Cardinals no longer a bridesmaid

    St. Thomas beats Leamington, 4-2, for the OBA 'B' major peewee championship 

By Rob J. Ross

Tuesday, September 5, 2017

ST. THOMAS - Tired of being a bridesmaid, the St. Thomas Cardinals picked the perfect time to take the next step.

The Cardinals wrapped up the 2017 season, winning the Ontario Baseball Association 'B' major peewee championship, doubling on up the host team Leamington, 4-2, in the final, on Sunday.

"We knew they (Leamington) would have a lot of fans cheering really loud," Cardinals' head coach Dave Boldt said. "Our kids had to keep their game intact. Our game plan hadn't changed since day one. We go in there, play hard, play our best and give our selves a chance to win. Everyone did their part to help us win a championship."

St. Thomas scored first, but Leamington edged ahead 2-1, in the fifth inning. The Cardinals responded with three runs in the sixth inning. Pitcher Jackson Groves earned the save. Junior Coleman went four innings, before Aiden Rivard and Will Richardson worked the fifth and sixth innings, respectively.

"Our top three guys (catcher Cam Niles, left fielder Ryan Hind and third baseman / right fielder / pitcher Evan Boldt) came through for us. They helped guide this team to the championship. They were fantastic this weekend," coach Boldt said. "Junior pitched four fantastic innings for us."

During the round robin tournament, the Cardinals received five strong pitching performances from starters, including a gem tossed by Carson Dietrich, in a 2-0 win over Leamington during round robin action. Groves and Patrick Berkvens also shined on the hill.

"My expectations for the weekend were, if they gave me 100 percent, we could win this tournament. We went into a lot of A and AA tournaments, with a lot strong teams. Throughout the year, we were getting better and better. If we played our best, we would be the best team there. The kids came out to play."

St. Thomas edged Stratford, 7-6, in 10 innings, for the opening win, before the shutout of Leamington and a 6-2 defeat of Woodslee.

The Cardinals dropped their first game on Sunday morning, 4-2, to Woodslee, but avenged the loss in the semi-finals, spanking Woodslee, 11-1.

"We played a really bad game (against Woodslee), but we came out (next game) and had a great pitching performance from Evan and the kids hit the ball hard."

The Cardinals not only had timely hitting, but surprise hits.

"Jackson Groves really caught on fire on Sunday," coach Boldt said. "He hit his first home run of his life. He got a lot of big hits for us."

On the defensive end, there was Coleman at shortstop, Groves at second base, centre-fielder Cody VanLiere and first baseman Adam Frye.

"He never played first base until this year and he did an awesome job," said Boldt.

The head coach, much like his staff and players were ecstatic to leave as provincial champions.

"We hadn't won a tournament. We had three seconds this year. To close out the year like this is special," coach Boldt said. "I was getting tired of seconds!"

Boldt, known in the softball circles from his time with Team Canada and the Battle of Border slo-pitch events, ranks the OBA title above any of his accomplishments.

"It's really, really special to me," Boldt said. "To see my son win, was definitely my special moment of my life."