Hoppers Making Late Charge
Posted June 27, 2018
The Hartney Hoppers (4-7) had a big week, going undefeated and capturing two big wins against South Division rivals. The Hoppers picked up wins against the Wawanesa Brewers (2-8) and the Deloraine Royals (5-6) on the backs of two complete-game victories from Mark Derlago and Jesse Skelton. All the more impressive is that they won the games without the services of Nick Cowan, who leads the league in batting average (.682) and co-leads HRs with 3. The wins drew Hartney to within 1 game of the 2nd place Royals, and they will have a chance to leapfrog them in the standings with the season sweep on Friday night as the two teams meet again in Deloraine.
The Hamiota Red Sox (9-2) swept their home-and-home with the Reston Rockets (5-6), beating them 8-2 in Reston then 3-1 at home. Joel Strachan ripped apart the Rockets pitching staff going 3-6 with a HR and 5 RBI over the two game set.
In non-league news, the Oak River Dodgers AAA team won their national qualifier in a thrilling 5-game series that went the distance. The Dodgers roster, consisting of multiple players from around the SWBL, defeated the Elmwood Giants 3-1 in the deciding game 5, punching their ticket to represent Manitoba at the 2019 national championship.
