The Beavers beat the Unity Cardinals 6-5 in Game 3 of the NSRBL Finals on Wednesday night in Wilkie. (Submitted Photo/NB Beavers)

By Austin Mattes

Three-Peat

Beavers take third straight NSRBL title in extra-inning thriller

Aug 8, 2025 | 12:59 PM

The North Battleford Beavers are North Saskatchewan River Baseball League (NSRBL) champions once again, this time in dramatic fashion.

The Beavers edged the Unity Cardinals 6-5 in extra innings in Game 3 of the NSRBL Finals on Wednesday night in Wilkie, capping off a back-and-forth battle to secure their third consecutive league title.

North Battleford came out swinging, plating four runs over the first three innings to grab an early 4-0 lead. But Unity, determined to keep their season alive, clawed their way back with two runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth to knot the game at 4-4.

The Beavers briefly regained the lead in the top of the seventh, thanks to a clutch RBI single to make it 5-4, but the Cardinals answered right back in the bottom half to send the game to extra innings tied at five.

In the top of the eighth, the Beavers started things off with a run to go ahead 6-5. From there, the bullpen took over. Mike Ross recorded the win and Gavin Nolin closed things out for the save, to give the Beavers the coveted three-peat.

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“It was definitely a nail-biter going to extra innings,” said Beavers player/coach Kyle Gregoire. “But as the game went on, we were able to just seal the deal and get that extra run there in the top of the eighth, and we were happy to get that job done.”

Connor Neave led the way offensively, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI. Kyle Palmer also had a strong showing at the plate, finishing 2-for-4 with a run and two RBIs. Jared Schmidt started on the mound and pitched four solid innings before the bullpen took over.

Gregoire praised his team’s discipline and composure throughout the rollercoaster contest.

“We just stayed a little bit more disciplined, tried to get on their pitcher as early as possible, get a lead and then just try to lock it down,” he said. “Even though they were coming back, we just stayed with the process, kept level-headed and we were able to lock it up.”

The Beavers now shift their focus to the Senior AA Tier 2 Provincials in Assiniboia, where they’ll open play against the Cabri River Rats today at 2:30 p.m.

“Everybody had a role to play with our team, which was huge,” Gregoire added. “Unity has progressively gotten better in the last few years and Standard Hill was a really tough task as well. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy for us to get through, but we had the depth of pitching and the bats to come out on top—we just had to stay with it. So all in all, super happy.”

Gregoire also made sure to acknowledge the fans.

“We had amazing support there,” he said. “Just to be able to celebrate with them afterwards and for all the time that they put in coming to watch us and letting us do what we love through the summertime, you can’t ask for more or better support than we got.”

The Beavers will now look to carry their championship momentum into Provincials, where another title run could be on the horizon.
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Austin.mattes@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @AustinMattes