Ravens take flight
Island boys win gold at the East Coast Games
The Re/Max Ravens rolled off three straight wins to claim the East Coast Games men’s softball title Sunday in Saint John, N.B.
The under-21 Ravens had dropped their first two games before victories over the Brookfield Elks and Taymouth Tigers under-18 squads and the Fredericton Twins under-21 team.
“In our first two games the boys were making adjustments defensively, as the majority of the team was coming from a baseball background,” said coach Mark Quinn. “We have a very talented group of athletes who have been getting better at attacking the ball on defence. With smaller field dimensions on a softball diamond players have less time to react to make plays and get runners out then they do in baseball.”
The Ravens defeated the Twins 6-4 in the final.
Stephen O’Shea, who was named the tournament’s MVP, was 3-for-4, including a towering fourth-inning homerun, in the championship game.
Parker Ronahan and Darcy Affleck were both 2-for-4 while Matt Lange, Johnny Arsenault, Shawn Kemp and Alex MacBain all singled.
Johnny Arsenault scattered four hits and struck out five in four innings of relief for the win.
Quinn said he was pleased with the progression during the weekend.
“Defensively they made a number a fantastic plays, including a game ending 6-4-3 double play,” he said.
All 13 players collected hits during the tournament.
“As a coaching staff we knew that one of the major challenges for our players was recognizing different pitches from fastpitch softball, especially the rise ball,” Quinn said.
Quinn and assistant coach Mike Bishop have been throwing batting practice to give players a look at both a righty and a lefty, plus they have faced senior pitchers from the Charlottetown Fawcetts and the O’Leary Eagles.
The Ravens play the Fawcetts Thursday and July 7 in Charlottetown.