Ontario to face Alberta for gold at Canada Summer Games

Photo: Baseball Canada

August 12, 2022

Baseball Canada

Ontario will face Alberta in the gold medal game at the Canada Summer Games on Saturday.

Here’s a summary of the action from the Canada Summer Games baseball competition on Friday:

Full Canada Summer Games Schedule & Results

Day 5 Recap

Ontario 22 - 4 Saskatchewan (Welland Stadium)

The last semi-final game was a wild one that saw Ontario players cross the plate 22 times to break a Canada Summer Games record for the most runs scored by a team in a single game.

The previous record was 16 scored by Nova Scotia in a game in 2013. This particular record, however, had already been broken twice during the 2022 competition. Alberta was the first to break it in their 17-7 victory over Newfoundland on the second day of the competition. B.C. then surpassed Alberta’s offensive output with an 18-8 win over Nova Scotia.

Ontario leadoff hitter Lucas Alberti (Toronto, Ont.), finished with three hits in four at bats, while driving in three and scoring four runs. Preston Barr (St. Joachim, Ont.) went 4-for-5 with three runs and six RBIs. With that performance, Barr smashed the Canada Games record for most RBIs in a game and he now has now 13 RBIs in the tournament which surpasses Alberta’s Eric Hartman's record set earlier in the event. 

With the win, Ontario moves on to face Alberta in the gold medal game on Saturday. Saskatchewan will face British Columbia for bronze. 

Alberta 4 - 0 British Columbia (Welland Stadium)

Alberta’s Michael Yusypchuk (Edmonton, Alta.) no-hit British Columbia in the first semi-final game on Friday.

The right-hander dominated in his seven-inning performance, striking out seven B.C. batters while issuing just one walk.

At the plate, Nathan Flewelling (Innisfaill, Alta.) came up clutch for Alberta, smashing a three-run triple. Matt Murray (Red Deer, Alta.) went 2-for-3 and drove in the only other run for Alberta.

The B.C. offence could not get on the board despite a strong outing from their starter, Noah Bourgeois (Surrey, B.C.), who allowed three earned runs and struck out nine in seven innings.

With the win, Alberta punched their ticket to the gold medal game on Saturday. B.C. will play for bronze.

New Brunswick 2 - 10 Manitoba (Welland Stadium)

Manitoba cruised to a 10-2 victory over New Brunswick on Friday.

New Brunswick got on the board early thanks to a Michael Losier (Dieppe, N.B.) RBI single in the top of the first. Manitoba's starter Jaxon MacDonald (MacGregor, Man.) took over after that and allowed just one earned run on four hits in his five-inning performance.

Nixon Carriere (Winnipeg, Man.) had himself a day at the plate, going 2-for-3 and driving in four runs. Rylan Slatcher (Stonewall, Man.) was also clutch for the Manitoba offence, collecting three RBIs. Demitri Shakotko (Fredericton, N.B.) smashed a double in three at bats and scored the only other run for New Brunswick. 

The victory gave Manitoba seventh place in the competition, while New Brunswick finishes eighth.

Newfoundland & Labrador 0 - 10 Prince Edward Island (Oakes Park)

Everything was working for the Prince Edward Island squad on Friday, as they shut out Newfoundland & Labrador 10-0.

Tyler Jenkins-Gaudet (Cornwall, PEI) and Ethan Smith (Stratford, PEI) combined for the shutout. Gaudet had eight strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings which set the stage for Smith who struck out the final two batters of the game.

The Prince Edward Island offence exploded in the bottom of the fifth, scoring six runs thanks to some walks, defensive miscues and two timely hits that allowed them to pull away. On the Newfoundland side, Braedan Walsh (St. John's, Nfld.) had the only hit for his team. 

With the win, Prince Edward Island secures the ninth spot in the competition, while Newfoundland & Labrador finishes 10th. 

Ontario 2 - 0 Québec (Welland Stadium)

The first quarter final match-up of the 2022 Canada Summer Games featured a pitching duel between Quebec’s Elliot Cadieux-Lanoue (Saint-Pie, Que.) and Ontario’s Preston Barr (St. Joachim, Ont.).

Barr would toss six scoreless innings and allow just three hits for Ontario, while Cadieux-Lanoue almost matched him, hurling six full frames in which he allowed two runs on two hits, while striking out five. 

Veer Wahdwani (Grimsby, Ont.) was responsible for Ontario's two runs thanks to a clutch triple in the top of the sixth that scored Brodie Peart (LaSalle, Ont.) and Calvin Warrillow (Toronto, Ont.). That was all the offence his squad would need, as Carson Tehan (Windsor, Ont.) came in and worked a perfect seventh inning to shut down the Quebec bats. 

The win propelled Ontario into the semi-finals.