BMOC Week 3
By Matt Betts
Canadian Baseball Network
The list of great Canadian performances in college baseball continues to grow each week. With the NCAA Division I season set to kick off this weekend we continue to look at Division II, III, NAIA and NJCAA players in this weeks edition of the BMOC. With out further ado, here is the list of the top performances over the past week.

Shaw takes home conference honours
Jake Shaw (Fredericton, N.B.) was put to work by the University of Indianapolis over the weekend in their series against Coker. He picked up the win in the season opener by pitching four scoreless innings, scattering just two hits and striking out seven in relief. Four innings without giving up a run would be considered a solid weekends work for some, not for Shaw, though. He bounced back in Game 3 to toss another scoreless inning while allowing a hit and a walk. For his performance he was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week.

Osborne with five hits, five RBIs
It is easy to see why J.D. Osborne (Whitby, Ont.) hits in the heart of the Tampa Spartans lineup, take this past week for example. Osborne went 2-for-4 in Tampa’s 8-1, Game 1 victory. In Game 2, also a Tampa win, he collected three hits, one of which was a solo home run. All in all he finished with three RBIs in the game. Despite not getting a hit in the finale, the only game Tampa would lose, he still drove in a pair of runs.

Lanferman saves best for last
Redshirt Sophomore Jake Lanferman (Sherwood Park, Alta.) was stellar in Fort Hayes State’s three-game sweep of New Mexico Highlands. In his teams Game 1 triumph he would be hit by a pitch and swipe a base. He upped his performance for Game 2 by stroking a double and earning a pair of walks. His best performance came in Game 3, however. In the 18-8 Fort Hayes State win, Lanferman was 4-for-4 at the dish with a solo home run, a double, three RBIs and another stolen base. He is currently hitting .400 on the year.

Back to the bump
Arkansas Monticello’s Jared Libke (Saskatoon, Sask.) picked up his first save of the year in the Boll Weevils 10-5 win over Southern Arkansas. Libke tossed three scoreless innings, giving up just a single hit and struck out five. He was called upon once more in his teams 6-2 loss to Washburn in the third game of the weekend. Libke again threw a scoreless inning while recording a strikeout.

Graff-Rowe reaches five times
The Mules of Central Missouri earned another two wins this past weekend to improve their record to 4-2 on the season. Justin Graff-Rowe (Waterloo, Ont.) helped the cause by reaching base five times. He had four hits, including a double and a triple and was hit by a pitch. He also stole a base and drove in a pair over his teams three games.

Another strong showing for Burns
Even though Ouachita Baptist picked up the win, their hitters did not stand a chance when Central Missouri’s Taylor Burns (St. Albert, Alta.) entered the game. Burns threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing four hits while punching out six in his teams 4-2 loss. He has yet to allow an earned run over 5 2/3 innings in 2017.

Two long balls for Stevenson
East Central University may have dropped a 12-5 decision to Central Oklahoma but it was not because of a lack of offence from Connor Stevenson (Keswick, Ont.). Stevenson went 3-for-4 in the loss including a pair of solo shots, one in the fourth and one in the sixth.

Bishop with blasts of his own
Pitchers were not feeling too good when they saw the University of Texas at Tyler’s Alex Bishop (Calgary, Alta.) stroll to the plate this past week. Bishop cranked a solo home run in his teams 6-2 victory over Trinity University. After working a walk in a 4-2 loss he closed out his weekend by going 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and a double. UT Tyler won the finale by a convincing 8-1 score.

Willow wallops William Penn
Home runs have been a common theme for hitters in the column this week. Evan Willow (Victoria, BC) got in on the action by hammering a two-run shot in McPherson College’s 21-7 thumping of William Penn.  He finished the game 2-for-4 with a walk and three RBIs in total. He would again collected a pair of hits in Game 2. Willow had a hit and a RBI in each of the last two games of the four-game set. McPherson would split the series and are 6-3 on the year. They are helped on the bench by assistant coach Kyle MacKinnon (Caledon, Ont.).

More home runs? Sure, why not?
Matthew Vollmer (Kitchener, Ont.) mashed a three-run home run in the University of Saint Francis’ 27-10 slugfest loss to Ottawa. Saint Francis lost the second game to Ottawa 28-10.

Pouwells reaches six times
It did not take long for Ryan Pouwells (Surrey, BC) to welcome the Midland pitching staff to the game. He went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs in LSU Shreveport’s 9-8 loss. He had a hit and a pair of walks and stole a base over the rest of his teams games.

Hooge with hits for Tabor
Jaxson Hooge (Calgary, Alta.) had five hits, a walk and two RBIs over the weekend as Tabor College won all four of their games. Tabor improved to 6-1 on the year.

Ryo provides the relief
Ryo Takenaka (Richmond, BC) earned himself a win in relief over Our Lady of Lake University. Takenaka threw two scoreless inning, giving up a single hit with four strikeouts and a walk. He then came back in Sterling College’s Game 3 loss and pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing a hit with two punch outs.

Egert helps keep perfect season alive
With wins over the past week the Southeastern University Fire ran their record to a perfect 12-0 to start the season. Josh Egert (Burlington, Ont.) chipped in by picking up the win in a 6-1 victory over Trinity Baptist. He tossed three innings, allowing four hits and a run with two strikeouts. He sports a 2.25 ERA so far in 2017.

Halliday’s relief too little, too late
He did his best but by the time Nathan Halliday (Oakville, Ont.) was in the game the damage was done. Halliday relieved starter Luis Vilchez in the sixth inning off Culver-Stockton Colleges 7-2 loss to Faulkner. He would throw three scoreless innings and record two strikeouts. Faulkner swept the four game series in Montgomery, AL.

