March 5, 2024

By Matt Betts

Canadian Baseball Network

The final week of February and first weekend in March came and went with plenty of impressive Canadian performances across college baseball.

Who stood out?

Let’s take a look.

Canadians take over Colorado

The University of Mary played five games in Colorado and received plenty of production from their Canadian hitters.

Carter Beck (Carnduff, Sask.) had eight hits, walked four times, drove in 10, was hit by three pitches and stole two bases. Three of his hits were home runs, which included a three-run home run in a 16-13 win over the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, a two-run shot in a win over Colorado Christian and a solo home run versus Metropolitan State University of Denver.

Former Canadian Baseball Network College Player of the Week Kalem Haney (Lethbridge, Alta.) chipped in seven hits, five walks, three RBIs, two hit by pitches and a pair of stolen bases.

Noah Hull (Scarborough, Ont.) put together five hits, four walks and six RBIs. Like Beck, Hull also left the yard three times, all solo homers, with two coming against UC Colorado Springs and another in a loss to Colorado Christian.

Daniel Martin (Langley, BC) collected five hits, a walk, seven RBIs and reached via a hit by pitch twice. Martin hit two-run home runs against UC Colorado Springs and in the loss to Colorado Christian. Against Metropolitan State University of Denver, he hit a solo and another two-run home run.

Ben Prediger (Calgary, Alta.) went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run in a 12-7 win over Metropolitan State University of Denver.

The Marauders went 3-2 on the week.

Blue Dragons on fire

Three Canadian Hutchinson Community College Blue Dragons had strong weeks at the plate, including a home run each in a Game 3 win over Coffeyville.

Colin Cymbalista (Pickering, Ont.) had eight hits, nine RBIs and stole two bases in the four-game sweep of Coffeyville. Cymblista hit a solo home run in a 7-3 Game 3 win.

Cody Gunderson (St. Malo, Ont.) amassed six hits, walked four times and had 11 RBIs. He hit a pair of home runs, a solo shot and two-run homer, in the Game 3 victory.

Luis Pimental Guerrero (Burlington, Ont.) contributed seven hits, five walks and five RBIs. He hit a two-run home run in a 14-4 Game 1 win and a solo shot in Game 3.

Ethan Giesbrecht (Altona, Man.) was the winner in Game 1 after throwing five innings and allowing four runs (one earned) on six hits in a 14-4 victory. Giesbrecht punched out eight en route to improving his record to 2-1.

Benton, McWhirter outstanding for the Owls

For the second straight week William Woods starter Max Benton (Clyde River, PEI) appears in this column thanks to a stellar start. Benton earned his third win of the season with six innings of work. He allowed two runs on four hits with a pair of walks and seven strikeouts in a 4-2 Game 1 victory over Culver-Stockton.

Offensively for the Owls, Jacob McWhirter (Guelph, Ont.) played in four games and had six hits, a walk, five RBIs and a stolen base. He left the yard for a three-run home run in a 6-5 Game 2 loss to Culver-Stockton and again, this time a solo shot, in an 8-7 Game 3 defeat.

LeBlanc supplies long relief, Wrubleski with two, three-hit games

Chandler-Gilbert Community College got 5 2/3 innings of relief from Brandon LeBlanc (Victoria, BC) in a 6-4 win over Paradise Valley. The righty yielded one run on five hits with three walks and five strikeouts. It was LeBlanc’s third win of the season.

Jake Wrubleski (Okotoks, Alta.) went 3-for-5 with a home run in that win. Two games later, he put together a 3-for-5 performance with a home run and four RBIs in a 12-9 victory over Glendale. When the week was over, he had seven hits and nine RBIs.

Crowell, Zdunich lead Reinhardt’s offence

The theme of Canadian teammates stepping up continued for Reinhardt University.

Nash Crowell (Yarmouth, NS) had three multi-hit games and finished with eight hits, a walk, seven RBIs and a stolen base. Crowell swatted a three-run shot in the Eagles’ 9-7 Game 1 win over Tennessee Wesleyan and hit another two-run homer in the fifth inning of a 7-5 Game 2 win. Seven of his eight knocks went for extra bases as he also doubled five times.

Zdunich, on the other hand, came up with five hits, three walks and four RBIs. He hit a two-run home run in the Game 2 victory, also coming in the fifth inning.

Yip a highlight during tough series for UBC

There’s a reason Lewis-Clark State is ranked No. 3 in the NAIA and they showed it by sweeping a four-game series from the University of British Columbia.

It may have been a tough weekend, but Kyle Yip (Calgary, Alta.) was a bright spot for the Thunderbirds collecting six hits, a walk, an RBI and a hit by pitch in three games. He went 3-for-5 with an RBI in a 7-6 Game 4 loss.

Dow throws zeros

Lefty Haden Dow (Saint John, NB) tossed six scoreless innings as Southeast Missouri State thumped Toledo 12-0 in Game 2 of their series. Dow scattered three hits, walked two and fanned nine.

Murray can hit, Murray can run

Justin Murray (Markham, Ont.) has been critical to the success of the Benedict College offence. Take last week for example. Murray had 10 hits, walked three times, drove in 11, swiped eight bases and was hit by a pitch. He hit two home runs and twice stole three bases in a game.

MacLeod moves to 2-1

Rend Lake’s Hunter MacLeod (Abbotsford, BC) gave up one run on three hits over six innings in Rend Lake’s 4-3 win over Gadsden State to move his record to 2-1. He walked a pair and punched out seven.

