The Save-On-Foods Parksville Royals were on fire at the prestigious 2018 Langley Blaze Invitational over the weekend.
The Royals made it a perfect weekend by going undefeated in clinching the trophy in the 20-team tournament that included four teams from Alberta, two from Ontario, and one team from the United States.
The games were played in venues across the greater Vancouver area and showcased the most competitive high school baseball teams in the country.
The Royals started with a bang, defeating the highly touted Edmonton Cardinals 12-0 in their opening game. Starter Brady Radcliffe carried on his PBL-league leading ways and no-hit the Cards over four innings. Edmonton finished second in the pool with their only loss coming at the hands of the north Island squad.
“That was a great step for us,” said head coach Frank Kaluzniak. “We got to their starter early and then Brady and the defence just wouldn’t let them answer back.”
Game two was against the Coquitlam Reds. After several lead changes in an epic contest, the game was tied 4-4 in the bottom of the seventh. Parksville got lead runners aboard and Brodie Comerford lined a single to right to score the winning run and walk-off the Reds.
“This was the win that gave the team the confidence they needed going forward,” according to assistant coach Scott Doucet. “It was such a back and forth battle and to come out on top was really big.”
In game three against the Victoria Eagles, the Royals bats stayed hot and scored eight runs. The Eagles battled back and slowly chipped away at the Parksville lead. But the Royals kept their composure and ended the rally to preserve the win and secure first place in their pool.
In the semi-finals, the Royals faced a familiar foe, the Mid-Island Pirates. With both teams knowing each other very well, the game had a special intensity. Once again Parksville found themselves tied in the bottom of the seventh. Lead-off man Kiran Carcary, a stand-out all tournament, smacked a hustle double to put the winning run in scoring position. Kieran Bowles followed with a single to put runners on the corners with nobody out. On the first pitch to the next batter, the ball squirted away from the catcher and Carcary broke for home, scoring the winning run and sending the boys in purple to the final.
The Victoria Mariners beat the Okotoks Dawgs in the other semi-final to set up an all-island final. Jacob Volkers got the start for the Royals. He threw 5 1/3 innings and the Mariners got to him in the 6th , tying the game 5-5. Parksville would answer back in the bottom of the inning to take a 7-5 lead into the final frame. Victoria wasn’t about to go away quietly and very quickly got two men aboard but the defence weathered the storm for Parksville to bring home the trophy.
“Two hitters we would like to highlight are our one, two punch, Josh Laukkanen and Kiran Carcary,” said assistant coach Dallas Monk. “Both Josh and Kiran are having a great season, so it’s nice to see them continue having success and spark our offence throughout the tournament.”
Coach Kaluzniak added, “I think the guys did a good job sticking with the process. We had the ability to execute when we needed to and our pitchers gave us a chance to win in every game. It was a great team effort, everyone chipped in and I’m proud of their accomplishment this weekend.”
Jr Royals do the split
The Save-On-Foods Parksville Junior Royals hosted the North Delta Blue Jays at Springwood Park on Saturday and split the double-header.
Brier Pilon got the start in game one and threw 5 1/3 innings. Pilon did not have his best stuff, walking seven batters, but persevered and held the Jays to two earned runs. Walks and errors allowed the Jays to come from behind and win 5-4. Nolan Macdonald had the hot bat for Parksville, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Jacob Stockton also contributed a double and an RBI.
Macdonald got the start in game two and turned in a strong performance, allowing two runs and striking out eight North Delta batters over five innings. Jaden Barr came in relief of Macdonald in the sixth allowing a run and Kevin Mulrooney pitched a scoreless eight-pitch seventh inning to ice the game and a 7-3 win for Parksville.
Lead-off man James Ingersoll went 3-for-3 with a walk, an RBI, a double and scored two runs. Centre fielder Max Kolopenuk also blasted a double as part of a 2-for-3 day. Jordan Dennis and Trevor Nicoll each contributed singles to round out the Parksville offence.
Bantam Royals go .500
The Bantam Parksville Royals had a tough start on the road on Saturday but finished strong on Sunday.
Against the Coquitlam Red, the Royals got shutout 10-0 in the first game. But in their second game, the Royals found their legs and gave the Reds a good fight.
The Royals got their hitting back but weren’t able to cut down on the errors defensively to lose 10-7. Owen Crouse went 2-for-3 with three RBIs while Anson McGorman also went 2-for-3 and batted in a run. Also going 2-for-3 was Austin Walper with an RBI and Nathan Underhill went 2-for-4 with one RBI.
On Sunday, the Royals took on Whalley Chiefs and doubled up on the host team.
The Royals took first game 3-1 led by McGorman on the mound, pitching six innings and allowed only a run on one hit while fanning 10 batters. Kolby Wood closed out the game and earned the save.
Carter Hall provided the highlight of the game when he struck a two-run double.
In the second game, the Royals dominated again winning 7- 3.
Ethan Dean started and went five innings, allowing three runs while striking out five.
Underhill preserved the win, pitching the last two innings.
Crouse went 3-for-4 with one RBI with Owen Lagos going 2-for-2.
NEWS Staff/Royals report