Montreal, Que.) to produce offence in their three-game sweep of York University. Favretto had five hits, walked and drove in six. His best performance came in Game 3 when he went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and six RBIs. 

Cory comes through with long relief 

Long relief might not even be the phrase to describe the effort Connor Cory (Wawanesa, Man.) gave Mayville State in Game 3 of their series with Waldorf. With their starter failing to record an out, Cory came on to throw seven innings and surrendered two runs on seven hits and three walks in a 6-4 loss. He struck out five as he finished off the game. 

Leishman lasts seven innings 

It’s the second straight week Marshall Leishman (Huntsville, Ont.) has made an appearance in this column and for good reason. Leishman threw seven innings and yielded one run on five hits as Ashland defeated Lake Erie 4-3 in Game 1. He struck out eight along the way. 

Villeneuve aids Tennessee in series win over Ole Miss 

Robin Villeneuve (Gatineau, Que.) stroked three hits, walked and drove in four runs in No. 7 Tennessee’s series victory over No. 17 Ole Miss. In a 15-3 Game 1 win, Villeneuve went 3-for-4 with a three-run home run and four RBIs. 

Frers, Walker lead Marauders 

It seems like every week multiple University of Mary Marauders make their way into the BMOC. 

This week, Lukas Frers (Surrey, BC) picked up a win over Wayne State College with a complete game, seven-inning effort. Frers allowed one run on three hits, walked one and struck out two in a 6-1 victory. 

In the box, Josh Walker had three hits, walked three times and drove in four in a pair of games against the Wildcats. He hit a three-run home run to back Frers in Game 1. 

Games 3 and 4 were cancelled. 

Luther, Wuschke back Bruins to sweep. 

Another pair of Canadian teammates stole the spotlight for the No. 15 Bellevue University Bruins. 

Brendan Luther (Mississauga, Ont.) played in all five games and collected 10 hits, a walk and eight RBIs as the Bruins finished the week 5-0. Luther hit a solo shot as part of a 4-for-4 game with three RBIs in a 15-3 Game 2 win over Dickinson State. 

Gavin Wuschke (Regina, Sask.) got the ball in Game 4 against Dickinson State and worked 6 1/3 innings. He conceded two runs on seven hits with a walk and five punch outs in a 12-2 victory. The win improved his record to 4-0. 

MacLeod pitches well in loss 

Hunter MacLeod (Abbotsford, BC) spun six innings for Rend Lake in a 5-4 loss to Lake Land. MacLeod allowed two runs (one earned) on eight hits. He walked three and struck out four.  

UBC sweeps Corban 

The University of British Columbia Thunderbirds swept Corban thanks to a strong team effort. 

Will Anderson (Delta, BC) got the start in Game 1 and delivered five scoreless innings in a 22-0 win. Anderson allowed four hits and struck out five. 

Sean Heppner (Point Roberts, Wash.) looked like his usual self in Game 2, working seven scoreless innings as the Thunderbirds won 16-0. Heppner surrendered three hits, walked three and struck out nine. For his performance, he was named the Cascade Collegiate Conference Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season. 

The good starts continued in Game 4 as Daniel Orfaly (White Rock, BC) threw seven innings and allowed two runs on two hits in a 3-2, 10 inning win. He walked three and struck out eight. 

The UBC offence put up 49 runs in the four games and it’s a lengthy list of players who contributed. 

David Draayers (Abbotsford, BC) had eight hits, walked twice, drove in four and was hit by a pitch. 

Trent Lenihan (White Rock, BC) chipped in six hits, walked four times, drove in six and stole three bases. He hit a three-run home run in Game 2. 

Aaron Marsh (Nanaimo, BC) added 10 hits, a walk, eight RBIs and was hit by a pitch. He collected six extra base hits, including a two-run home run in Game 1. Marsh, like Heppner, picked up a conference honour as he was named the Cascade Conference Player of the Week. 

Jonny McGill (Richmond, BC) also hit a two-run home run in Game 1 and finished with seven hits, a walk, six RBIs and two stolen bases. 

Aidan Rose (Calgary, Alta.) had five hits, two walks, four RBIs and four stolen bases in three games. 

And last but not least, Kaden Zarowny (Strathmore, Alta.) amassed seven hits, a walk, nine RBIs, two stolen bases and was hit by three pitches in three games played. 

Rozdeba swats three home runs 

Kaden Rozdeba (Strathclair, Man.) finished his week with five hits, three walks, seven RBIs and a stolen base as Valley City State took three of four from Viterbo. Three of Rozdeba’s five hits were home runs, including a solo home run in Game 1, a two-run home run in Game 2 and a three-run home run in Game 3. 

Canadians bash for Blue Dragons 

Two Hutchinson Community College Canadians had standout series for the Blue Dragons. 

Colin Cymbalista (Pickering, Ont.) went 5-for-5 with a walk and two RBIs in a midweek win over McCook before collecting four hits, three walks and five RBIs in a four-game sweep of Colby Community College. 

