varsity news

Durham Lords Media Release
Sunday, October 12, 2008

Durham Lords Win Provincial Championship!!! Off to Montreal for Nationals!!!

Championship Game – Durham defeated St. Clair 4-3

CIBA Ontario Finals – Series Recap
Durham defeated St. Clair 2-1

Game One: St. Clair defeated Durham 4-3
Game Two: Durham defeated St. Clair 12-3
Game Three: Durham defeated St. Clair 4-3

Oshawa, Ont. – The Durham Lords men’s baseball team were crowned Ontario Champions on Sunday afternoon as they defeated the St. Clair Saints 4-3 in the final game of the championship series.

For Durham, it marks their fourth consecutive CIBA Ontario championship and secures their spot in the National Championship, set to take place from October 17-19 at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec.

Today’s championship victory came in dramatic fashion in front of the hometown crowd at Kinsmen Stadium. The teams split two games on Saturday in Windsor to force the third and final game with the provincial title on the line.

In a very tight match-up, the teams played the first four innings scoreless. Starters Shaun Slemko (Durham) and Curtis Waggot (St. Clair) were excellent on the mound shutting down and controlling the opposing team’s offence.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Durham broke the scoreless draw as they were able to score a single run to take a lead. With momentum still swinging in Durham’s favour, the Lords put up a trio of runs in the sixth inning to take a 4-0 lead into the final inning.

After throwing six scoreless innings, Slemko ran into some trouble with the title within striking distance. Allowing two earned runs, Lords head coach Sam Dempster turned to Saturday’s game two starter Gary Rose to close out the game. After allowing a run and with the tying St. Clair runner on third base, Rose shut the door on the Saints to give Durham the 4-3 victory and their fourth consecutive provincial title.

Craig Megill was 1-for-2 on the day with a run scored (picture attached). The veteran shortstop was clutch throughout the weekend going 6-for-8 in three games and coming up with several defensive gems. John Thiebaud was 1-for-3 in the game with one run and an RBI while 2007 All-Canadian Rob McNab was 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

Despite losing to the Lords, St. Clair also learned that they will advance to the National Championship as they accepted a wildcard invitation to the finals.

The Saints and Lords will look to bring the national title back to Ontario for the first time since 2004 when Queen’s last won the championship. In their last three trips to Nationals, Durham has come up with two fourth place finishes and fifth last season.

For Sam Dempster and the Durham Lords men's baseball program, it will be their fourth consecutive and sixth overall trip to the National Championship. The Lords only medal at Nationals was back in 1994 in the inaugural season of the league.
 
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP DETAILS

Hosted by McGill University
Montreal, Quebec
October 17-19

Six teams will compete in two pools with each team guaranteed three games by playing each team in the opposite pool. The top four teams will advance to the playoff round with the first place finisher playing the fourth while the second and third place teams meet in the semi-finals.

The Championship game is scheduled for Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Trudeau Park, the main field for the tournament.

GAME SUMMARY

Durham 4 St. Clair 3

Line Score
St. Clair: 0-0-0-0-0-0-3 (3-4)
Durham: 0-0-0-0-1-3-X (4-7)

WP: Shaun Slemko, Durham
LP: Curtis Waggot, St. Clair
S: Gary Rose, Durham

Pitching Statistics:

Durham
Shaun Slemko: 6 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K
Gary Rose: 1 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K

St. Clair
Curtis Waggot: 6 IP, 4 R, 3 ER, 7 H, 5 BB, 5 K

Durham Offensive Notables:
Craig Megill: 1-for-2, 1 R, 1 BB
John Thiebaud: 1-for-3, 1 R, 1 RBI
Jareth Vallier: 1-for-4, 1 RBI
Rob McNab: 2-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI

A QUICK LOOK AT THE LORDS

Conference Record: 10-6 (2nd Place)
Overall Record: 17-9

Next Action:
CIBA National Championship
October 17-19
McGill University
Montreal, Quebec

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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Scott Dennis
Sports Information and Marketing Coordinator
Durham College and UOIT Athletics
905.721.2000 Ext. 2784 (P)
905.721.3117 (F)

Photos courtesy of Steve Domer