The Wayside Press Green Giants brushed back the Kal Tire Red Hawks 7-5 in the Mosquito baseball playoff final Thursday night at Lakeview Park.
Both teams scored once in the first inning with Ryan Gamage driving in Tyler Sedlacek for the Red Hawks and Caden Colmorgen doubling in Ryan Vandesande for Green Giants.
Shaun Huizinga of the Green Giants and Sapien Joe for the Hawks each struck out two batters.
In the second inning, the Red Hawks’ Chase Batchelor doubled and then swiped third and home. Eli Nahirny singled in Cayden Coombs, while Tyler Sedlacek knocked in Nahirny and Gamage drove in Jackson Soucy for the maximum four runs.
The Green Giants responded with three runs as Carter Morris singled in Matthew Hansen, while Lincoln Connor doubled in Sawyer Bliss and Morris. Third baseman Soucy made a stellar throw to first baseman Nicholas Walker to get the third out for the Red Hawks.
It was a pitcher’s duel in the third with Morris retiring the Red Hawks in order and Chase Batchelor chasing down two hits short of the mound and making the quick toss to Walker at first for outs.
Morris was also scorching in the fourth as he fanned three batters after some solid hits by the Red Hawks. Batchelor struck out one batter before Gamage took over for the Red Hawks. Connor stroked a two-run single to bring in Bliss and Morris and put the Green Giants ahead 7-5. Gamage struck out one.
Morris mowed down two more in the fifth, while Giants’ catcher Colmorgen threw to Connor at first for the 3rd out.
Gamage pitched for the Red Hawks, whose second baseman, Eric Foufoulas, caught an infield pop fly and then gunned a throw to Nicholas Walker at first for the second out. Joe recorded a nice foul fly ball outside the third base line to end the inning.
In the sixth, Gamage singled and then got to third on steals. Morris fanned two batters and Connor recorded the final out on an infield pop fly.
In Mosquito Select play, the Vernon Canadians grounded the West Kelowna Canadians 15-9 Saturday.
Brayden Beacom, who shared pitching with Koll Cherkowski and Landon Harison, smacked an early two-run triple to score Harison, who had doubled, and Cherkowski. Beacom also scored later after he followed Cherkowski’s double and swiped home.
Colmorgen smacked a two-run single in the fourth, bringing home Soucy and Foufoulas, while Gamage walked to score Colmorgen.
Chris McIntosh drove in Morris and scored when he swiped home, while Soucy knocked in Beacom. Infielders Batchelor and Foufoulas were standouts defensively.