Hall can hit

Jude Hall (Chilliwack, BC) stroked seven hits, walked twice, drove in nine and stole a base for Southeastern Louisiana. He hit a solo home run and a two-run home run in a 12-0 midweek victory over Mississippi Valley State before going 2-for-4 with a walk and three RBIs to lead the Lions to an 11-9 win over No. 11 East Carolina to close out their weekend.

Millas not messing around for Nevada

University of Nevada right-hander Theo Millas (Burnaby, BC) held UCLA scoreless over five innings in a midweek start. He allowed five hits and struck out one in a game his team would eventually lose 5-4.

McCrossin makes his way on base

Nolan McCrossin (Springford, Ont.) had three hits, worked two walks and drove in three in four games for Kankakee Community College.

Dessureault hits two home runs

Yohann Dessureault (Trois-Rivieres, Que.) played in five games for Stetson and chipped in seven hits, four walks, five RBIs, a stolen base and a hit by pitch. He hit a two-run home run and a solo home run in a 5-4 Game 2 loss to Brown.

Nicoll leads No. 11 Southern Arkansas

The Muleriders of Southern Arkasnsas went 4-0 and Brandon Nicoll (Coombs, BC) was a big reason why. Nicoll had five hits, a walk and five RBIs. He hit a go-ahead two-run home run in a 2-1 Game 2 win over No. 24 Harding. In Game 3, he hit another two-run homer in a 12-1 victory. The Muleriders are now 15-3 on the season.

Walters has two-homer game

Dawson Walters (Toronto, Ont.) hit a pair of two-run shots in McPherson’s 21-2 Game 2 win over Saint Mary. When the dust settled on the three-game series, Walters produced four hits, two walks, five RBIs and was hit by a pitch.

Grinberg powers Keiser

Like he’s done all season, Simon Grinberg (Kitchener, Ont.) produced for Keiser University. Over a three-game series with Concordia, Grinberg put up five hits, a walk and five RBIs. He hit a grand slam in a 10-9 Game 2 loss before hitting a solo shot and three-run homer in a 10-8 Game 3 loss.

Cote continues to showcase power

Four more home runs for Josh Cote (Midland, Ont.) gives him 11 on the season. In Northeastern Junior College’s four-game series with CSU Club, Cote also walked and drove in nine.

Tucker tosses seven scoreless

Chase Tucker (St. John’s, Nfld.) struck out 10 over seven scoreless innings of work as Saint Rose beat Chestnut Hill 6-0. He allowed one hit and a walk.

Hartman the heartbeat of Washington State

Former Okotoks Dawgs product Max Hartman (St. Albert, Alta.) collected seven hits, two walks, five RBIs and two stolen bases in four games for the Washington State Cougars.

Irvine earns only win of series

Right-handed pitcher Connor Irvine (Victoria, BC) conceded one run over six innings to lead Arkansas-Monticello to a 4-3 win over Ouachita Baptist. Irvine gave up one hit and struck out seven in the only game his team would win in the series.

Cory handed tough loss

Connor Cory (Wawanesa, Man.) pitched well for Mayville State but it wasn’t enough as they dropped Game 1 of their series with Hastings, 2-0. Cory allowed the two runs (one earned) on four hits over six innings of work. He walked one and struck out one.

Shapiro steps up against No. 16 North Carolina

Caden Shapiro (Toronto, Ont.) wasn’t overmatched facing the No. 16 team in the country over the weekend. He had seven hits, walked twice and drove in a run for Princeton in their series with North Carolina. In Game 2, he went 5-for-5 with a solo home run.

Hemmerling throws complete game shutout

Barton Community College swept a three-game series from North Iowa Area and it all started with a complete game, seven-inning shutout from Reece Hammerling (Beaumont, Ont.). He surrendered three hits, issued a pair of walks and struck out six in the 6-0 Game 1 win.

Shakotko hits two shots

Demitri Shakotko (Fredericton, NB) delivered four hits, a walk and six RBIs for Cloud County as they split a three-game series with NJCAA No. 7 Johnson County. His power was on display, as well, with a three-run home run in a 7-5 Game 1 win and a solo home run in a 7-6 Game 2 loss.

White homers twice, has five hits

Ontario Blue Jays alum Sam White (Aurora, Ont.) had five hits, two walks and four RBIs in five games for West Virginia. His best performance came in a 4-0 Game 1 win over Western Kentucky when he hit a solo home run and a two-run home run.

Barbieri blasts three solo home runs

Home runs seem to be commonplace among Canadian hitters over the past couple of weeks. Francesco Barbieri (Brampton, Ont.) hit three solo homers for Ave Maria last week. He closed out the week with eight hits, a walk, five RBIs and a stolen base in a four-game series against NAIA No. 12 Webber International University. He went 4-for-5 with a solo home run, three RBIs and a stolen base in the finale, a 7-6 loss. Unfortunately for Barbieri, the Gyrenes were swept.

Serafinchon mashes for McCook

McCook’s Jason Serafinchon (Spruce Grove, Alta.) had five hits, a walk and six RBI in a four-game split against Northeast. He hit a pair of home runs and drove in four in a 9-8 Game 1 win.

Chadwick dazzles for Redbirds

Tyrelle Chadwick (Kamloops, BC) threw a complete game, nine-inning shutout for Illinois State in their 5-0 Game 2 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. He allowed just one hit and struck out 12.

That’s it, that’s all for Week 6 of the BMOC.

Check back in seven days time for more news and notes from around college baseball.

Do you know of a player deserving of a mention in the weekly BMOC column? Email Matt Betts at mattbetts@canadianbaseballnetwork.com. Please note that our week runs Monday to Sunday.

Be sure to follow Matt Betts at @Bettsy41 for extensive Canadian baseball coverage all season long.