Kelly Baillargeon (right), Andrew Hudec (left) and their Beavers' teammates will open their series with Wilkie Monday night at Diamond #4 in North Battleford. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Final Four showdown

Beavers/Brewers Game 1 highlights opening night of NSRBL semis

Jul 25, 2022 | 12:00 PM

The senior baseball playoffs continue Monday around the North Sask River Baseball League (NSRBL), as the final four open their semi-finals series.

The second-seeded North Battleford Beavers will host the third-place Wilkie Brewers for Game 1 of their series, while the top-seeded Macklin Lakers welcome the fifth-seed Standard Hill Lakers for their opening game in Macklin.

The Beavers will be looking to build on a strong performance in the third and deciding game of their quarterfinals series against Unity, which saw the team top the Junior Cardinals 12-2 in decisive fashion, to advance to the final four.

Wilkie are coming off a swift two-game sweep of last year’s provincial champion, Kindersley Stallions, and will be looking to continue their momentum as well into the semi-final round.

Catcher and infielder with the Beavers, Andrew Hudec said the team is looking forward to the challenge ahead a strong Brewers team presents.

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“Wilkie have a heck of a squad over there, so it’s going to be a challenge, but we matched up well against them in the regular season and we’re just excited to get it going,” Hudec said.

The Beavers took their season series with the Brewers 2-0, winning their season-opener in Wilkie 6-3, and the midseason match in North Battleford 12-7 on June 16.

The teams were separated by just a single win during the regular season with Wilkie having scored more runs (119-89), while the Beavers allowed slightly fewer against (80-82) over the course of the regular season.

In the all-Lakers series, Macklin is coming off a two-game sweep of the Mervin Flyers, outscoring their opponent 30-4 over the series. Standard Hill also beat the Meadow Lake Sox in two straight, outscoring the league’s top offense 15-4 in the process.

Macklin and Standard Hill were separated by two wins in the regular season, with Macklin holding the edge in runs scored (114-87) while also having fewer runs against (51-70), taking the lone showdown of the season series between the two sides 11-4 on June 28.

Monday’s games will both begin at 6:30 p.m. The Beavers game will be played at Diamond #4 in North Battleford, while the Lakers’ game will be played at Repsol Field in Macklin.

The full NSRBL playoff schedule can be found here.

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Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1