AJAX, Ont. – For the first time in program history, the Guelph Gryphons varsity baseball team finished atop the OUA regular season standings with a 10-2 record against OUA opponents. Now, the Gryphons will begin their pursuit of another first as they head to Ajax on Thanksgiving weekend for the 2019 OUA Baseball Championships in search of the first conference title in program history.
A total of 14 schools will take part in the three-day tournament (Friday, Oct. 11 to Sunday, Oct. 13) with round robin play taking place over the first two days, followed by semi-finals and medal games on the Sunday at the Ajax Sportsplex.
Gryphon Baseball - OUA Championship Tournament Schedule:
Friday, Oct. 11 – 1pm vs Brock (round robin)
Saturday, Oct. 12 – 11am vs Waterloo (round robin)
Saturday, Oct. 12 – 3:30pm vs Ryerson (round robin)
Sunday, Oct. 13 – 12pm (OUA semi-finals)
Sunday, Oct. 13 – 4pm (OUA gold and bronze medal games)
"We set a goal this year to establish an environment of developing championship habits as part of our daily routine – our guys bought in and it's paying off," says Gryphon head coach
Dean Mariani, now in his second season in charge of the University of Guelph baseball program.
Gryphon head coach Dean Mariani
"We are executing in all areas of the game; quality at bats, situational hitting, base running, defense, pitch execution. Our guys are ready to compete this weekend. We have six starting players entering their first OUA championship, which speaks not only to the talent on the roster but more importantly future of this program. We will be leaning on our vets who have the experience competing at this level to help lead our group."
As a team this season (12 games), the Gryphons hit .336 with 91 runs and 31 stolen bases. This power-speed combo has served Guelph well, and one of the key contributors to this fruitful formula is rookie second-baseman
Braedon Walsh (Barrie, Ont.), who tallied a .459 AVG and 1.095 OPS in his 11 games.
On the mound, the team will turn to another dynamic rookie to spearhead the charge, as first-year
Dylan Clark (Milton, Ont.) pitched to a 1.75 ERA and 22 strikeouts in his 25 innings of work.
While the rookies get their first taste of an OUA conference championship tournament, the returning veterans on the Gryphons will be looking to build off of a memorable 2018 run at the OUA's, where they went undefeated during round robin play before falling short versus the University of Toronto in the semi-finals.
For more information on the 2019 OUA baseball championships, visit
oua.ca.
Full Tournament Schedule
