Jays sweep through first round of playoffs

August 17, 2017 · 0 Comments

By Jake Courtepatte

The Aurora Jays made a statement last week in a swift sweep of the Ivy Leafs in the North Dufferin Baseball League playoffs.
Aurora’s AA ball club dominated their sixth-seeded opponents both offensively and defensively in just three games of their best-of-five series, becoming the first team to move on to the league’s semifinal round.
A battle of the aces in Game One pitted Devon Wu against Ivy’s Brad Grieveson, with Wu coming out on top for his fifth win of the season, a 7 – 4 win at Lambert Willson Park to take an early lead in the series.
Game Two on Friday showcased another strong arm in Aurora’s Rob Spencer, whose only blip on the stat sheet was a solo home run.
Aurora’s Brad Crosby hit a two-run out of the park, and Chris Fafalios added a solo home run of his own, in a 7 – 1 win.
With Saturday’s Game Three in Aurora postponed due to poor field conditions, the Jays returned to Ivy on Sunday to finish the series sweep, taking down the Leafs by a score of 6 – 1. Thomas D’Andrade was on the hill for the win, his team-leading sixth of the season.
Grieveson was once again the opponent in the series finale, a situation team manager Rob Wilson thinks his team handled in an impressive manner.
“We faced one of, if not the best pitcher in the league twice and put up thirteen runs on him,” said Wilson. “Granted, some of those came from fortunate hops, but when you hit the ball hard, good things happen.”
“We also had excellent base running, which can really pay dividends when you make the defense tighten up.”
A strong team come playoff time year after year, Wilson has faith in this year’s crop of Jays.
“It feels like everyone is having solid at-bats, the gloves have been red hot on defense and our pitchers have done everything we could ask from them. All three facets are really clicking.”
The top-seeded New Lowell Knights were the only other team to advance out of the first round unscathed, dominating the Barrie Angels by a combined score of 23 – 10 in a three-game sweep of their own.
The fourth place Clearview are also clear of the Orangeville Giants, having finished off their series in four games on Sunday evening.
One series remains in the first round, with the Midland Indians looking to stave off elimination while down two games to one after postponements of their own over the weekend.
Official round two dates are to be set after the completion of the first round, but are tentatively set to be kicked off on Saturday, August 19.
For stats, schedules, and more information, visit www.ndbl.ca.