Former Victoria Eagle Ethan Skuija (Victoria, BC) earned unanimous pitcher of the year honours for Ohlone College in the California Community College Association after going 13-2 with a 1.70 ERA in 17 starts.

Big Men On Campus Week XX

By Matt Betts
Canadian Baseball Network

Canada has another national champion. Five Canadians also helped their teams to the NCAA Division I Super Regionals and much more. The best of the best is below

LSU Eunice walks off title game

It was a dramatic finish to the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II national championship game. Tied 3-3 in the bottom of the ninth, Louisiana State University Eunice hit a two-run home run to win the national championship in walk-off fashion over Parkland College. The national championship is the sixth in program history. Nathan Holmes (Mississauga, Ont.) was a member of the LSU Eunice Bengals pitching staff and had a 5.56 ERA over 11 appearances, which included two starts in 2018.

Cottam an All-American

Kole Cottam (Knoxville, Tenn.) was honoured with a Second Team All-American selection out of Kentucky. Cottam hit .352 with 19 home runs and 50 RBIs while playing in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. He reached base at a .438 clip and slugged .667. In the field he posted a .994 fielding percentage. The Boston Red Sox made him the 130th selection in the 4th round of the Major League Baseball Draft.

Julien named to All-Tournament Team, All-American

The No. 19 Auburn Tigers are off to the NCAA Division I Super Regionals for just the second time and first since 1999. In the Raleigh Regional they were lead offensively by Edouard Julien (Quebec City, Que.). Their first game pitted them against Northeastern and Julien went 3-for-4 with a walk, a three-run home run and a stolen base in the 13-4 win. He then went 2-for-4 with a RBI in a 12-1 drubbing of Army before taking down North Carolina State 15-7 to clinch a spot in the Super Regionals. Julien went 2-for-5 with a walk and a two-run home run, his seventeenth of the season. When the All-Tournament team was announced Julien found his name on the list. He also was named to the 2018 Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American Team for his play. The Tigers are now set for a Southeastern Conference showdown with the No. 1 Florida Gators.

Okotoks Dawgs two-way man Matt Lloyd (Okotoks, Alta.) helped Indiana down the post-season road.

Lloyd joins Cottam

The Indiana Hoosiers went 2-2 in Austin Regional, eventually bounced by the host Texas Longhorns. They opened the tournament with a 10-3 loss to Texas A&M. Lloyd went 2-for-4 with a double in the loss. After a 6-0 win over Texas Southern, Matt Lloyd (Okotoks, Alta.) went 3-for-4 with a walk, a double and a three-run home run in a 9-7 win over Texas A&M. The home run put the Hoosiers up 9-0 but the Aggies battled back to make it a 9-7 game. Lloyd was summoned from the bullpen and locked down the save with 1 1/3 innings, allowing three hits, a run. He struck out one to seal the win. The Hoosiers then lost to Texas 3-2 to end their season. Lloyd had such a good season he was named a Second Team All-American. He hit .275 with nine home runs, 41 RBIs, a .356 on-base percentage and a .458 slugging percentage. On the mound he had a 4-2 record with 7 saves and a .212 opponent batting average. His ERA stood at 1.54 over 15 appearances.

Skuija named top pitcher

Ethan Skuija (Victoria, BC) had himself quite a season for Ohlone College. He went 13-2 with a 1.70 ERA over 18 appearances, 17 starts. He tossed 90 innings and struck out 109. For his efforts he was named 2018 All Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year in the California Community College Athletic Association. Skuija is signed to play for the Roadrunners of California State Bakersfield.

Hatters defend home turf

The home fans left happy after the Stetson Hatters swept their way through the DeLand Regional. After beating Hartford 8-3 in the opener, Ben Onyshko (Winnipeg, Man.) threw two innings and struck out five in a 10-3 Game 2 win over the Oklahoma State Cowboys. He surrendered a hit and an unearned run to close things out. The Hatters downed the Cowboys again in Game 3 and are off to Chapel Hill, NC to face the University of North Carolina in Super Regional action.

Burgmann picks up win, Huskies move on

Josh Burgmann (Nanaimo, BC) picked up the win in Game 2 of the Conway Regional for the Washington Huskies. He went 2 1/3 innings, giving up four hits and two runs while striking out one against the 2016 national champion Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. The Huskies then knocked off the University of Connecticut to punch their ticket to the Super Regionals. They now have a date with the Cal State Fullerton Titans starting June 8th.

Former Brampton Royal Zach Fascia (Brampton, Ont.) was also a two-way man for Indians Hills.

Canadians at Indian Hills highlight Region XI

Three Canadians were selected to the All-Region XI team. Catcher Zach Fascia (Brampton, Ont.) was a dual threat for Indian Hills all season hitting .277 in 58 games played. He also had a 1-1 record, a 0.66 ERA and five saves over 12 appearances on the mound. He averaged 11.85 strikeouts per nine innings. Fascia was selected by the in the 37th round, 1100th overall by the New York Mets.

