BMOC Week 6

By Matt Betts

Canadian Baseball Network

It’s another great week to be a fan of Canadians in college baseball. Every week seems to bring something impressive. Below you can find the cream of the crop from week six.

Abram pounds the zone

Contributing as a freshman can be a lot to ask. Don’t tell Oklahoma Sooner freshman Ben Abram (Georgetown, Ont.) though. Abram has been outstanding in his first three starts of his college career. Last week he worked four scoreless innings, allowing three hits and striking out four to help the Sooners down the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff 8-0. Abram wasn't done there, however, as he took the ball again in Game 4 of their series with Columbia. He went six, gave up five hits and two runs en route to a 6-2 win. Abram struck out seven to improve to 3-0 on the season. The hulking righty has tossed 15 innings, owns a 1.80 ERA, has struck out sixteen and has yet to walk a batter.

No sophomore slump so far

Cooper Davis (Mississauga, Ont.) has been on fire for No. 1 Vanderbilt this season. He continued his strong play last week by going 4-for-6 with two RBIs and a stolen base in the Commodores 11-3 win over Southeast Missouri State. Then, in a 7-6, 10 inning loss to Austin Peay, he had a hit and two walks. A three-game set with Dayton was on tap and Davis was ready. He went 2-for-4 with two doubles, a walk, three RBIs and a stolen base in an 11-3 win. The Commodores took Game 2 by a 5-1 score and Davis worked a walk. He went 2-for-4 in the finale, a 2-0 victory.

Skuija beats Santa Clara, named Pitcher of the Week

After California State University Bakersfield dropped Game 1 of their series with Santa Clara, it was Ethan Skuija (Victoria, BC) who got them back on track in Game 2. Skuija threw a complete game, throwing nine innings and allowing just one run on four hits. He walked one and struck out 11. Cal State Bakersfield would go on to win Games 3 and 4 to wrap up the series. Skuija was named Western Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week for his performance.

Chenier knocks of No. 4 UNC

Evan Chenier (Georgetown, Ont.) gave up one run over four innings to help the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams to an 11-8 win over the No. 4 University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Chenier allowed two hits, and struck out one.

Brand continues scoreless streak

The Point University Skyhawks have relied on Billy Brand (Burlington, Ont.) as an anchor out of their bullpen so far in 2019. In a 12-7 Game 1 win over Union College, Brand gave up a hit and struck out two in two scoreless innings. He then picked up the win in a 6-5 walk off victory in Game 2. Brand worked 2 1/3 scoreless, giving up a hit and a walk while striking out one. Over 10 appearances to start the season he has six saves, has yet to allow an earned run and is holding opponents to a minuscule .136 average.

Wilson a workhorse

Brady Wilson (Calgary, Alta.) was summoned from the bullpen three times last week for Taft College. He worked a scoreless inning and allowed a hit in a 15-9 win over Allan Hancock. Although his squad dropped the rematch 5-1, Wilson worked two scoreless innings, giving up two hits and striking out one. His final appearance came in a 3-1 win over Antelope Valley when he threw a scoreless 1 1/3 innings, allowing a hit, a walk and struck out two. Oh, did I mention the three appearances came in back-to-back-to-back games?

Goodall put to work

Garrett Goodall (Nanaimo, BC) was instrumental in a pair of wins last week for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. In the first, a 6-5, 11 inning win over Davenport, Goodall worked 5 2/3 innings of relief and allowed one run. He gave up four hits, a walk and struck out three. He picked up the win in the Eagles Game 2 win over Palm Beach Atlantic later in the week. The second appearance featured 6 1/3 innings of work. He gave up two runs on six hits. He walked two and struck out three to finish of an excellent week of work.

T-Birds take 3-of-4 from No. 5

If you looked at Daniel Sereda’s line you would think he made the start. Sereda provided the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds with six innings of relief in a 3-2 win over National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics No. 5 Lewis-Clark State. Over those six innings Sereda surrendered three hits and four walks. He struck out four to move his record to 2-1. The Thunderbirds have now won six of their last seven. Jaxon Valcke (St. Mary’s, Ont.) had a nice series at the plate collecting five hits, three RBIs and was hit by a pitch.

Kirkwood kickstarts Cougars

Garrett Kirkwood (Calgary, Alta.) had six hits, four walks, drove in two and swiped a pair of bases for the Columbus State Cougars in a 4-0 week. Kirkwood scored four runs in a 13-2 thumping of Montevallo. His best day at the dish came in a 5-4 Game 2 win over Augusta when he went 4-for-4. The Cougars improved to 12-4 on the season.

Cal Poly faced a tough Rhodes, Burgmann brilliant

Freshman David Rhodes (White Rock, BC) has been anything but intimidated pitching for the University of Washington Huskies. Rhodes allowed three runs (one earned) over five innings in a 9-3 win over Cal Poly. He scattered seven hits, a pair of walks and struck out two. Josh Burgmann (Nanaimo, BC) tossed eight scoreless innings to help the Huskies secure the sweep of Cal Poly. Burgmann allowed three hits, walked one and punched out 10.

