Host Mustangs undefeated on day one of the OUA Baseball Championship

LONDON, Ont. – The Western Mustangs couldn't have asked for a better start as hosts of the 2015 OUA Baseball Championship, defeating both the Guelph Gryphons and Laurier Golden Hawks to go 2-0 on the first day of the tournament. 

Laurier stands as the only other team to record a win on day one, defeating the Toronto Varsity Blues 13-3 in the tournament's first game. Both the Varsity Blues and Gryphons have an 0-1 record, while the Ryerson Rams and defending champion Brock Badgers are both at 0-0 after their game was suspended after four innings. 

Game 1 – No. 5 Toronto vs. No. 2 Laurier 

The first game of the day was also its highest scoring affair as the Golden Hawks opened the tournament with an impressive 13-3 win over the Varsity Blues. 

Game 2 – No. 4 Guelph vs. No. 3 Western 

The host Western Mustangs got the tournament started off on the right foot on Friday afternoon, defeating the fourth-seeded Guelph Gryphons by a 4-3 score. 

After the Mustangs opened the scoring in the bottom of the second with a sacrifice fly, the Gryphons responded with a run of their own in the top of the third off of a double from Matt Allen.

Guelph took the lead with two runs in the top of the fourth, before the Mustangs tied things up with two runs in the bottom half of the inning. The score remained the same for that majority of the contest until an Andrew Hastings single plated Hayden Woodley in the bottom of the eighth to give Western a 4-3 win. 

Owen Boon got the victory on the mound, allowing only two earned runs on six hits and two walks while striking out nine over nine innings pitched. 

Game 3 – No. 6 Ryerson vs. No. 1 Brock 

Bad weather and poor field conditions interrupted the Ryerson-Brock contest midway through the game, causing it to be suspended at the end of the fourth inning with the Badgers up 1-0. The game will be resumed on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. 

Game 4 – No. 3 Western vs No. 2 Laurier 

Three runs in the top of the ninth helped the Mustangs win their second game of the day, defeating Laurier by a 5-3 score. 

After both teams scored a run each in the first inning the Golden Hawks took the lead in the bottom of the third as a sacrifice fly from Alex Kupchak scored John King. King then scored on a Ryley Davenport single to go ahead 3-1. 

Western then narrowed the gap to 3-2, scoring on a wild pitch in the top of the fifth before taking the lead for good in the top of the ninth. A double from Taylor Patterson scored Andrew Firth to tie the game, following which Patterson came around to score on a single from Greg Matson. Woodley put the final point on the board, singling in Matson to secure the 5-3 win. 

Adam Paish picked up the win for the purple and white, going nine innings with only three earned runs on seven walks and 12 hits, with 10 strike outs.

Along with the finish of the contest between Ryerson and Brock, five other games are scheduled for day two of the OUA Baseball Championship tomorrow. The action gets started at 10 a.m. at Labatt Park for the completion of the Ryerson-Brock game, the result of which will determine the rest of the day's matchups. The full schedule for day two is below.

Day Two Schedule - OUA Baseball Championship  

Game #3 Ryerson v Brock (continued) – 10am – **LABATT PARK** PLEASE NOTE PARK CHANGE 

Game #5 (Toronto v. TBD) – 12pm – Dan Pulham Park

Game #6 (TBD v. Guelph) – 12pm – Labatt Park 

Game #7 (TBD v. TBD) – 4:30pm – Dan Pulham Park

Game #8 (TBD v. TBD) – 4:30pm – Labatt Park

Game #9 (TBD v. TBD) – 8:30pm – Labatt Park