15U Nationals gets clawed, but leaps past Waterloo

Stratford pitcher Quintin Parr prepares to throw the pitch against the Waterloo Tigers at Stratford National Stadium on May 14.

The Stratford 15U Nationals experienced mixed results against the two Waterloo Tigers teams. They lost 8-2 at home on May 14 but bounced back with a 12-2 victory on the road during Victoria Day.

On May 14, the Nationals played against the Waterloo Tigers Team 1 at the chilly Stratford National Stadium. In the first inning, the Tigers took a 1-0 lead after a double with one out. Stratford had a chance to equalize in the bottom of the inning with the bases loaded and one out, but they couldn’t capitalize, as a strikeout and a pop fly ended their rally.

Waterloo scored two more runs in the next inning against starting pitcher Jake Price, increasing their lead to 3-0 after two innings. The Tigers added an additional run in the third inning off reliever Reid Musselman. The Nationals finally scored in the bottom of that inning when Cole Morris drove in Will Molenhuis with an RBI single. Later in the same inning, Stratford had the bases loaded with two outs and attempted to score more but was unable to do so.

The visitors continued to pour on the runs in the late innings, putting the game out of reach and winning 8-2. Quintin Parr added an RBI in the bottom of the sixth for the Nationals’ second run.

After the game, Nationals coach Rick Boon praised Waterloo’s timely pitching, noting that their inability to score runs was the deciding factor.

“I thought the Waterloo pitching was strong. All three pitchers for them threw well; they kept the ball around the zone. It's a cold night. We didn't hit the ball as well. We had chances. We left at least eight runners on. We had bases loaded twice,” Boon said.

“I said to the guys in there, ‘We have to make sure we hit back-to-back. We have to put hits back-to-back to make that work.’ Didn't happen tonight, so we'll have to bounce back and play the other water routine on Monday.”

On Victoria Day, the Nationals travelled on the road for the first time this season as they faced the Waterloo Tigers Team Two at Lexington Park in Waterloo. Boon says the focus of the game is to improve offensive execution and generate more scoring chances.

“It's stringing two and three hits together, making sure that we kind of push the line along, so we get a base hit, or we get a walk, somebody else is going to push him along to the next base, and then we get a fastball and another base hit, so we got to keep making sure that we put two and three hits together,” Boon said.

On May 18, the Nationals rebounded from their loss with a 12-2 win over the Waterloo Tigers Team Two at Lexington Park.

This was the Nationals' last regular-season game before the Cardinal Classic in St. Thomas from May 22 to 24. Stratford will be placed in Group A with Clarington, Newmarket and Quinte. Stratford’s expectations, according to Boon, are to be competitive in the season-opening tournament.

“I think we just want to be competitive. We want to be competitive in every inning. I don't like having innings just kind of go by, and we just run through the score. We're going to be playing some really good ball clubs, and we're not always going to win every game, but I want to be competitive in every single game,” Boon said.

The Nationals start their round-robin on May 22 with a match against the Clarington Orioles. On the last day, May 23, Stratford will compete against the Newmarket Hawks in the morning at 8 a.m., followed by a game against the Quinte Royals in the early afternoon at 2:45 p.m. All three games will be held at Emsilie Field.

The semifinals and the championship are scheduled for May 24, also at Emsilie Field.