October 23, 2018

The Holland Hurricanes men’s baseball team will travel to Toronto, Ontario this week to compete in the Canadian Collegiate Baseball Championship hosted by the Humber College Hawks.  Play gets underway on Thursday, October 25.

The ‘Canes will play two round-robin games on Thursday, first against the host, Humber Hawks, at 11am, followed by an 8pm game against the Collège Ahuntsic Indiens from Montréal, Quebec.   Both times listed are in Atlantic Daylight Time.

This fall, the Hurricanes were a perfect 10-0 during the regular season, competing against the top universities from Atlantic Canada.

‘Canes head coach, Andrew MacNevin, is looking forward to this week’s experience.

“This is the best competition we’ve ever faced as this year’s championship will feature top teams from across the entire country. We’ll need a combination of good pitching, solid defense and timely hitting to be successful.  We respect the quality of the programs we’re up against but are confident in our abilities.  It’s a quick tournament and momentum is key.”

In the past, the Hurricanes have had success at the national level.  In the team’s inaugural season, they struggled to an eighth-place finish, but a national silver, and two top-three finishes have followed since.

The probable starter for the Hurricanes in game one versus Humber is Tyler Johnston, he’s eager to get back on the field.

“I think we have a team capable of making a statement right off the hop in our first game against a very strong Humber College team. We set our goal for the season on day one, now we’re ready to go chase it.”

After a T-3 finish last season, returning infielder, Matt Barlow, is ready to take the next step.

“This is by far the best defensive team I have ever played on, and if we can stay confident and execute the little things properly that we’ve been working on, I like our chances to have a strong championship at nationals.”

Game two starter, Ryan Abraham, has been impressive in his first season with the Hurricanes.

“Going to Nationals in Toronto is going to be special. We’ve all worked extremely hard leading up to this opportunity and I’m excited to see what the hard work will bring us. We feel very confident going into our first two games.  If we play well it will put us in a great position come playoff time.”

On Friday, the crossovers and semi-final games will take place before Saturday’s placement, bronze and gold medal games.

The six competing teams at this year’s championship are the Hurricanes, Humber College Hawks (Toronto, ON), Fanshawe College Falcons (London, ON), St. Clair College Saints (Windsor, ON), Collège Ahuntsic Indiens (Montreal, QC) and Thompson Rivers University Wolfpack (Kamloops, British Columbia).

For more information on the 2018 Canadian Collegiate Baseball Championship, visit www.humberhawks.ca.

Most tournament games can be live streamed at the tournament website above.

Connect with the baseball Hurricanes, at www.twitter.com/canesmbaseball.

For more information on the Holland Hurricanes, please visit www.hollandcollege.com/athletics, www.facebook.com/hollandhurricanes, www.twitter.com/hc_hurricanes and www.instagram.com/hollandhurricanes.

-30-