Westlock’s Grey Lions senior baseball team is going for a threepeat.
The team, which plays in the Alberta West Central Baseball Association, defeated the St. Albert Cardinals in their best-of-three semifinal series last week to book a spot in the championship final against the first-place Fort Saskatchewan Athletics.
The Grey Lions won game three on Aug. 13 by a 10-5 score. That win came on the heels of an 8-5 loss in game two on Aug. 11. They won game one 3-2 on Aug. 7.
The championship series starts Aug. 19 under the lights in St. Albert. Game two is Aug. 21, and game three goes Aug 25, if necessary.
Winning their third straight title in their third year in the league won’t be easy, said Grey Lions manager Rick Sereda.
“They had our number this year,” he said of the Athletics, who beat the Grey Lions handily in both games they played.
This year is a repeat of last year’s final, and continues what has become a rivalry for the Grey Lions.
“It’s always a good battle,” Sereda said. “They’re a very good baseball team. We’ll have to play well to compete with them.”
The Athletics boast a deeper lineup than the Grey Lions, he explained, with several quality pitchers and a stronger batting lineup from one to 12.
“We have to play closer to our best than they do in order to win,” he said.
Fortunately, the Grey Lions’ experience in game three against the Cardinals is proof they have that capability.
In that game, which they won 10-5, the Grey Lions didn’t have their best lineup of the season, but were able to maintain their poise when the Cardinals took a 5-4 lead after four innings and come away with the win.
“We don’t necessarily need our best guys to still compete at the top,” Sereda said.
In game three, Keith Szautner pitched a complete game, holding things together until the Grey Lions’ offence broke the game open in the sixth inning.
“It was certainly in doubt most of the game,” Sereda said.
Game three was in stark contrast to game two, which was an 8-5 loss.
“We didn’t play very well,” he said. “The score was 8-5, but the score was kind to us.”
It was 8-1 for the Cardinals heading into the last inning when the Grey Lions scored four times to make the score more respectable.
“We weren’t competitive in that game,” Sereda said.
