The Okanagan Athletics used their traditional wood bats to rule the inaugural Red, White & Blue Classic U15 AAA Baseball Tournament last weekend in Tacoma.
Vernon players Jaden Parsons, Zach Orchard and Chase Batchelor helped the A’s win the 16-team tournament. All the U.S. teams swung metal bats.
The Athletics stopped the Puyallup, Wash. Jasox 5-3 in the Memorial Day final. Batchelor started in left field, making a running catch and two sweet plays to hold hitters to singles on hard-hit balls.
Orchard recorded the first out of the game with a great running, shoe-string catch in centre field. He was also 1-for-2 at the plate and reached base after being hit by a pitch.
The Athletics took an early 2-0 lead after the first inning, but the Jasox clawed their way back to take a 3-2 advantage in the top of the sixth. The A’s responded with three runs in the bottom half.
In their opening two preliminary games, the Athletics recorded mercy-rule victories by a combined score of 28-0 against the NPA Tugs & Prime Baseball academies.
In Game 1, Orchard and Parsons started in the outfield, with Zach reaching on an error and scoring and Jaden stroking a sharp single to centre, drawing a walk and scoring twice.
In Game 2, Batchelor started at second base and turned a nice 5-4-3 double play. He also smashed a two-run double and reached base when hit-by-a-pitch, which eventually led him to score his second run of the game. Parsons was the extra hitter, lining an RBI-double into the right centre field gap, taking a walk and scoring two runs.
The A’s then ambushed Kelso, Wash. 11-3 with Orchard stellar in right field and registering a perfect bunt single, a walk, two stolen bases and two runs scored.
Batchelor was solid at second and Parsons, again as the EH, had two walks, scored twice and contributed two RBI groundouts.
The Athletics rallied to shade undefeated Seattle Select Black 6-5 in the semifinal. Parsons was marvellous at second, making several plays in a tight defensive game.
