14U AAA Aurora-King Jays Tested Early but Battle Back in July
It was a challenging month for the 14U AAA Aurora King Jays in a busy summer stretch, where the Jays played 4 league games and participated in 2 tournaments. They started off July with a win against the North Toronto Athletics – the Jays gave up a lead halfway through the game but didn’t let up and came out on top 12-7. The team was then met with tough pitching, only finding one hit against the East York Bulldogs, getting shutout 5-0.
The Jays fought hard at the Whitby Tournament, in 3 very close battles but would only manage a tie and two losses. They opened the tournament against the Bradford Tigers, where the Jays got the lead but would give it up immediately and fall 3-1. In the second game against the Whitby Canadians, the Jays made a run in the late innings but Whitby pushed back to end the game in a tie. It was a back-and-forth contest with the Riverside Royals from Windsor, which came down to the final out – a wild pitch that decided it, allowing the Royals to walk it off 6-5.
The next tournament was a trip to the States for the Wood Bat World Series in Pittsburgh, PA, a 4 day competition. The first two days were a significant challenge for the Jays, as they couldn’t quite find their stride, dropping 3 straight games to Smash It Sports 8-0, Pittsburgh Spikes 15-3, and Hardcore Elite Baseball 10-3. Despite the rocky start, the Jays showed their fighting spirit again, regrouping and picking up back-to-back wins in their decisive Saturday games. First, jumping out with 3 runs of early support for Parker Hewson’s complete game shutout, allowing only 4 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 4 batters. Then, a strong comeback effort after falling behind early against the Boys of Summer, winning 9-4. Unfortunately, their momentum ended against another incredible pitcher, as the Jays’ tournament wrapped up on the final day in the Consolation semifinals, falling to Team Boston Rams 6-2.
After an essential summer break, the Jays came back reenergized and right back into winning form as they battled back against league opposition in a couple of nail-biting one run victories. They achieved a disciplined performance against the Caledon Nationals, even though they committed 3 errors, the Jays held the Nationals to only 3 runs. Starting pitcher Cameron Parker, after going 4 innings, helped the Jays grab the lead in a 4 run inning. That set up Colton Lewis to close out the game with a clean save from a one-hit outing, while recording 3 strikeouts to secure a 4-3 win. A meeting with the Vaughan Vikings for the final game of the month was an explosive affair as the bats came alive for both teams. The Jays drove in 7 runs in each of the first two innings, taking a commanding 14 run lead. The Vikings tried to claw back but fell short 14-13, as the Jays early onslaught proved to be too much. Overall, with these wins to finish the month, the Jays recorded 3 more wins and 1 loss from league play in July.
The team’s resilient effort puts them in 3rd place in the league standings with a 9-5 regular season record, as the Jays are in terrific position for their final run to the playoffs!
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