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Port Hope Senior Flyers
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Flyers bring home back to back titles
September 8, 2009
The Port Hope Flyers took part in the OBA C Championship this past weekend in Orillia and defended their title successfully, going 4-1 on their way to their 2nd consecutive championship.
Port Hope Flyers: 2 vs. Courtright Cardinals: 0
The Flyers opened the tournament against Courtright and handed the ball to Mike McNaught, who found himself in a pitcher's duel early on. The Flyers bats came to life in the 4th inning though, as Tye Welch nailed an opposite field single that scored Cory Baker and Ryan Davis. The 2 runs held up, as McNaught scattered 5 hits on his way to the shutout.
Port Hope Flyers: 4 vs. Creemore Braves: 2
Next up was an 8 am Saturday tilt against Creemore, who were expected to be one of the toughest teams in the tournament. Baker started for the Flyers and allowed a run in the 2nd inning. Kyle Moloney led off the 3rd with a single and was bunted to 2nd by Brad Dowler. Brett Jiggins cashed him in with a double and then scored on a Brad Pickering single, giving the Flyers a 2-1 lead. Welch got the 4th started with a base hit and scored on a Dowler single, making it a 3-1 game. Wes Eriksson's set the table in the 5th and he scored on a Robert McNab single to make it 4-1.
Baker allowed another run in the 6th and was relieved by McNaught with 1 out. McNaught closed things out and preserved the 4-2 win. Baker was solid in his 5 1/3 innings, allowing 8 hits and getting out of jams in clutch situations.
Port Hope Flyers: 2 vs. Ivy Leafs: 5
The Flyers got a nice rest Saturday afternoon and then faced the Ivy Leafs on Saturday night. Marc MacDonald started for the Flyers and had a rough outing for the 2nd consecutive weekend. After allowing 2 runs in the 1st, MacDonald appeared to be regaining his form in the 2nd, retiring the first 2 hitters. Things fell apart there though, as a dribbler got past MacDonald for an infield single, the next batter drew a walk and then an error loaded the bases. The next hitter hit a 3-run double and that was it for MacDonald.
The Flyers got on the board in the 4th, as Jiggins singled and stole 2nd and then scored on a Dowler single. Derek Dennee led off the 5th with a single and Craig Francoeur pinch ran for him. Frenchy scored on a Moloney single. Davis followed with a walk and suddenly the Flyers were down 5-2 with runners on 1st and 2nd for Jiggins, who smashed one to deep right field. The right fielder appeared to make an outstanding catch, but the ball seemed to pop out of his glove on contact with the ground, but the umpires ruled it a catch and robbed the Flyers of 2 big runs. The Flyers got no closer, but were held in the game by Paul Garrard's outstanding work in relief. Garrard allowed only 2 hits and no runs in 5 1/3 innings of work.
Port Hope Flyers: 5 vs. West Niagara Warriors: 3
Sunday morning saw the Flyers take on West Niagara and Ryan Davis started for the Flyers and did a great job. The Flyers struck first in the 3rd, as Welch singled and Brandon Duck and Eriksson walked, loading the bases for Jiggins, who cleared the bases with a double. Davis allowed his first hit in the 4th and that led to a run, cutting the Flyers lead to 3-1. Baker started the 6th with a walk and scored on a Moloney single, giving the Flyers a 4-1 lead.
West Niagara scored 2 runs in the 6th to make it 4-3, but the Flyers responded in the 7th, as Baker reached after being hit by a pitch and mcNab singled him home. Davis shut the door in the bottom half of the inning, earning a huge win. Davis struck out 6 and limited the Warriors to just 2 hits.
The Flyers now had to watch Creemore and Ivy play to determine their next opponent. Ivy was the lone undefeated team, but lost to Creemore. A draw was needed to determine who got the bye to the finals, which the Flyers won, so they had to watch Ivy and Creemore battle once again. Creemore again came out on top, meaning they would face the Flyers for the title.
Port Hope Flyers: 3 vs. Creemore Braves: 0
Playing their 3rd straight game, the Braves would still be a formidable foe for the Flyers, but McNaught was on the mound for Port Hope, so they knew they were in a good spot. Eriksson started the 2nd inning with a single and eventually scored on a passed ball to get the Flyers on the board. Moloney led off the 3rd with a single and stole 2nd base. Jiggins then reached on an error and stole 2nd, giving the Flyers runners at 2nd and 3rd for Eriksson who squared to bunt on a squeeze, but pulled back. It didn't matter though, as Moloney stole it cleanly and gave the Flyers a 2-0 lead. Baker singled to score Jiggins, making it a 3-0 game.
That was all the Flyers needed, as McNaught baffled the Braves, limiting them to 1 hit, finishing off 15 2/3 innings of scoreless ball for the weekend, proving once again how clutch he is, as he led the Flyers to the tournament championship.
EOBA tourney ends early for the Flyers
August 30, 2009
They had an 18-9 regular season record, which earned them 2nd place in the standings and an expectation of contending for the EOBA tournament championship, but the Port Hope Flyers struggled this past weekend and were the first team eliminated. The tournament host opened its weekend by hosting the Whitby Canadians on Friday night.
Kyle Moloney was shifted to the leadoff spot and excelled early on, reaching with a single and promptly stealing 2nd and 3rd base. Wes Eriksson's RBI single scored Moloney and Cory Baker's single brought Eriksson home and the Flyers took an early 2-0 lead. Whitby responded in the 2nd with 3 runs and went ahead 3-2. The Flyers evened things up in the 4th, as Derek Dennee scored on a wild pitch.
Whitby went ahead in the 6th inning on a Jeff hardy RBI single. Port Hope had runners on 1st and 3rd, but couldn't get the key hit and trailed 4-3 heading into the 7th inning. Mike McNaught retired the first 2 batters, but couldn't get the 3rd out, as he allowed 3 runs and was relieved by Paul Garrard, who recorded the final out, as Whitby took a 7-3 lead into the bottom of the 7th. Ryan Davis' double is all the Flyers could generate, as they fell to the Canadians.
Game 2 was set for 9:30 Saturday morning as the Flyers would meet the Kingston Ponies, but a heavy rain delayed the start until 2:00 pm. That delay apparently must not have helped starter Marc MacDonald, as he turned in his worst start of the season. MacDonald allowed a 3-run homer and a solo shot in the top of the 1st, putting his team down 4-0. He allowed another run in the 2nd and was hooked after 1 2/3 innings and his team trailing 5-1.
The Flyers battled hard though and took MacDonald off the hook in the 2nd, as a Moloney 3-run homer highlighted a 4-run inning that tied things at 5. Kingston got to Garrard for 2 runs in the 4th and the Flyers trailed 7-5. They narrowed the gap to 7-6 in the 5th, as Eriksson walked and eventually scored. Baker led off the 7th with a walk and Jiggins followed with a bunt single, bringing Eriksson to the plate. He was asked to bunt and his bunt resulted in a force out at 3rd base. Brad Pickering and Davis both struck out, as the Flyers just couldn't get it done, dropping a 7-6 decision to the Ponies.
The Flyers will be in Orillia next weekend for the OBA C Championship tournament. They will open up at 3:30 Friday afternoon against Courtright.
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