Cody Gunderson (St. Malo, Man.), meanwhile, was 2-for-4 with a three-run home run, a walk and five RBI in the win over McCook. In the four games against Colby, he had five hits, five walks, three RBI and three stolen bases. He swatted a solo home run in an 8-7 Game 2 victory. 

Fluet fires six innings 

Josh Fluet (White Rock, BC) scattered six hits and two runs over six innings of work for Southwestern Oklahoma State University as they dropped Game 2 of their series with Arkansas Tech, 4-2. Fluet walked one and struck out three. 

Gurr provides what Falcons need 

Right-hander Seth Gurr (Coaldale, Alta.) has been a reliable midweek starter for the University of Montevallo Falcons. Last week in a 5-1 win over Miles, Gurr threw 6 1/3 innings while allowing one run on five hits. He walked one and struck out seven to even his record at 2-2. 

Pakkala puts up zeros 

Summoned from the bullpen, West Virginia Tech hurler Braedan Pakkala (Sudbury, Ont.) threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out two in an 11-9 Game 2 loss to Shawnee State. 

Mabee mashes two home runs 

Oliver Mabee (Oak Bay, BC) hit a pair of home runs and closed the week with three hits, five walks, six RBIs and a stolen base for Trinidad State in their series against Northeastern Junior College. 

Johnson helps Eagles get best of Michigan rivals 

It was an all-Michigan week for the Eastern Michigan University Eagles. First up was a 14-4 win over the University of Michigan where Lucas Johnson (Hamilton, Ont.) went 3-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and four RBIs. The Eagles then had a three-game series against Western Michigan, which they won 2-1 thanks in part to three hits, a walk, three RBIs and a hit by pitch from Johnson. 

Graff-Rowe goes deep twice 

Austin Graff-Rowe (Waterloo, Ont.) belted two home runs as part of a four-hit week for Crowder Community College. He also walked three times, had five RBIs and stole three bases. 

Vernon a bright spot in tough week for Southwestern 

While it wasn’t a great week for Southwestern Community College on the scoreboard, as they went 1-3 and were swept by Indian Hills, Brysen Vernon (LaSalle, Ont.) played well. Vernon had eight hits, two of which were home runs, and five RBIs. He put together a four-hit game, including a home run, two doubles and four RBIs in his team’s only win, a 14-12 victory over Iowa Central. 

Miller shows off power and speed for Jefferson 

Jefferson College’s Jacob Miller (Oshawa, Ont.) produced seven hits, a walk, six RBIs and three stolen bases in a four-game split with State Fair. Two of his hits left the park. 

McGarry-Doyle has two-homer game 

Noel McGarry-Doyle (Vaughn, Ont.) hit a solo home run, a two-run home run and stole a base as Mid-America Christian beat Oklahoma Panhandle State 14-7 in Game 1 of a three-game series. On the week in four games, McGarry-Doyle put together seven hits, four walks, 12 RBIs and was hit by two pitches. He went 4-for-5 with six RBIs in a 16-2 Game 3 victory against the Aggies. 

Hemmerling holds Pratt at bay 

The Pratt Community College Beavers were held scoreless over six innings by Barton’s Reece Hemmerling (Beaumont, Alta.). He worked around six hits, issued a walk and struck out nine in an 8-0 win.  

Soucie stops Shawnee 

Southpaw Jackson Soucie (Cambridge, Ont.) tossed seven innings as Wabash Valley took down Shawnee 8-2. Soucie allowed an unearned run on four hits, walked one and punched out eight. 

Caissie earns win No. 1 

Six strong innings earned Caleb Caissie (Delta, BC) his first win of the season for Queens College. Caissie gave up two runs on four hits in a 9-2 Game 2 victory over Lincoln. He walked two and struck out nine. 

Unearned runs cost Cougars 

Getting the start in Game 1 of the University of Houston’s series against Kansas State, Antoine Jean worked into the sixth inning in a 5-3 Cougars’ loss. Jean finished with 5 1/3 innings and conceded three unearned runs on three hits. He walked one and fanned seven. 

Schaffer deals in complete game win 

Ty Schaffer (Cardston, Alta.) gave the William Woods bullpen a day off in Game 3 of their series with Hannibal-LaGrange as he threw a complete game, nine innings in an 8-1 win. Schaffer scattered eight hits and struck out 10 to help the Owls walk away with the series victory. He’s the Canadian Baseball Network College Player of the Week. 

Spring is in the air and the college season is in full swing, making it a great time to be a baseball fan. 

Remember to check back right here seven days from now for the best performances. 

Do you know of a player deserving of a mention in the weekly BMOC column? Email Matt Betts at mattbetts@canadianbaseballnetwork.com. Please note that our week runs Monday to Sunday. 

Be sure to follow Matt Betts at @Bettsy41 for extensive Canadian baseball coverage all season long.