The U17 Tara Twins kicked off the OASA minor division calendar in Napanee June 26-28 for their elimination tournament. The top 3 teams would secure a spot at the Canadian Championships in Surrey, British Columbia, along with Napanee, who will be there as defending champs. They started the tournament Friday afternoon against the Hillsdale Haymakers. Nathan Miller and Jackson Kuhl split a 4 inning no hitter, with the Twins pulling off an 11-1 victory. Tyson Copeland paced the offense going 2/3 with a triple and 3 RBI.
Next up was the Wilmot Thunder Saturday morning. Miller and Kuhl once again split the pitching duties, holding Wilmot to 3 hits in a 7-0 victory in 6 innings. Mason Bell paced the offense going 2/2 with a walk, triple and run scored.
The 2-0 start led them to a battle with Tavistock Athletics and a guaranteed trip to Canadians on the line. The Twins jumped out to a 6-2 lead after 5 innings behind another strong effort from Nathan Miller in the pitching circle. However, Tavistock battled back, scoring 2 in the 6th inning, and 2 more in the 7th to tie the game, and walked off the Twins in the 8th extra inning. Miller pitched a complete game, 7.1 innings, giving up only 2 earned runs, with 6 strikeouts. Copeland again was the offensive sparkplug, going 3 for 4 with a triple, 2 runs and RBI.
That loss dropped the Twins to the bottom side of the true double knockout bracket, and in need of another win to punch their ticket to the Canadians. They had little time to regroup before facing a tough Norwich Hitmen team that had defeated them in the Tara Tournament just a couple of weeks prior. After a tense first inning going by 0-0, the Twins broke out big time, putting up 12 runs in the second inning en route to a 20-1 victory after 4 innings. Miller threw another 3 innings and Kuhl closed out the win for the Twins with an inning pitched. Kaidin Mulvey went 3/3 with a triple, double, walk, 2 runs scored and 4 RBI.
The win clinched a spot at the Canadians after Napanee Express eliminated the Wilmot Thunder Saturday night at the same time, setting up a match with Napanee at 9 am Sunday.
The Twins displayed a tale of 2 teams in this game. The Twins scored 1 in the 1st inning, another in the 3rd inning, but gave up 3 runs in the 4th inning, 5 runs in the 5th inning, and another run in the 6th inning, while only scoring 1 run of their own in that time. But, in the bottom of the 7th inning, the Twins finally came to life, rallying from a 9-3 deficit to walk off the Napanee host squad 10-9. Jackson Kuhl started this game pitching, with Nathan Miller coming in for the final 2 and 2/3 innings. Mason Bell and Zak Hamilton each went 2/3 with a double each for the Twins.
That win and an Elmira Heat loss to the Tavistock Athletics 1-0 in the undefeated game set up a battle between the long time rivals Tara Twins vs Elmira Heat for a trip to the finals.
The first 3 innings of this game were a deadlock at 0-0. Elmira opened the scoring in the 4th with 2 runs in the bottom of the 4th. The Twins plated 3 runs in the top of the 6th to take a 3-2 lead, but Elmira hit a solo homerun in the bottom half to knot things up at 3. In the top of the 7th the Twins lead off with Jackson Kuhl reaching base on an error, was moved to second on a fielders choice, then with 2 outs, Mason Bell cashed him in with a double. The Twins shut down Elmira in the bottom half and held on for a 4-3 victory, clinching a spot in the final vs Tavistock. Nathan Miller pitched 7 more innings for the Twins.
The Twins hit the wall in the final, having played 4 hours in the stifling heat already on Sunday and Tavistock coming in fresh. Tavistock scored 3 runs in the 1st inning, 2 more in the 2nd inning, 1 in the 4th and 2 more to complete the mercy rule victory for the #1 seed at Canadians. Tyson Copelan went 2/2 with a double in the losing cause for the Twins.
The Twins finished the weekend 5-2 in a second place finish, and clinched their spot to Surrey. Nathan Miller pitched 29 innings on the weekend, giving up 25 hits, 12 earned runs, 22 walks while striking out 34. Jackson Kuhl added 10.1 innings pitched, giving up 16 hits, 7 earned runs, walking none and striking out 7.
Tyson Copeland paced the offense going 10/19 with 4 doubles and 2 triples, 8 runs and 8 RBI. Zak Hamilton went 5/10 with 3 doubles, 3 runs and 3 RBI.
The U15 Tara Twins followed that up the next weekend, July 3-5 in New Hamburg at the OASA U15 Elimination tournament.
