Despite cool temperatures and a few raindrops, the first Lakers Classic tournament of the young baseball season took place in Leamington over the May 31-June 1 weekend.
Eight 9U teams and eight more 13U teams competed for the titles in their respective divisions. The Leamington Lakers were represented by both the 9U squad and the 13U squad, while the Kingsville Knights 9U team also competed.
In the 13U division, the locals went undefeated into the semi-final game before dropping a 9-8 decision to the eventual champion Orillia Royals Sunday morning.
The 9U Lakers took a different approach, going 2-2 in their first four games before defeating LaSalle in the semi-final game and advancing to the championship. There, they dropped a close 9-8 decision to Riverside.
Leamington had lost to Lakeshore 6-5 on Friday but came back to pound Simcoe 9-1. The Kingsville Knights then beat the Lakers 9-5 on Saturday morning, before they defeated Windsor 11-3 in the game that would send them to the semi-final.
9U coach Steve O’Neil was pleased with the level of competition for his group, which won the Ontario title last year.
“Very good competition all weekend,” he said.
In the 9U division, teams represented Simcoe, Lakeshore, Orillia, Riverside, Windsor, Kingsville, LaSalle and Leamington.
In the 13U division, the teams came from Owen Sound, Guelph, Waterloo, North York, Brantford, Orillia, Lakeshore and Leamington.
A second Lakers Classic for the 18U division will be held in Leamington August 1-3.
Leamington Lakers 9U runner Conor Cobby arrives at third base well before the ball during his team’s Sunday morning game, won by the Lakers 11-3 over Windsor.
SUN photo by Mark Ribble
