The Westlock Grey Lions continue to roll following an 11-5 win over the Fort Saskatchewan Red Sox during Alberta West Central Baseball Association action on May 28 at Keller Field.
Manager Keith Szautner said the tilt against the Red Sox was their toughest test to date.
“That’s the best team we’ve played so far. We played them in the league finals last year, so they’re a very good team,” Szautner said. “It was a fun game.”
The Grey Lions got off to an early jump, taking a 3-0 lead. The Red Sox came back with five runs, before the Lions posted a seven-run inning.
Szautner said his players were seeing the ball well, and also took advantage of some Red Sox fielding errors.
Szautner also lauded the play of Sheldon McGonaghy who split pitching and catching duties.
“I thought he did a nice job coming in and pitching the second half of that game,” he said.
“He also threw a guy out while he was catching and he had at least one double to the wall. Sheldon had a really good game.”
McGonaghy was also instrumental keeping the Westlock lead early in the game making a play at the plate while catching.
“It was a nice throw from the fielder and he made a nice tag at home,” Szautner said.
Despite blowing the early lead Szautner said they showed their experience to grind out the win.
“It just kind of tells you what kind of a clubhouse we have,” he said. “A lot of guys have played for a long time so not much rattles them. They came back and did a nice job.”
Szautner said the Grey Lions have found a good grove early on and he’s confident it will continue on as they face some tougher opponents.
“The first three or four games are just about getting the guys out there and getting some at bats and some balls thrown around,” he said.
“It’s a tough part of the schedule right now as we play some good teams. We played Fort Saskatchewan, we play St. Albert, and Fort Saskatchewan again. It’s a good little run here as those are the best teams in the league.”
The club’s next home game is June 18 when they host the Edmonton Brewers at Keller Field.
