By Sherri Solomko

The Battlefords News-Optimist

*This article originally appeared in The Battlefords News-Optimist. You can read it here.*

UNITY — Unity Composite School Grade 12 student Dillon Poschenrieder has had a phenomenal year in baseball.

Not only did his team win provincials that earned his team a spot at Western Canadian midget baseball championships, he was also selected to play with Team Saskatchewan at the nationals in the Maritimes this summer.

Dillon was also selected as one of the 160 top Canadian junior baseball players to play with Team Prairies at Rogers Centre in Toronto. The Tournament 12 (T12) is a national baseball tournament hosted at the home of the Toronto Blue Jays. All players selected are eligible for college and are considered to be the best 160 overall players in the country.

The tournament is organized by the Toronto Blue Jays organization and gives players across Canada an opportunity to showcase their skills and potentially further their baseball careers at the college level. Each team played a minimum of four round robin games with potential playoffs as well.

There is an additional day for each team to perform in front of the entire scouting staff for one hour.

Dillon played in the same outfield as Blue Jay’s superman Kevin Pillar.

“This T12 event in Toronto was easily one of the best experiences of my life,” Dillon says.

“Stepping on the field of Rogers Centre was quite overwhelming and almost a little emotional. Two years ago I would have never seen myself even going to watch a Jays game, let alone playing on their field against the best baseball players in Canada.

“I think this tournament is a great way to give players a chance to showcase their skills and get noticed by college and MLB scouts. The tournament made me appreciate the sport even more after meeting so many talented athletes and coaches.”

Dillon describes baseball as his lifestyle. He has spent a couple of years at Badlands Baseball Academy in Oyen, Alta., which he says, “has allowed me to become the best ball player I can be and able to compete among the best in Canada.”