For the second year in a row, the Carnarvon Cannons U9 All Star team battled their way to take first place in the Island Regional Tadpole Championships, held from July 10 to 12 in Colwood. Undefeated in six exhibition games, the Cannons had to slug their way out of tough spot on Saturday when they trailed 10 to 2 in the bottom of the final inning against the Gordon Head Royals. The team pulled together to score nine quick runs to win the game in a shocking turnaround. They went on to win all four games to finish first in their pool before defeating host team the Triangle Red Rockets in the semi-finals.
In the final, the Cannons faced the Peninsula Vikings, who had just come off a fight to the finish with the Gordon Head Royals. Under a blazing sun at the Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre ball field, the Cannons blasted to victory with a 13-2 win over Peninsula.
“The boys worked hard but most importantly they kept it fun and positive each step of the way,” said coach Mike LeVecque. He shared duties with Eric Chang and Rich Fast.
The other teams in the three-day tournament included the Comox Cardinals, the Duncan Red Socks and Black Socks and the Ladysmith Cannons.
MVPs for tournament games included Jonah Chang, Ben Colby, Kaelan Hayashi, and Quinn Krutzmann. Luke Achtem earned the MVP award in the final game for making a tricky double play—catching a towering fly ball in left field and then making a long throw to Matt LeVecque at home plate to catch a tagged-up runner.
