BRIAN BATES,
Special to The Standard
Port Perry Angels advance to the A pool finals of the Barrie Bash U17 (under 17 years old) Tier 2 tournament, held on June 9th to 11th, with a record of four wins and one loss. Wins were against Mississauga Tigers, Kitchener Klassics, and Palmerston Marlins, with their only loss against Barrie Storm 7-3.
In the elimination round, Port Perry beat Etobicoke Mayhem, 11-4, with Kaitlyn Hancock receiving the win by going the distance on the mound. Contributing to the win was a balanced attack by the offence, with Chelsey Pongo, Erin Correa and Joclynn Jeffery each scoring two runs, followed by single runs from Kaley Doerfler, Marissa Grainger and Ava Marshall.
The Angels then faced a strong undefeated Tavistock team, losing 12-1. By virtue of the loss, Port Perry was relegated to the bronze medal game against a familiar foe, Kitchener Klassics, which Port Perry defeated in round-robin play. This game saw Kitchener take, what was thought to be, a substantial lead, holding on to a 6-2 score, in the top of the 4th inning.
Port Perry came out blazing, in the bottom of the fourth inning, springing into action with Marissa Grainger, Joclynn Jeffery, Ava Marshall and Julia Stewart each scoring single runs and Jordynne McClurg, Kaitlyn Hancock and Erin Correa hitting home runs, erasing the deficit and going on to win 15-8, winning the bronze medal.
Players earning stars of the games, throughout the tournament, went to: Kaitlyn Hancock, for pitching a no-hitter against Palmerston; Julia Stewart, for being rock solid behind the plate supporting her pitchers; and Ava Marshall, for her outstanding defensive plays at shortstop combined with her offensive batting.
Chelsey Pongo, Erin Correa, Rylie Shanley, Joclynn Jeffery, Jordynne McClurg, Ava Marshall, Kaitlyn Hancock and Erin Correa all provided home runs, with Jordynne contributing two. To assist in the victories and receiving top honours in hitting was Joclynn Jeffery, with a batting average of 706, going 12 for 17 with ten singles, one double and one home run.
Last but not least was Port Perry’s pitching staff, of Kaley Doerfler, Kaitlyn Hancock and Marissa Grainger, with their strong performances. Congrats to all players and continued success in their upcoming games.