Offence was the name of the game last weekend for the Sudbury Mosquito Shamrocks.
Racking up a total of 74 runs in five games, the locals slugged their way to a championship banner, competing at the Greater Niagara Baseball Association Select Ontario Baseball Association Mosquito Tournament.
The Shamrocks tripled Markham 9-3 in their opening game as back-to-back base hit bunts by Gavin Salo and Eric Dissanayake kickstarted a slumbering attack through the opening two innings.
With Carson Harvey allowing only two earned runs in just over three innings of work, and Justin Lancup coming in to mop things up on the mound, the local mosquitoes never looked back.
By the time the Sudbury crew took to the field for Game 2 against Bimbrook, the offence was on fire. Braedan Pakkala and Cole Goudreau drove in three runs apiece, with Caston Antonioni, Brian Fink, Ben Fowke, Ryan Lacasse and Justin Lancup pitching in with a pair of RBIs each as the Shamrocks manhandled Bimbrook 21-4.
Carter Benson, Ben Fowke and Ryan Rubic combined to hold Bimbrook at bay, combining for seven strikeouts between the three. It was another one-sided affair in Game 3 as Sudbury walloped the Mississauga Twins (03) 16-3.
Multipurpose Keenan Castle led the way, recording three RBIs while also holding the Twins to just one earned run over his two innings as starter. Brian Fink and Cole Goudreau drove home two runs each, with Eric Dissanayake, Cole McPhee and Braedan Pakkala providing valuable pitching service in relief of Castle.
Safely through to the playoff round, the Shamrocks found themselves more evenly matched in the semifinals. Trailing 14-4 in the fifth inning and needing a steal of home by Dissanayake just to avoid a mercy loss, Sudbury rebounded to score 12 runs in the sixth inning and grab a 17-16 lead.
In a run-filled game, it was up to Pakkala to provide one shutout inning on the mound, and shut them down he did, picking up a huge save as the Shamrocks pitching staff finished with 14 strikeouts in the game.
It was another tight one in the championship affair as Benson came through with an impressive start, allowing two runs in 4 2/3 innings of work, keeping the Vaughan Vikings (03) completely off-balance.
In a game that went back and forth throughout, Dissanayake paced Sudbury at the plate, adding three more RBIs to his stat line, while Ben Fowke stranded a pair of runners in scoring position as he induced a game-ending groundout in an 11-10 victory for the Shamrocks.
A pair of individual awards went the way of the Sudbury lads, with Carter Benson named tournament MVP, and Eric Dissanayake honoured as the tournament's top defensive player.
With a lineup that features five 2003-born players and another nine from 2004, the Sudbury crew includes Carter Benson, Keenan Castle, Braedan Pakkala, Ben Fowke, Cole Goudreau, Cole McPhee, Carson Harvey, Gavin Salo, Eric Dissanayake, Justin Lancup, Caston Antonioni, Ryan Rubic, Brian Fink and Ryan Lacasse.
Coaches for the team are Trevor Goudreau, Chris McPhee, Kevin Fowke and Jason Castle.
