Pictured left to right: Declan Woloshyn (#5) and Brandon Gregoire (#44) of the North Battleford Beavers pose for a post-game picture with Gavin Nolin (#11) and Matt Hudec (#18) of the Battlefords Trappers. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

A home run evening

Baseball’s return proves a hit in all-Battlefords season opener

Jul 8, 2020 | 12:21 PM

Tuesday evening at Beaver Lions Stadium marked a triumphant return for baseball in the Battlefords community.

After weeks of anticipation following the announcement of the senior baseball season, the North Battleford Beavers and Battlefords Trappers held their North Sask. River Baseball League (NSRBL) season-opener.

Barely beating out the rainfall to play a full seven innings, the teams brought in the season’s schedule with a bang.

The Trappers took home a 4-1 victory on the night, led by dynamic pitching by Jared Schmidt and Gavin Nolin; coupled with clutch hits down the stretch from batters Nic Rissling and Tyler Benoit.

Risling said while the bats were perhaps a bit rusty at times, the club’s pitching allowed the team to find their groove and come up with some clutch plays.

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“We’re still practicing, so we can still do better on the hitting side, but we had really good pitching,” Risling said.

“And when you have an MVP like (shortstop/pitcher) Gavin Nolin on your team, you’re gonna get some wins,” he added with a laugh.

Regardless of the score, at the end of the evening, there was nothing but smiles coming from both dugouts.

Brandon Gregoire with the North Battleford Beavers, said it was just nice to return to the field and get back to play after an extended offseason.

“It felt pretty good to get back out and play baseball again,” he said. “I know everybody’s been kind of cooped up in the house there for a few months, so it felt good to run around a bit after we’ve all been sitting for quite some time.”

“It was also nice to see everybody in North Battleford back here [enjoying] baseball,” Gregoire added. “There was a bit of a crowd that came out, so it was nice to have them out to watch some baseball.”

The Battlefords Trappers will return to play Thursday night (July 9) at home against the Mervin Flyers.

The North Battleford Beavers will hit the road Monday (July 13) for a game against the Standard Hill Lakers; their first of four-straight on the road.

—

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1