Asselin a keeper for Colby

Andrew Asselin (Winnipeg, Man.) lasted 4 2/3 innings and gave up one run in Colby Community College’s 11-9 Game 4 win over New Mexico Military. He allowed six hits, walked one and punched out one.

Berg on base

Opposing pitchers couldn't seem to figure out a way to keep Polk State’s Danny Berg (Saskatoon, Sask.) off the base paths. Berg went 3-for-6 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs in an 11-6 loss to Santa Fe College. Next up was a meeting with Florida Southern College where Berg went 2-for-3 with three walks and two RBIs. To round out his week Berg had two hits, a walk and drove in four in a 10-1 drubbing of Rollins College.

Stewart strong, Cincinnati scuffling

It hasn't been a great start to the year for the 1-9 Cincinnati Bearcats but Chase Stewart (Abbotsford, BC) had himself a good week on the bump. Stewart walked two and struck out two in two scoreless innings of work in a 7-1 loss to Indiana. Later in the week he held his own against No. 18 Auburn by going 2 1/3 innings and giving up one run. Stewart worked around two hits and a walk in the appearance. He struck out two more to bring his weekly total to four.

Battle of the Alabama’s

Justin King (Okotoks, Alta.) was an offensive force for the Alabama Crimson Tide during their five games last week. He kicked it off with two hits and a hit by pitch in an 8-0 win over North Alabama. After walking twice in a rematch with UNA he had two hits, a walk and a RBI in a 7-3 Game 1 win over South Alabama . In Game 2, a 10-5 win, King hit a solo home run and worked a walk. The Tide completed the sweep with a 6-1 win and King had a hit and walked twice in the victory.

Top of the order Turino

Tennessee commit Matt Turino (Scarborough, Ont.) drove the Jefferson College offence at the top of their lineup last week. He had eight hits, walked twice, recorded two RBIs and stole a base out of the leadoff spot in a 2-3 week for his squad.

McRae snags only win for Mary

The University of Mary may have only gone 1-3 to open their slate but it was Parker McRae (Nipawin, Sask.) who picked up that win. McRae threw six scoreless innings, allowing five hits, three walks and struck out four.

MacLaren the pride of Morell

Cole MacLaren (Morell, PEI) had seven hits in four games for Pittsburgh. He went 3-for-4 with two walks in a 4-3 win over Butler.

Busy week for Majeur, Statesmen

The NCAA Division II No. 7 Delta State Statesmen concluded their series with Union University, played a pair of midweek games with Arkansas Tech and played two-of-three against Shorter before Game 3 was postponed last week. Matthew Majeur (Pointe-Claire, Que.) was busy, as well, contributing six hits, two walks, three RBIs and a stolen base as the Statesmen went 4-2.

Wark works in two

Jackson Wark (St. Albert, Alta.) tossed a scoreless inning with a strikeout in a 9-7 win over Sacred Heart. He then went five innings, allowing a run on four hits and two walks against Georgetown. He struck out four to pick up the win.

Dobie delivers

It was six hits, including two home runs, four walks and 10 RBIs for Tyler Dobie (Toronto, Ont.) last week for Point Park University. Dobie went 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs in a Game 1, 9-3 win over West Virginia University Tech. He also drove in four in a 6-1 win over Mount Vernon Nazarene University.

Giberson giving his team a chance

Ryan Giberson (Kitchener, Ont.) allowed one run over six innings as his Seward County Saints shot down Redlands 12-1. He allowed four hits, two walks and struck out five to pick up his first win.

Newman drops 2-of-3

Arkansas Fort-Smith got the better of Newman but Paul Rupnik (Newmarket, Ont.) had five hits, a walk and two RBIs in the three-game set. In Game 3, the only win for Newman, Rupnik went 3-for-4 with a RBI.

Reilly ready for opposition

Drew Reilly (Cambridge, Ont.) had five hits, including a two-run home run for NAIA No. 24 Keiser. He walked once and drove in five total.

Wepf back to work

It was yet another strong showing on the bump for Lucas Wepf (Georgetown, Ont.) as he tossed five scoreless innings for Pratt in their 3-1 win over Highland Community College. Wepf allowed a single hit, walked three and struck out eleven to help his team to a sweep.

Potter pitches Galveston to series win

With the three-game set knotted at one the Galveston Whitecaps went to Jacob Potter (Victoria, BC) in Game 3 and he delivered in a 4-1 win. Potter threw a complete game, five innings. He allowed three hits and struck out three.

Beaudry wins twice

Guillaume Beaudry (Cookshire, Que.) picked up a pair of wins last week as Trinidad State beat Southeast 6-5 and Northeastern 10-3. Against Southeast Beaudry went 3 2/3 scoreless, giving up a hit, walking two and striking out four. He was back on the mound and worked four scoreless against Northeastern. He surrendered four hits and struck out four in his second appearance.

