On the heels of earning a CCBC first team all-star nod, Riley Jepson had a big day at the dish as UFV opened the playoffs with a pair of wins. (UFV Athletics file photo)
The University of the Fraser Valley baseball club got off to a red-hot start at the Canadian College Baseball Conference championship tournament in Kamloops, B.C.
The Cascades opened the tourney with a pair of games on Thursday, and they won both in decisive fashion: 10-0 over the Okanagan College Coyotes, and 12-5 over the host Thompson Rivers WolfPack.
At 2-0, UFV sits in first place in the round robin, with the Vancouver Island Baseball Institute Mariners (1-0) the only other remaining undefeated team.
CASCADES 10, COYOTES 0
Riley Ens pitched a gem for the Cascades – he needed just 77 pitches over seven innings in the mercy-rule shortened game, surrendering just two hits and striking out two. His teammates gave him plenty of offensive support, with Dan Rogers (4-for-4, three RBI) and Riley Jepson (3-for-3, two walks, two RBI) leading the way. Stephen Horner chipped in with a pair of hits, and Josh Berenbaum and Donovan Moorman had two RBI apiece.
@ufvbaseball game 1 vs Okanagan College. @UFVCascades @CCBaseballConf @CanadianCBN pic.twitter.com/iuMwofPut2
— Dave Campbell (@DaveCampbell72) May 11, 2018
CASCADES 12, WOLFPACK 5
The Cascades enjoyed a second consecutive complete-game effort from their starting pitcher – Dylan Emmons went the distance, allowing 13 hits but striking out nine batters to earn the win. UFV’s offence thrived once again, abetted by TRU’s defensive miscues – the hosts racked up six errors, and seven of the Cascades’ runs were unearned. Rogers once again had a big game at the dish, going 3-for-6, and Jepson (1-for-3, two walks) and Colin Kellington (2-for-5) both scored three runs. Berenbaum, Brody Vogel and Ryan Green also had multi-hit performances, and Horner drove in a pair of runs.
THREE CASCADES NAMED CCBC ALL-STARS
A trio of UFV players were honoured on Wednesday night as the CCBC handed out its awards.
First baseman Jepson and shortstop Kellington were both named first team all-stars, and pitcher Emmons was a second team all-star. Additionally, Jepson was honoured for winning the league’s batting title with an incredible .489 average.
Jepson’s first team all-star selection was his second consecutive, having earned the same accolade in 2017. In addition to winning the batting title, the sophomore from Kamloops led the league in walks (27), tied for fifth in home runs (3) and tied for third in RBI (25).
Kellington, a sophomore from Chilliwack, finished third in the CCBC batting race with a .381 average, and his 40 hits were second-most, trailing only Jepson (44). His 11 doubles ranked fourth, and he added 18 RBI.
Emmons, a sophomore righthander from Vernon, was a workhorse for the Cascades, leading the team and ranking fourth in the league with 46 1/3 innings pitched. He thrived on the heavy workload, ranking among the league leaders in wins (4, tied-4th), strikeouts (40, 6th) and earned run average (12th, 4.66).
UP NEXT
The Cascades continue round-robin play on Friday with a pair of games:
- 1 p.m. vs. Calgary Dinos
- 4 p.m. vs. Prairie Baseball Academy Dawgs
Comments are closed.