The Durham Lords won their second consecutive Ontario Colleges
Athletic Association (OCAA) Women’s Fastball Championship on
Saturday afternoon, topping the underdog Mohawk Mountaineers, 2-0,
in the gold medal game of the Fall Classic.
It marks OCAA Championship title No. 14 and the Lords fifth in six
years for the most accomplished women’s fastball program in
the OCAA.
Mohawk and Durham were both playing strong defensively as the two
teams had played three scoreless innings, with both starting
pitchers, Danielle Smith of the Lords and Jenny Koschanow of the
Mountaineers throwing no-hitters.
In the home half of the fourth, the heart of the Lords lineup
opened up the scoring as Amanda Ellison and Danielle Smith produced
a pair of RBI’s to take a 2-0 lead. The Mountaineers
prevented Smith from recording an inside the park homerun as they
made a beautiful relay to throw out Smith at home.
The two teams went scoreless in the fifth and sixth innings,
heading into the seventh and final inning with Durham holding on to
the two-run advantage. Mohawk was able to finally generate an
offensive attack, putting the tying run on first base. With two
outs, Casey Ramey made solid contact with the ball hitting it deep
into centre field, but Lords veteran fielder Amanda Ellison, who
got a good jump on the ball, settled under it and caught it for the
final out. That put the hometown crowd into a frenzy, as the Lords
players and coaches stormed onto the field.
Danielle Smith, who picked up her second win of the Championship,
was recognized as the Championship Most Valuable Player. In the
gold medal game, Smith was magnificent on the mound pitching a
complete game shut-out allowing only two Mohawk hits.
Smith’s counterpart Jenny Koschanow of Mohawk, threw every
pitch in Mohawk’s four games of the Championship. For her
performance over the two days, she was recognized the
Championship’s Top Pitcher. In the gold medal game, Koschanow
allowed two runs on three hits in the complete game loss.
Head coach of the Lords Jim Nemish, who picked up his eleventh OCAA
Championship as the Durham Lords Manager, proudly noted that his
team worked extremely hard throughout the entire season and really
came together as a team to win the provincial Championship. The
Lords finished the season on a twelve game winning streak, after
dropping their season opener to the St. Clair Saints 2-1.
The Mohawk Mountaineers advanced to the gold medal game after
defeating the regular season champion St. Clair Saints 6-2 earlier
in the day. The silver medal by Mohawk in marks their 10th
consecutive medal at the OCAA Women’s Fastball
Championship.
Friday, October 19, 2007
Game 1: Durham 5 vs. Conestoga 1
Players of the Game: Vanessa Chaborek, Durham
Players of the Game: Jen Morris, Conestoga
Game 2: St. Clair 4 vs. Mohawk 0
Players of the Game: Candice Gatecliffe, St. Clair
Players of the Game: Michelle James, Mohawk
Game 3: Conestoga 3 vs. Mohawk 4
Players of the Game: Jenny Koschanow, Mohawk
Players of the Game: Laura Matheson, Conestoga
Game 4: Durham 4 vs. St. Clair 3 (Extra Innings)
Players of the Game: Danielle Smith, Durham
Players of the Game: Kandice Bagely, St. Clair
Bronze Medal Game: Mohawk 6 vs. St. Clair 2
Players of the Game: Sam Tubman, Mohawk
Players of the Game: Keri Bagely, St. Clair
*St. Clair awarded the Bronze Medal
Gold Medal Game: Durham 2 vs. Mohawk 0
Players of the Game: Amanda Ellison, Durham
Players of the Game: Nicole Miller, Mohawk
CHAMPIONSHIP MVP: Danielle Smith, Durham
CHAMPIONSHIP TOP PITCHER: Jenny Koschanow,
Mohawk
DURHAM LORDS CROWNED OCAA CHAMPIONS
Posted: Oct 20, 2007