Posts in Canadians in College
McFarland: Ninth inning has been “Danger Zone” for college hitters facing Helland

“When opposition batters head to the plate to face Reece Helland, they are entering the danger zone.

Not only are they facing MidAmerica Nazarene’s top bullpen gun, who is an intense presence on the bump, but he also enters the game with a formidable tune.

You guessed it: the Kenny Loggins classic “Danger Zone” from the movie Top Gun.

Over his four years with the Pioneers, Helland has accumulated a 13-6 record and a 4.47 earned-run average in 84 games, with one start, and 16 saves.”

Read More
McAllister: Smith leaves for school wearing a red championship hockey hat

“Tanner Smith (Ripley, Ont.) has an awful lot of kilometres to cover for entering the same sacred space Larry Walker occupied as one of Canada’s most-decorated sandlot stars.

The teenager from the small municipality of Ripley near the shores of Lake Huron in southwestern Ontario has higher credentials than the National Hall of Fame and Canadian Hall of Fame outfielder, however, when it comes to the art of stopping pucks.

Smith, who is off to Bryant and Stratton College in Akron, Ohio this summer to pitch and play the outfield for the NJCAA Division 2 Bobcats, put a rather tidy bow on his minor hockey career in late March by backstopping the Huron-Bruce Blizzard to the Ontario Minor Hockey Association under-18 Tier 2 championship in Halton Hills, Ont. “

Read More
UBC keeps postseason going with runner-up finish at conference championship

“It was a beautiful day at Tourmaline West Stadium, the sunshine providing the backdrop to a pair of exciting Cascade Collegiate Conference Championship baseball games.

When the dust settled, it was the Lewis-Clark State Warriors who prevailed as CCC champions, defeating the UBC Thunderbirds in the final game. That came after the T-Birds had beaten the Oregon Tech Owls earlier in the day, securing their spot in the upcoming NAIA Baseball Championship Opening Round.”

Read More
McFarland: Resilient Makarus stars at Bellevue after reviving college career

“Ayden Makarus thought he was done with baseball.

More than two years after quitting the game to get on with his post-baseball life, the Dawgs Academy alum has returned with a vengeance at Bellevue University.

He was named the North Star Athletic Association Player of the Week on April 14, when he hit .429 with four home runs, 10 runs batted in and eight runs scored in four games.

The utilityman did it again two weeks later, posting a line of .375 with four more roundtrippers while driving in seven and scoring seven en route to also being named the Canadian Baseball Network’s College Player of the Week.”

Read More