Pontiac softballers Cade Kuehl and Hunter Beauregard are celebrating a silver medal after competing with Quebec’s Canada Games team in Newfoundland last week, falling to rival Ontario in the final.
Quebec finished the preliminary round with an undefeated 8-0 record, including big wins over British Columbia and Alberta, as well as a tight 6-5 contest over neighbouring Ontario in which Quebec trailed in the last inning but managed to score three late runs to take the game.
“That was one of the biggest games I’ve been a part of [ . . . ] and we were able to walk it off,” said Kuehl, who batted in two runs in the game.
Quebec and Ontario, the two top teams in the preliminary round, were matched up once again to start the playoffs. This time the result was flipped as Quebec left runners stranded in a 9-2 loss, setting up a do-or-die game against Nova Scotia – the loser settling for bronze, the winner advancing to the final.
Thanks to four big hits, including one from Beauregard, Quebec managed to eke out a 6-4 win, one that Kuehl said was due to the team’s scrappy brand of ball.
“We can kind of do everything,” said Kuehl, who also gave credit to his coaches for keeping the team focused on the task at hand.
The win set up one final date with Ontario in the gold medal game, in which Ontario got out to a 4-0 start. After Kuehl went hitless in his first three at-bats, his late two-run home run wasn’t enough to pull his team back in front as they settled for silver.
Kuehl said the loss was hard to take, especially given that his team beat Ontario during the preliminary round.
“Right after the game, you’re thinking about what you could have done better,” he said. “But everybody should be proud of what we did.”
Both boys got the chance to enjoy some time off the field hanging out in the athletes’ village, including a gear swap in the final days where players exchanged pins and gear with players from other teams.
“It was just cool to walk around the village, just seeing all the different provinces coming together in one spot united by sports and competition,” Kuehl said.
After getting used to the gusty Newfoundland winds, other highlights for the boys included hanging out in the dorms as well as a concert by Great Big Sea’s Alan Doyle.
Beauregard’s softball summer will continue next weekend as he competes in the U23 Canadian men’s softball championship, while Kuehl will get some much-needed rest in his own bed.