Graham strikes out 10
Philippe Graham (St. Chrysostome, Que.) got the call on opening day for the MidAmerica Nazarene Pioneers. He went five innings against Oklahoma City and was able to strike out 10 opposing hitters. He allowed four hits, three runs (one earned) while surrendering four walks in the 10-7 loss.

Sauve snatches up win
Bryan Colleges’s Chris Sauve (Mascouche, Que.) evened his record at 1-1 by picking up a win against Missouri Baptist. He threw six innings, giving up just three hits and two runs with five strikeouts and four walks.

Marklund tries to match
Brandon Marklund (North Vancouver, BC) did not want to be outdone by his fellow Canadian. Marklund worked six innings for Bryan College, allowing eight hits, four runs (two earned) with five strikeouts and three walks. Unfortunately for Marklund and his teammates he was dealt the loss and drops to 0-2 on the season.

Thomas tosses eight
Kyle Thomas (Mississauga, Ont.) lasted as long as he could but it would not be enough for the University of Northwestern Ohio Racers to pull out a victory over Union College. Thomas went eight innings, scattering just four hits and two runs with eight strikeouts and a walk. Union pulled out the 5-4 win in twelve innings.

Nistor notches save
Nothing calms a managers racing heart more than a clean ninth inning in a 3-2 game. That is exactly what Chase Nistor (Regina, Sask.) provided for Taft College in their victory over LA Pierce. He has appeared in four games and has yet to allow an earned run.

Duncan crowds bases for Crowder College
Tyler Duncan (Sooke, BC) was all over the base paths in Crowder College’s three wins this past week. He stroked a triple and worked a walk in a 16-10 win over Labette to start things off. He followed that up with a 2-for-3 day that included a double, a walk and a RBI in an 8-5 win over Seminole State (OK). Crowder took down Seminole State (OK) once more by a 14-7 score to round things out. Duncan would have another hit, a walk and a RBI in that contest.

Misic with five innings of sweet relief
It usually is not a regular occurrence to have a reliever is summoned from the bullpen in the third inning. The circumstances did not seem to bother Cooper Misic (Surrey, BC) as he went about business as usual for Galveston College. Music tossed five innings, allowing three hits and three runs (none earned) in a 5-3 loss to Odessa. He struck out two and walked two along the way. 

Complete Game for Burns
Connor Burns was locked in en route to a complete game win over Western Nebraska Community College. He tossed all seven innings for Garden City, allowing six hits and two runs with a pair of strikeouts and two walks. He is now 1-1 on the year.

Back to the bats
Three hits including a home run and a double is a pretty good way to open the week. That was Kyle MacDonald’s (Mississauga, Ont.) stat line in Crowder College’s game versus Labette. It also included two walks and three RBIs, not bad. He went 2-for-4 in his teams second game and then collected another hit, three walks and a RBI in the finale.

Bedard bashes Eastern Arizona
Alex Bedard (Levis, Que.) jumped all over Eastern Arizona’s pitching staff to help lead Trinidad State to victory. He went 4-for-5 with a stolen base and a RBI in the 4-2 win. In his teams next win, 9-4 over Eastern Arizona, he had another multi-hit game with a double and a triple to go with a walk, a stolen base and a RBI. An 8-7, Game 4 win was quiet by his standards as he had a hit and two RBIs to close the four-game set.

Dagenais helps out
Bedard was not the only Trinidad State player to have a solid offensive performance this week. Michael Dagenais (Longueuil, Que.) pounded out five hits and five RBIs in the series against Eastern Arizona. He also walked twice and stole a base.

Toikka takes home win
Braeden Toikka (North Vancouver, BC) struck out nine and picked up the win for Western Oklahoma State over Luna. He worked four innings, giving up three hits and a run (unearned). He walked two on the way to his first win of 2017.

Lantigua with a home run
John Lantigua (Quebec City, Que.) hit a home run in Western Oklahoma State’s 16-6 win over Iowa Western to start the week off on a good note.

Gordner gets it done
It was a good offensive week for Mike Gordner (Waterloo, Ont.). He hit a double and drove in two in Point Loma Nazarene’s 8-6 win over Cal Poly Pomona. Even though they lost Game 2, Gordner had an even better individual performance. He had four hits, one of which was another double, a walk and three RBIs. A solo home run and a walk was how he ended his week at the dish.

Three doubles for Lacroix
Jonathan Lacroix (Montreal, Que.) had three doubles in three games for Seminole State (OK). He finished with four hits in total. Seminole State (OK) dropped all three of their opening weekend games.

Glaude has been great
If you were watching Missouri Western State this past week you could not miss David Glaude (Quebec City, Que.). The senior started off by getting a hit and a walk in his teams 5-4, 10 inning loss to Arkansas Tech. He went 2-for-6 in Game 2, a 12-5 win, with a double and three RBIs. After collecting a hit in the final game against Arkansas Tech he had a 2-for-3 game with a double and RBI against the University of Arkansas Fort Smith. In the final two games against UAFS he had a hit and a walk. Glaude has been on base in all 10 games so far this year.

Acosta-Tapia leading the charge
Christopher Acosta-Tapia (Deaauville Laval, Que.) enjoyed his week with five hits and five RBIs. His best game came in the last game, an 11-8 loss to Hastings, where he would go 3-for-4 with a home run, a double and two RBIs.

That is a wrap for Week 3 of the BMOC. NCAA Division I is starting up so there should be plenty of new faces in the weeks to come. Make sure to check back next week to stay up-to-date with Canadians in the world of college baseball.

If you know of someone who is deserving of a mention in the weekly BMOC column, please contact Matt Betts at mattbetts41@gmail.com