Hat team drops game, on to national semis

By Sean Rooney on August 3, 2018.

Medicine Hat News

It’s down to crunch time for Medicine Hat’s all-stars at the Junior Little League Canadian Championships.

At Lethbridge Thursday, the Alberta representatives fell 11-1 to Quebec in the minimum five innings due to the mercy rule. But their week is far from over, with a semifinal game set and still a chance to become Team Canada.

A seven-run first inning for the Quebec champs set the tone. Pitcher Levi Woitowich didn’t get out of the inning, giving up a single and a double to leadoff man Alex Blais.

Blais finished 3-for-3 with 3 RBI. Medicine Hat only managed two hits off Christophe Lepage, who went the distance and struck out five. Zach Ferguson and Jack Didack got the hits but both were stranded on base; Medicine Hat’s run came from Carson Sauter, who walked and scored on a fielder’s choice in the second inning.

Quebec improved to 5-0, and will face 2-3 Atlantic in a semifinal. Medicine Hat also finished the six-team round robin 2-3 but wound up third place thanks to beating Atlantic 8-7 Wednesday. That earns them a semifinal against 4-1 Lethbridge, a rematch of Sunday’s 12-8 loss in which the Jr. Bulls scored 11 times in the final two innings to come from behind.

The semifinals both take place Saturday, with the final set for Sunday.

In other games Thursday, Lethbridge beat British Columbia 13-3 in five innings, while Atlantic needed six innings before their 17-4 mercy rule win over Ontario.

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