The local squad staged a fifth-inning rally to take control of their opening game on Friday afternoon, scoring four runs and going on to a 4-1 victory over the Regina Red Dogs at Ross Wells Park.
It was a fitting end for the A’s, who had runners in scoring position in three of the previous innings but were unable to bring anything home.
That all changed in the fifth, when Michael Hunt and Jeff Novak each reached base before Dustin Usher dropped a Texas Leaguer into centrefield to bring home Hunt with Moose Jaw’s first run. The A’s used a combination of timely hits, solid baserunning and a good plate discipline to do the rest of their damage in the inning, with Novak, Usher and Dan Poirier all coming around to score.
Hunt and Usher each reached base twice in the game.
Both Moose Jaw pitchers on the day showed a little bit of bend but no break, other than the first inning. Regina scored their lone run in the opening frame, with Troy Casper hitting a two-out double to bring home Damien Flaman.
That would be the lone blemish on starter Dana Chesney’s record, though, as even though Regina saw their first two batters in the second inning reach scoring position, they wouldn’t be able to bring another run home.
That was in no small part due to Hunt, who took over in the fourth inning and escaped a jam in the fifth before retiring the side in order in the sixth to close out the win.
Moose Jaw is back in action in the late game on Friday night, as they take on the Birsay Brewers at 9 p.m. The Athletics close out their round robin against the Saskatoon A’s on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
In other early Friday Pool A action, Birsay tied Saskatoon 3-3. Over in Pool B, The Regina Brewers defeated the Bethune Bucs 8-1, the Saskatoon Diggers downed the Wawota Royals 10-0 and the Regina Brewers hammered out a 16-4 victory over the Diggers.
Tournament play continues throughout the day on Saturday, with the tournament ceremonies at 2:30 p.m.
The top two teams from Pool A will playoff on Sunday at 10 a.m., with the winner advancing to the championship final against the first place team in Pool B at 5:30 p.m.