Wood with eight hits

Tyler Wood (Winnipeg, Man.) started his week with back-to-back multi-hit games for Cameron. Cameron beat William Jewell 17-7 before dropping their second contest by the same score to Oklahoma Christian. After walking in an 11-8 Game 1 loss to Eastern New Mexico he went 3-for-4 in Game 2.

Malenfant beats John Wood

Hayden Malenfant (Whitby, Ont.) gave up four runs (one earned) over six innings to lead Southeastern Community College to a 9-5 win over John Wood. Malenfant gave up four hits, walked two and struck out five.

Reyes-Cruz helps Clarendon crush Eastern New Mexico

It was a tough start to the week for Clarendon College as they dropped a pair of games to Ranger despite getting three hits from Tommy Reyes-Cruz (Montreal, Que.) in the two games. Reyes-Cruz belted a home run in the opening game of the week and drove in three in the 10-8 loss. Clarendon took their frustrations out on Eastern New Mexico University, sweeping them in their four-game series and outscoring them 76-10. Reyes-Cruz had nine hits, worked six free passes, drove in ten and stole a base in the series. Four of his RBIs came in a 16-1 Game 3 win. All four games of the series only lasted five innings.

Marcus makes two games count

Dodge City Community College’s four-game set with Barton was postponed but Spencer Marcus (Chatham, Ont.) did his damage in the two games the team did play. In a 28-4 drubbing of Oklahoma Panhandle State he went 4-for-5 with two home runs, six RBIs, five runs scored and a stolen base. He finished his early week with a hit in a 14-3 win against Dakota.

Ankerman an offensive anchor

Nicholas Ankerman (Lethbridge, Alta.) had a hit in each of his first three games for Eastern New Mexico in a pair of wins and a loss. In the final game of the week he went 3-for-3 with three RBIs.

Sycamores stay hot

The Sycamores of Indiana State have jumped out to a 9-1 start to 2019 with the help of some strong play from Max Wright (Toronto, Ont.) Wright had five hits last week as his team went 3-1. He walked three times, drove in two and was hit by a pitch, as well.

Marks makes start

Jordan Marks (Bright’s Grove, Ont.) went seven innings, giving up one hit, two runs (one earned) and a walk to help USC Upstate beat Ohio 3-2 in 12 innings. Marks struck out five Bobcat batters in the process.

Patterson ends with a bang

After collecting a hit in both Games 1 and 2 for NAIA No. 23 Bellevue in their series with No. 24 Keiser, JT Patterson (Calgary, Alta.) finished strong. In Game 3 he went 4-for-5 with a walk and two RBIs.

Johnson goes the distance

Ryan Johnson (Winnipeg, Man.) tossed all seven innings in Lubbock Christian’s 4-2 win over St. Mary’s. Johnson surrendered five hits, the two runs and two walks to improve to 4-0. He struck out three in the win. His 2019 ERA now stands 1.59.

Cox handles Hannibal-LaGrange

Tyler Cox allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits over six innings for Harris-Stowe State as they dropped Hannibal-LaGrange 8-2. Cox walked two and struck out four to lead his team.

Kush, Angels collect wins for Raiders

Jacob Kush (Guelph, Ont.) and Conor Angel (Lachine, Que.) both improved their records to 3-1 for the Northwest Florida State Raiders last week. Kush gave up two unearned runs over six innings to beat Lurleen B. Wallace. He scattered four hits and a walk, while striking out nine. Angel got the ball in Game 3 of their series with Shelton State and threw a complete game shutout in a 4-0 win. He allowed three hits, walked four and also struck out nine.

Savoie stable out of the bullpen

It wasn't the game result Northeastern Oklahoma A&M was hoping for but they got some solid relief from Edouard Savoie (Saint Eustache, Que.) in their 5-1 loss to Eastern Oklahoma State College. Savoie went 5 1/3 innings, allowing five hits, a run and a walk. He struck out four in the Game 2 loss.

Sabiston salvages week

After being the last guy on the mound in Eastern New Mexico’s 6-5 walk off loss to Panhandle State, Liam Sabiston (Calgary, Alta.) got his chance to redeem himself later in the week. Sabiston picked up the win over Cameron by tossing four scoreless innings of relief. He allowed one hit, walked three and struck out four.

Laukkanen appears twice

Josh Laukkanen (Nanaimo, BC) threw two scoreless innings of relief in Cloud County’s 11-2 win over Northeast Community College. He gave up a hit and recorded a strikeout for the T-Birds. Laukkanen got the start in his next appearance, an 8-5 win over Hesston College. In that one he gave up a run on three hits. He walked two and struck out five.

Fine performance for Feuerstake

Mineral Area’s Caleb Feuerstake (Waterdown, Ont.) went 2-for-5 in Mineral Areas 8-3 win over Shawnee. In their next game, a 6-2 loss to St. Charles, Feuerstake had two hits and a walk. He closed his week going 3-for-4 with a home run in a 7-5 loss to St. Charles. He also walked and stole a base in that game.

New names, old names, this past week had them both. Canadians are gaining steam as the college baseball season chugs along. Make sure to come back next week to read all about it.

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