After losing game one to Delaware the peewees were forced to take the long route to the finals. Needing 3 wins in Saturday’s heat proved to be too much as they lost the 3rd game to Amherstburg 8-4.
Heading down to Belle River for the OBA “C” Championships the Peewee Legionaries knew there were going to have to bring their “A” game in all aspects. Game 1 saw the local lads face Deleware and it seemed they had the jitters as the opposition scored runs in 3 of the 1st 4 innings. Listowel closed the gap to 2 in the 4th but Deleware blew the game open in the 5th then sealed the deal in the 6th handing the Legionaries a 15-5 loss. Game 2 would be bright and early Saturday morning but the peewees seemed rested as they jumped out to the early lead over the Simcoe Giants. The game featured good pitching, solid defense and some timely hitting as Listowel when on to win 7-2. The 3rd game would be just a couple hours later and would pit the local lads against Corunna. This game was almost a carbon copy of the early game as each team would have to claw and scrap for runs. Again it would be Listowel’s pitching and defense that would hold the opposition at bay until some key hits would push some runs across and ultimately the 7-3 victory. Game 4 of the tourney and their 3rd of the day would again be just a couple hours later against Amherstburg. The game seemed to be a battle of desires as both teams were playing for the 3rd time today in what was very hot, muggy weather. However much to the dismay of the Legionaries it would be the Cardinals who got the key hits in this game as the local lads left several base runners in scoring position. Amherstburg would go on to win 8-4 ending Listowel’s OBA hopes.
Obviously with 3 close games the young men from Listowel proved they could compete at this level. The team’s pitching staff of Parker Yungblut, Ben Bowman, Derek Fischer, Brett MacLeod, Michael Uptigrove, Owen Hamilton, Chris Enders & Will Calder performed admirably keeping many very good hitters guessing all weekend. Offensively Lucas Jamieson led the team with 7 hits over the 4 games, with Calder & Yungblut right behind him with 5 each. The versatility of Enders, Jeff Mock & Austin McGrath made dealing with the few bumps & bruises much easier on the coaching staff. And lastly the support of the parents, families & friends made the weekend a success despite the teams early than hoped departure.
Looking back on the year, whether it’s on the individual player’s development or the team’s accomplishments it was definitely a very successful season. Hopefully everyone involved enjoyed this year's baseball experience and we’ll see you back again next year.