It's déjà vu all over again for the boys of summer.
It's déjà vu all over again for the boys of summer.
The Edmonton Prospects played the role of spoiler in taking out the Western Division top seed Okotoks Dawgs by a 3-1 count in the do-or-die Game 5 Saturday night at Seaman Stadium ending the season of the red-and-white in the first-round for the second straight playoff.
“It was a hard fought series. We played our best and weren't able to get the runs across the board when we needed it,” said Dawgs catcher Joel Brophy. “They pitched the hell out of it and made some big plays, they played some really good defence and you've got to just tip your cap sometimes.”
Okotoks looked poised to take the lead in its first chance to do so only to have Ryan Humeniuk thrown out at home on an outfield assist from Prospects left fielder Marion McLean.
It would be a sign of things to come.
Okotoks' prodigious offence was held to just three hits in the contest, two of which came in the bottom of the first. Humeniuk led the way with a two-hit effort to cap a strong playoff for the Dawgs Academy product in which he hit for a .478 batting average.
“We were all ready to go,” Brophy said. “There was a lot of hype in this game and I had the jitters the whole time and it's too bad it didn't come out our way.
“Definitely think we should have won the series, but that's the way it goes sometimes.”
While the offence left something to be desired, the hosts couldn't have asked for anything more on the mound.
CJ Lewington held the Prospects to one run over four dominant innings. All-stars Tyler Burdett, Anthony Balderas and MVP Kody Funderburk provided solid relief in keeping the visitors to just seven hits.
Anthony Olson had the hot bat for Edmonton, driving in a pair of runs including a key insurance tally in the top of the ninth.
“If you want to win championships, pitching is the first thing and we got it,” said Dawgs infielder Eddie Sanchez. “We've got a great pitching staff and they stepped up and our hitting just wasn't there at key moments. Edmonton did a great job shutting us down.”
The Prospects' defence played a key role in containing the Dawgs to three hits.
Brophy was robbed on a warning track shot to deep center, Cameron Campbell saw his sharp liner to left field snared on a diving play by McLean and earlier centre-fielder Dean Olson took away Top Canadian Rookie Matt Lloyd's bid for a double with a highlight-reel catch.
“We know it's a tough atmosphere here, the fans are amazing, but we just worked hard, played our game,” said Prospects outfielder Jake Lanferman. “We've got an older team, a lot of guys from last year and with the energy they bring we have a lot of confidence in each other.”
Okotoks took the series opener in a rain-shortened five inning affair by an 8-2 count.
Edmonton earned the split with a narrow 2-1 victory in Game 2 led by a terrific outing from Erik Sabrowski. Dawgs starter Justin Vernia pitched a complete game, allowing just two hits in the loss.
The Dawgs took the lead back in the series with authority in an 11-1 romp on the road in Game 3.
Brophy paced the offence with a home run and three RBI performance while lefty Graham Brunner was nearly flawless in allowing one hit over six innings of work.
The Prospects pushed the series to the distance by finding its stride on offence in a 9-8 Game 4 triumph.
“We've got a really tight knit group and together we grinded through,” Lanferman said. “That second game was really big here, going home and getting the split it was tough to comeback here and we pulled it off.
“(The Dawgs) have so many talented guys and that makes it better and sparks a rivalry. It definitely gets heated, but it was a great series.”
One which left the Dawgs with some unfinished business.
Okotoks enjoyed its best regular season in franchise history with a record 35 wins while clobbering its way to new benchmarks on offence en route to running away with the Western Division's top seed.
“It was a great year, but tough to see it end like this,” Sanchez said. “You're going in as the best team and we were expecting to go far through the playoffs and then it ended this way.
“We had a great team, we had a family since day one and it's tough to see some guys go.”
The Prospects take on the Medicine Hat Mavericks in the Western final. In the Eastern Division, the defending champion Swift Current 57s battle the Weyburn Beavers for a spot in the league championship.
For more information on the Dawgs go to dawgsbaseball.ca
