NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
A trio of Medicine Hat Mavericks, Brody Gardner, Tyler Vanneste and Jordan Phillips celebrate Vanneste's three-run home run in the Mavs' 16-10 win Monday at Athletic Park over the Weyburn Beavers.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
A rainy Canada Day couldn’t put a damper on the Medicine Hat Mavericks’ fireworks.
The Mavs battled the elements and waved off comeback attempts as they beat the Weyburn Beavers 16-10 a little under an hour before fireworks painted the sky from the Stampede grounds.
The Mavs had their own fireworks show at Athletic Park, with a three-run home run off Tyler Vanneste’s bat, a two-run triple from Brady Bean and a total of 19 hits tallied up on the scoreboard.
Head coach Kevin Mitchell was as happy to see the offensive flex as he was to see the Canada Day festivities.
“There’s a lot of talent there and for guys to be banging the ball all over the yard and passing the torch to the next guy, working really good at bats, that’s what it takes,” Mitchell said.
The Mavs did host a Canada Day-centric evening, with the red and white flags donned across the park and limited edition jerseys featuring an explorer’s map of Western Canada across the front and back.
Despite a constant drizzle of rain that picked up at times and forced two stoppages for field maintenance, the festivities were in high spirits and backed up by the Mavs’ offence. Taking in his second Canada Day as coach with the Mavs, Mitchell described the evening as an eventful but memorable day.
“There was a team effort to get the game in and to keep the game going, and those are things you remember,” Mitchell said. “Whether they’re fun or not, it’s part of the baseball experience, it’s part of the summer ball experience, and we got the win.”
Mavs outfielder Micah Dvorak, who tallied three hits, a run scored, an RBI and three walks in the win Monday, enjoyed his first Canada Day experience.
“It was electric, as I figured it would be,” the Garden City, Kan. product said. “All the fans, all of it. You can’t ask much more and it’s an honour honestly to play for a team in another country on their national holiday.”
The Mavs hosted the Sylvan Lake Gulls on Tuesday before an off day today, with their first All-star baseball camp at Athletic Park.
They’ll head on the road for five straight games, with a two-game set at Saskatoon against the Berries on Thursday and Friday before facing the East division-leading Regina Red Sox on Saturday and Sunday. They wrap the road trip at Weyburn in a rematch with the Beavers on July 8 before hosting the Swift Current 57’s at Athletic Park the next night.
Dvorak says the Mavs found their stride in the split series against Okotoks last weekend and look to carry it back on the road.
“That series was huge for us because our pitchers are starting to figure it out, our hitters are starting to keep going, we’re gonna keep going as we’ve been hitting,” Dvorak said. “It’s just uphill for us from here.”
Tuesday’s game was not complete by press time, visit medicinehatnews.com/sports for a full game story.