The Twins kicked their weekend off with a tough opening matchup vs the Campbellford Cougars. The Twins jumped out to an early lead with a run in the 2nd and another in the 3rd, giving one up in the 4th, but answering back with 2 in the 5th inning to stake themselves to a 4-1 lead. The wheels fell off a little in the 6th inning for the Twins, giving up 3 runs and tying the game at 4. A scoreless 7th inning led to a wild extra inning. The Twins scored 6 runs in the top half, and promptly gave 4 back in the bottom half, with the tying run at the plate, Tate Kuhl made a diving catch on a liner to right field to preserve the win for the Twins. Calhon Urbshott pitched all 8 innings giving up 9 hits, 4 earned runs, while striking out 12. Liam Ball went 3/5 with a triple and 3 RBI for the Twins.
The Twins next took on the Springbrook Royals. They jumped out to an early 4-0 lead after 1 inning and never looked back, scoring 2 more in the 2nd, on their way to an 11-4 win. Urbshott pitched 5 innings in this one, giving up 4 earned runs on 7 hits, 2 walks and 7 strikeouts. Bennett Bloomfield paced the offense from the leadoff spot, going ½ with a double, 2 walks, 3 runs and an RBI.
Next up was a battle with the Elmira Heat for a spot in the undefeated game and a punched ticket to Surrey to join the U17’s at the Canadian Championships.
This one was a pitchers duel, with Urbshott throwing again, battling Thomas Thatcher from Elmira. The Heat led off the bottom of the 1st inning with a triple, and scored the opening run on a wild pitch. The Twins replied with a leadoff double by Finn McKnight, and cashed in with a triple from Keegan Ernest.
That would be it for the scoring until the bottom of the 7th. Elmira led off with another triple and later scored the walkoff winning run on an infield single.
Cal Urbshott pitched 6.2 innings, giving up 2 earned runs on 4 hits, 4 walks and 11 strikeouts. Keegan Ernest went 2/3 with the triple and only RBI for the Twins.
That loss dropped the Twins to the bottom side of the bracket and a Sunday morning rematch vs the Campbellford Cougars. This games was another thriller, with the Twins getting out to a 2-0 lead after 3, 2-1 after 4, 4-1 after 5, 4-2 after 6, and Campbellford tying the game in the top of the 7th, all with 2 outs. In the top of the 8th Campbellford plated one run taking the lead 5-4. The international tiebreaker in fastball places a runner on 2nd base in extra innings. With that runner on base, the Twins worked a walk, and both runners advanced on a passed ball. Mack Smith cashed in the tying run on a ground out, and then Cole Weir hit a 2 run homerun to walk it off in victory for the Twins.
Urbshott pitched yet again for the Twins, throwing 8 innings, giving up 5 runs on 7 hits, 3 walks and 16 strikeouts.
This win put the Twins in a matchup with the Wilmot Thunder Majors, and the winner clinching a spot in the Canadians. The Twins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 1st inning, added to make it 3-0 after 2, and 5-0 after 4. The Thunder scored one run in each the 5th and 6th innings, but that’s as close as they would come, with the Twins sealing a 5-2 victory and clinching their spot in Surrey. Urbshott pitched yet again, throwing 7 innings, giving up 2 earned runs on 5 hits, 4 walks and collecting 9 strikeouts. Keegan Ernest led the offence again going 2/2 with a walk and a run scored.
This win put the Twins up against the Napanee Express. Urbshott started yet again for the Twins, throwing 3 innings, giving up 0 runs on 3 hits and 1 walk, with 4 strikeouts. The Twins had a clean inning with Bennett Bloomfield pitching the 4th, but the wheels fell off shortly after, and the Express beat the Twins 8-0. Keegan Ernest went 2/3 with a double in the Twins finale. That placed the Twins 3rd in the U15 division.
One weekend later, the Tara Twins sent 2 teams to the U13 OASA West qualifier. The Tara Twins minors kicked off their weekend with an 8-2 victory over the Plattsville Lightning. Bryce Underwood pitched 7 innings for the Twins, giving up 1 earned run on 6 hits and 2 walks with 12 strikeouts. Ryerson Mink and Duncan Wilson each went 2/4 with a homerun and a double for the Twins.
Next up was a battle with the Elma Avengers. The Twins took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning and carried that to the bottom of the 6th inning, before giving up 3 runs and an eventual 3-1 loss to the Avengers. Underwood pitched again, giving up 1 earned run on 4 hits and 1 walk, racking up 15 strikeouts. Mason Gowan had a solo homerun for the Twins, while Chester Greig had a hit and 2 stolen bases for Tara.