Outfielder Ryan Humeniuk (Stonewall, Man.) hit .355 with five home runs and 50 RBIs and slugged .521.
Infielder Justin King (Okotoks, Alta.) had a .357 average, a .457 on-base percentages and a .696 slugging percentage.

Okotoks Dawgs grad Garrett Kirkwood (Calgary, Alta.) of the Columbus State Cougars.

Columbus State falls in title game

It was a heartbreaking way to end the season for Garrett Kirkwood (Calgary, Alta.) and the Columbus State Cougars as they lost 3-2 to No. 11 Augustana in the NCAA Division II national championship game. Kirkwood went 4-for-15 in three games played during the DII championship tournament.

Golden Eagles go 2-2

The NJCAA national championship started well for the Southern Idaho Golden Eagles as they opened with back-to-back wins. Brett Resch (Saskatoon, Sask.) and Shawn Grandmont (Lethbridge, Alta.) both were key cogs for their team. In a 5-2 opening win over Temple, Grandmont went 3-for-4 with a solo home run. Resch worked a walk in the win. Next, the Golden Eagles downed Iowa Western 4-2. Resch had a double and a RBI against the Reivers. They then lost to Walters State 12-10 but Grandmont went 2-for-5 and Resch also went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs. Grandmont had a hit and a RBI in an 8-6 loss to San Jacinto College that ended their season. Stephen Wade (Vancouver, BC) was also on the College of Southern Idaho’s roster.

Lions go 4-2 in NAIA World Series

The NAIA World Series saw three Canadians in the final game. Cam Palmeter (Ajax, Ont.), Darcy Moore (Sharon, Ont.) and Roberto Morson (Mississauga, Ont.) were all members of the Freed-Hardeman Lions who lost to Southeastern University in the final. The Lions only two losses came against Southeastern. Moore had a hit and a walk in the championship tournament and hit .252 on the year. Palmeter hit .273 on the season.

Toronto Mets grad Liam Hicks (Toronto, Ont.)

Hicks leads team in average

Liam Hicks (Toronto, Ont.) played in all 50 games and lead Mineral Area College in batting average at .370. Hicks clubbed seven home runs, knocked in 31 and stole 11 bases during the 2018 season. His strong campaign earned him a Second Team All-Region selection.

Diaz, Hyland helps Reivers in World Series

Both Indigo Diaz (North Vancouver, BC) and Kobe Hyland competed for the Iowa Western Reivers at the NJCAA DI World Series. Diaz tossed 2 2/3 innings, giving up three hit and three runs (one earned) with three walks and five strikeouts in a 4-2 loss to the College of Southern Idaho. Hyland went 3-for-5 with a double, a two-run home run and a stolen base in a 7-6 Game 1 win over Chattahoochee Valley Community College. After chipping in a hit in a 4-2 loss to the College of Southern Idaho he had two hits, including a three-run blast, a walk and a stolen base in a 14-13, 10 inning loss to the eventual champions Chipola.

Turino has four hits in JUCO World Series

Matt Turino (Scarborough, Ont.) had four hits in three games during the NJCAA DI World Series. One of his hits was a home run in a win over Barton. He drove in three total and walked four times as Jefferson went 1-2.

Team Ontario grad Stuart Martin (Eden Mills, Ont.)

Monroe exits 0-2

Monroe Community College went 0-2 in the NJCAA DII World Series. Right handed pitcher Dylan Clark (Milton, Ont.), left handed pitcher Evan Lang (Burlington, Ont.), right handed pitcher/outfielder Jordan Bryant (Mitchell, Ont.), left handed pitcher Liam Devine (Guelph, Ont.), infielder Matt Pilarczyk (Milton, Ont.), right handed pitcher/outfielder Matt Wagner (Pembroke, Ont.) and right handed pitcher Stuart Martin (Eden Mills, Ont.) were all members of the Tribunes. Pilarczyk earned a walk and scored a run and Wagner had a hit and scored a run in the championship. Martin threw two innings, allowing three hits, two runs and struck out one in a 9-3 season ending loss to Sinclair Community College.

UNOH competes in NAIA World Series

Also competing in the NAIA World Series was the University of Northwestern Ohio Racers and Olivier Mailloux (Ville de Quebec, Que.). Mailloux made a start against No. 3 Saint Thomas University, a game the Racers won 13-9. Northwestern Ohio went 1-2 to close the season.

Myles Miller (Windsor, Ont.) had two hits and scored a run in the three games.

Freshmen Kyle Bryan (Whitby, Ont.), James De Sousa (Pickering, Ont.), Hunter James (Stratford, Ont.) and Kareem Kabrosli (Windsor, Ont.) are also on the Racers.

Week 20 saw plenty of action. With the DI Super Regionals set there are still some Canadians playing. Make sure to check back next week for a summary of all the action.

If you know someone deserving of a mention in the weekly BMOC please contact Matt Betts at mattbetts41@gmail.com. Please note our week runs Monday-Sunday.

BMOC XX: Burgmann, Holmes, Lloyd, Onyshko