| Game 34 (Bronze): New Brunswick 13 Québec 8 |
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SCOTT SCHMIDT This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it The ball came off the Québec hitter’s bat hard along the ground down the first base line and into the waiting glove of New Brunswick first-baseman Mike Washburn. He took the two necessary steps towards the bag and it was all over — for the first time in the Baseball Canada Cup’s history, New Brunswick won a bronze medal. Early Sunday losses in the semifinals sent both teams to the bronze medal game in search of some tournament hardware. It was a rematch of the 2006 bronze affair in the Gas City where Québec throttled New Brunswick 11-1. Québec headed into the game as favourites to win simply because of the tourney’s history, but New Brunswick had given Ontario all it could handle in the semis and almost found themselves playing for gold. The confident Maritime bunch carried the momentum from that game and put on a performance to remember, taking the podium with a 13-8 victory. “It was a tough loss this morning, but we had to bounce back from that,” said Washburn moments after the celebration cleared. “We wanted to come out and prove that we’re contenders and that we can play with anybody. “We really proved that it’s not just the big provinces, but it can be anybody.” Québec threatened to take an early lead in the top of the first, but when Sasha Lagarde attempted to score off of a sharp chopper to third base, a quick throw to the dish had a wall by the name of New Brunswick catcher Jeff McCarthy waiting when he arrived. After the ensuing collision, McCarthy held up the ball for the out. New Brunswick’s bats were out in full force all game long, beginning with a run in the first off the bat of Washburn. Québec battled throughout, but no matter what they did, New Brunswick countered. When Les Ailes scored two, New Brunswick added three, and when Québec was still celebrating a four-spot in the fourth, McCarthy and his teammates were busy putting up eight in the bottom half. “We’re for real,” said McCarthy, whose two hits and two RBI were good enough for player of the game honours. “No one wants to admit it, we’ve been called the dark knight, we’ve been called many names, but we’re for real and we’re a good team.” Helping secure the medal was starting pitcher Aaron Noel, who threw on two days rest and nursing a sore back. Noel tossed a gutsy 3 2-3 innings keeping Québec’s lumber at bay for the most part. “It feels pretty good (to win), but I’m pretty sore, I’m not gonna lie,” admitted Noel. “What a team, it was the same team as last year pretty much. “What a good group of lads, I couldn’t ask for more.” Sonny Newman, Emerson Savage, and Robert Gallant — who threw just one pitch to record the game’s final out — all combined in relief to aid in the win. Third-baseman Dan McNeil chipped in three RBI to lead New Brunswick in that department. One thing that can’t be mistaken at the close of the 2008 tourney is the fact the two pools of teams are a lot closer in talent level than past years would show. Pool B, the supposed weaker division, finished up head-to-head games against Pool A with a 2-2 record and both losses were by only one run. “The parity is great, it’s great for baseball,” said New Brunswick head coach Mark Noel. “Every kid in our program now will believe that they can play with these kids and that there are opportunities for them. “It means every game counts, it’s exciting and it’s great for the fans to come and see good baseball, every time, in every pool.” |
