The Arthur Twisters won the championship at the Hillside U19 midget boys tournament in Waterloo, June 1 to 3.
After an extra-inning loss to Kitchener in the final game of round robin competition the Twisters had two wins and one loss heading into the semi-final elimination game against Oshawa.
Oshawa jumped out to an early lead and held an 8-7 advantage heading into the final inning.
Relief pitcher Ethan Cox struck out the final batter to complete a clean three-up, three-down top of the inning to keep the game close.
In the bottom half, the Twisters needed a run to tie and two to move on to the finals. James Neal led off the inning with a single and John McLellan dropped down a bunt that he turned into a base-hit by hustling to first. Jarred Steckly reached first on a fielder’s choice followed by a single by Aaron Goetz to load the bases for starting pitcher Patrick Nyman.
Nyman then belted an 0-2 pitch that cleared the fence in left-center for a dramatic grand slam that powered the Twisters past Oshawa to earn their spot in the finals against the Wilmot Thunder who had eliminated Kitchener. Arthur started the championship game with a seven-run outburst in the first inning capped off by a base-clearing triple by Ben Saunders.
Pitcher Brayden Allen and catcher Taylor Quirke kept the Thunder offence in check and the Twisters went on to beat Wilmot 14-7 to claim the championship.
