The 2024 Junior League Baseball World Series is over for the Mount Seymour Little League team. But the North Vancouver all-star squad made its mark on and off the diamond
The Mount Seymour 13- and 14-year-olds won the provincials in early July in Saanich, B.C., then the nationals in Lethbridge, Alta., defeating Quebec 22-11 on July 31 to win the Canadian Junior Little League Championship final.
That earned them a trip to the double-elimination tournament in Michigan that saw eight international teams play at least two games each. The winner faces the best of eight U.S. teams in Sunday鈥檚 Junior World Series final.
The B.C. team defeated Australia 6-2 and Mexico 3-2 before falling 13-0 to a team from Taoyuan City in Taiwan and 15-0 to a side from Nicaragua on Friday.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had a hell of a run,鈥� said assistant coach Dave Kristensen. 鈥淛ust near the end here, it got tough. We made a few mistakes which kind of compounded things. But we鈥檙e really proud of the boys and the effort they put in for the last couple of months. It鈥檚 been a great experience.鈥�
The Junior League Baseball World Series is the age group above that of the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Penn.
Nicaragua (Latin America) and Taoyuan City (Asia Pacific) will meet in Saturday鈥檚 international final to decide who plays the last U.S. team standing in Sunday鈥檚 champions game.
The Canadian squad went 13-0, including winning its first two games at the World Series 鈥� which no Canadian team has done since a Saskatchewan team in 2014 鈥� before losing its final two outings.
And it showed excellent fundamentals.
First baseman Eli Anderson made an outstanding catch against Mexico to double up the runner at first base. And pitcher Kolton Ogawa combined with Kyle Hopper-Isaac to pick off a Mexican base-runner at second base,
And when Ogawa hit a Mexican batter, he was quick to go over and make sure he was OK.
The B.C. boys, who are sticking around for the weekend, proved to be good ambassadors, drawing praise for their sportsmanship from tournament organizers. And on Friday, the Nicaragua team requested a photo with the Canadians for posterity.
The team was an all-star squad from Mount Seymour Little League, augmented with two players from Lynn Valley Little League, which did not have enough players to form their own team.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a real tight-knit group, all close friends鈥� said Kristensen. 鈥淭hey were playing for each other 鈥� It鈥檚 been quite an experience for all for us. This will be a bond that they have for the rest of their lives.鈥�
鈥淭he whole team, through the whole run, contributed from top to bottom,鈥� he added.
After assembling the team, head coach Manabu Ogawa told the players at their first practice in June that his goal was the World Series. And the players delivered.
鈥淲e did it one step at a time,鈥� said Kristensen. 鈥淎nd as a team, they came together and accomplished a lot.鈥�
Kolton Ogawa and Brett Kristensen, the sons of the head coach and assistant coach, both recorded wins at the Michigan tournament. Nico Jokic鈥檚 batting average was .333.
The team heads home Monday.
Mount Seymour Little League Roster
Beckham Dickson, Kyle Hopper-Isaac, Caiden Wilks, Emmett Kirkby, Julien Fraser, Nico Jokic, Kyle Felderer, Eli Anderson, Brett Kristensen, Colten Brown, Samuel Boon, Kolton Ogawa.
Manager: Manabu Ogawa.
Assistant Coaches: Ken Anderson, Dave Kristensen
The Canadian Press
