For the second day in a row, in their second game against the Dawson City team, EMCO managed to eke out a close win, taking the Minor Softball Territorial Championship peewee title at the Pepsi Centre on Sunday.
“They all played well,” said Dawson coach Henry Procyk. “We picked up three players from Watson Lake—they didn’t have a league this year so they asked if they could join up with us—and we sent two of our first-year peewees into the squirts so they could field the team.
“Considering we don’t play in a league, they did exceptionally well.
“The girl we picked up from Watson Lake, Vanessa Carlton, played exceptionally well and if I were to pick an MVP she would be the MVP of the tournament for us.”
On Saturday, in their first encounter, EMCO won 13-12, scoring a couple runs in the last inning to move ahead. The winning run was scored by Clay Limacher, stealing home on a wild pitch. On Sunday, it was a similar story.
EMCO found themselves down for most of game until the fifth inning, when Kyle Lowes drove in two runs to tie the game at 4-4. He then made it home before Misty McFarlene stole first, second, third and eventually home on a wild pitch to put EMCO up 6-4.
“He’s one of our most natural athletes,” said EMCO coach Jed Leenders of Lowes. “All weekend he’s been making flying catches; he’s an awesome base runner and an all-around good athlete and an up-and-coming baseball player.”
With the game far from decided, EMCO’s Mike Arnold, taking the mound, shut down Dawson in the final inning, making a diving catch on a grounder to throw out a batter at first, gloving a pop-fly and snagging a line drive as it rocketed by.
“The game wouldn’t have been the same without Mike there,” said Leenders. “I think Mike will be one of the best ball players in this town if he’s not already.”
Taking third was Marsh Lake Tents & Events in the peewee division.
Dawson team presses Whitehorse Star
in squirt final
According to Dawson City’s coach Tim Gerberding, aggressive batting and good pitching is a winning combination.
“I was proud of our guys because they were hitting—they weren’t looking for walks,” said Gerberding. “In fact, sometimes they wanted to hit so bad they were wildly chasing balls. But they were hitting the ball well, I mean, they were pounding the ball and running the bases. I was real proud of them.”
The Dawson crew took the squirt finals with a 15-8 win over the Whitehorse Star. Dawson won by creating a small lead early on and built off it as the game progressed despite being short an outfielder.
Keeping the Star at bay were Nathan Taylor, Nick Greer and Gaylen Clarke, each throwing smoke from the mound.
“In this division, and really all the divisions, what it comes down to is pitchers,” said Gerberding. “You need at least two pitchers that can throw strikes, and that was a big part of our victory.”
The visiting team also won their first encounter, blowing out the Star with a score of 30-8.
For a team that does not play in a league back home, the title is significant, said Gerberding.
“For Dawson, they love to play ball, but the problem is we don’t have any other teams to play—we play against ourselves,” said Gerberding. “We were only able to field nine players here for the final.
“The Dawson kids learn so much when they come down here because this is their only chance for genuine competition against other teams. And that’s what you need to hone your game to get good.
“The Whitehorse teams have an advantage over the Dawson teams because they play against each other, so they have that competition.”
Losing to the Star in the semis, Coates Services finished in third.
Fountain Tire rolls
into first place
Playing in the mite division, Matt Braga showed his might, producing an inside-the-park grand slam home run in the second inning of the finals.
“You’ll see that in the mites (division),” said Fountain Tire assistant coach Noel Sinclair. “Anything (hit) beyond the nearest outfielders can often be a home run.”
Fountain Tire took the finals with an 8-7 win over Office Supply Centre, their second close win over the second place team.
“I think the close score was a reflection of how well matched the two teams were,” said Sinclair. “We got some lucky bounces and had some good fielding and batting and pitching.”
MacPherson Rentals slid into third after losing in the semis against Office Supply Centre.
Contact Tom Patrick at
tomp@yukon-news.com