Badgers and Mustangs clash Sunday for the Jason Guindon Trophy

The OUA baseball championship will feature a rematch from day one as the Western Mustangs earned their spot in the finals going undefeated through bracket play, while the Brock Badgers rebounded from a tough first day loss to the Mustangs to setup a battle of top three seeds.

Championship Sunday will begin at 11 a.m.

If the Mustangs win the first game of the day they will lay claim to their fifth championship banner tying them with the host Varsity Blues for most in the OUA.

If the Badgers win the first game a second game will be played at 3 p.m. for the banner due to the double elimination format.

As for Day 2, excitement was non-stop with a battle of Waterloo upset in the morning and a thrilling Guelph and Laurier showdown in the afternoon.

Game 5: Waterloo 10, Laurier 9  

A tightly contested battle of Waterloo quickly changed as the Warriors put together a seven run fourth inning including a three run home run from Kyle Thalheimer to jump ahead of the No. 1 Laurier Golden Hawks 8-0 entering the bottom of the fifth. 

That's when Laurier finally solved Warriors starting pitcher Stephen Gade with Golden Hawks Jeff Hunt nailing a three run home run of his own to spark a Laurier comeback tying the game 8-8 in the sixth. 

The comeback was ended though by Thalheimer who hit his second home run of the game to restore the Warriors lead and secured the round 2 upset. 

Game 6: Guelph 13, Toronto 5 

Opening Day 2, the Varsity Blues utilized a four run first inning to jump ahead of the Guelph Gryphons early, however, Guelph responded utilizing a two run home run from Matthew Forer to tie things up 4-4 in the fourth. 

From there Guelph continued to rally with six different players posting an RBI in what turned into a decisive round 2 victory. 

Game 7: Guelph 11, Laurier 8 

Winning their second game of the day, the Guelph Gryphons were lifted by three straight innings of offence beginning with a first pitch solo home run by first baseman Gordon Walmsley in the second inning. Walmsley finished the day 2-for-3 at the plate with three RBI.

Laurier threatened late when Cal Murphy and Adam Shaver put up back-to-back solo home runs in the bottom of the seventh and a nice string of hits brought in two more in the eighth to close to within one, but it wouldn't be enough to save the top-seeded Golden Hawks who were eliminated from the tournament with their second loss of Day 2.

Game 8: Brock 11, Waterloo 1 

Scoring runs in the first three innings, Brock Badgers pitcher Rhys Tapper was provided with all the room he needed to deliver a seven inning victory. Tapper struck out two, allowing seven hits and one earned run. 

Badgers second baseman Matthew Legg helped put an end to the Warriors OUA championship run scoring five RBI including two in the final four run seventh. 

Game 9: Western 15, Guelph 0 

Taking advantage of a worn down Gryphons squad, the Western Mustangs stringed together several strong innings of offence finding holes all over the field while exploiting Guelph defensive miscues. 

First baseman Jeff Martin and right fielder Hayden Woodley led all Mustangs batters with Martin going 2-for-2 with two RBI and Woodley 2-for-2 with three RBI. 

Meanwhile, Western pitching remained stellar as Alex Lamont delivered a shutout in seven innings of work allowing one hit while striking out eight.

Full Schedule 

Friday, October 14
Game 1 – Western 15, Waterloo 5
Game 2 – Brock 7, Guelph 6
Game 3 – Laurier 11, Toronto 5
Game 4 – Western 9, Brock 3
 
Saturday, October 15
Game 5 – Waterloo 10, Laurier 9
Game 6 – Guelph 13, Toronto 5
Game 7 – Guelph 11, Laurier 8
Game 8 – Brock 11, Waterloo 1
Game 9 – Western 15, Guelph 0
 
Sunday, October 16
Game 10 – 11:00 a.m. - Western vs Brock
Game 11 – 3:00 p.m. - Western vs Brock (if necessary)