The loss dropped the Tara Minors to the bottom of the bracket and set up a matchup with the Wiarton Jr. Nationals. The Twins scored 2 runs in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd innings, 3 in the 4th and then 6 in the 5th to seal a 15-2 victory after 5 innings.
Ryerson Mink pitched the win, giving up 2 hits and 3 walks, with 2 strikeouts. Duncan Wilson went 2/3 with a walk, 2 runs, 3 RBI and a Homerun for the Twins. Max Barnard went 2/4 with a triple and 3 RBI.
The win led to the Embro Highlanders right away. Tara fell behind 3-1 after 1, 4-1 after 2, scored 2 to make it 4-3 after 3, before eventually losing 10-5 to Embro. Bryce Underwood pitched 7 innings, giving up 4 earned runs on 11 hits, with 1 walk and 10 strikeouts. Wilson again led the offense going 2/4 with an RBI and a double. The Tara Twins Minors finished 4th and clinched a spot on the A side of the OASA provincials championships in Bracebridge August 7-9.
The Tara Twins Majors in the same tournament started their weekend off with a 22-6 victory over the Elmira Heat. Justin Hetherington and Callen Mulvey split the win fiving up 2 earned runs on 2 hits and 9 walks. Hetherington went 4/4 at the plate with a homerun and 5 RBI. Mulvey went 3/3 with a homerun and 5 RBI and Brett Fisher went 2/3 with a homerun and 4 RBI.
The Major Twins next faced the Embro Highlanders. The Twins jumped out to an early lead with 3 runs in the 1st inning and 3 more in the 2nd inning on their way to a 9-6 victory. Hetherington went the distance for Tara, pitching 6 innings, giving up 2 earned runs on 5 hits, 6 walks and striking out 7. Stanley Mills paced the offense going 2/4 with 2 runs, 1 RBI and triple.
That put the Twins in the undefeated game Sunday vs the Elma Avengers. The Twins jumped out to a 3-0 lead after 3 innings, and scored 3 more in the 7th inning to seal a 6-1 victory and a trip to the championship game. Hetherington pitched 7 innings, giving up 1 earned run on 2 hits and 5 walks, striking out 11. Emmett Fischer led the offense going 2/3 with a walk, and 2 runs scored.
In the Championship game, the Twins again faced the Elma Avengers. The Twins first 3 batters all scored, giving them a 3-0 lead after 1 inning. Jack McConnell started for the Twins, pitching 4 innings and leaving the game in a 3-3 tie. Elma came alive after that and scored 3 in the 5th, 4 in the 6th and 5 in the 7th to win the championship 15-4. Ben Hutchinson went 2/3 for the Twins with a double and 2 RBI. Stanley Mills had a solo homerun for Tara. The runner up finish gives both Tara teams spots in the A division at provincials.
This coming weekend the U11 Tara Twins are hosting the OASA West Qualfier in Tara. The Twins kick things off Friday at 4:30 vs Wilmot Thunder Minors, Saturday at 9 am vs the East Zorra Outlaws, and wrap up their Saturday vs the Norwich-Otterville Otters at 12:30 Saturday afternoon. The Twins start Sunday at 9 am vs the Elma Avengers, and the playoff/championship games are at 12:30 and 2:15 Sunday afternoon. A top 5 finish will place the Twins in the A division of the provincial championships August 14-16 in Grafton, Ontario.
Next weekend, July 24-26 the Tara Twins U15 team is hosting the OASA provincial championships at the Tara Community centre. The tournament kicks off at 12 noon Friday, with opening ceremonies at 6 pm Friday evening, followed by the home team facing Innerkip at 6:30. Games continue Saturday from 9 am until the undefeated game at 8:30 pm. Sunday wraps up the provincials with games at 9, 11 ,1 and 3 pm. The Chesley Jr. Colts are another local entry in the B provincials.
July 31-August 2 the Tara Twins U17 team is in action at their provincials championships, which is also part of the Ontario Summer Games in Kitchener-Waterloo. The Twins play 3 round robin games, 11:30 Friday am vs Norwich Hitmen, 3pm vs Hillsdale Haymakers, and Saturday 11 am vs Elmira Heat with the playoff round to follow.
Then the U15 and U17 teams will pack up and head for Surrey for the banquet August 4th, with games happening August 5-9 at Softball City. There are multiple fundraising ventures happening, and any questions or support can be sent to myself at ryan_greig@hotmail.com or taraminorbaseball@gmail.com
*Editor’s note: This content was submitted to Bayshore Sports.