Sox open OBA's with a win

SARNIA -- The Cambrian Mazda Black Sox opened the Ontario Baseball Association Midget 'AA' Championships in Sarnia on Friday on a good note.

The Black Sox used an insurance run in the seventh inning to come away with a 3-1 victory over the Brantford Red Sox on Friday evening. Joey Lesage knocked in a pair of runs in the victory.

The Black Sox also got a solid pitching performance from Jacob Yukich, who picked up the win on the mound. The youngster surrendered one run while pitching into the seventh inning before giving way to J.J. Bergamin for the final out.

"The boys came here ready to play," said Black Sox coach Ryan Johns. "We were fortunate enough to jump out to an early lead and the pitching was superb today. I couldn't ask anything more out of Jake Yukich and J.J. Bergamin. We had a few timely hits which helped us win the ball game."

The Black Sox pitching scattered six hits in the win and the lone Red Sox run came when the Brantford club began a rally in the sixth inning only to be turned aside after just the lone score.

Though the Black Sox had eight hits in the win, they managed to have baserunners in all but the sixth inning. Lesage, along with his two RBI's, has a pair of hits in the win. Leadoff hitter Nick Moon finished the night with a walk, a single, double and a pair of runs scored.

"We expected coming in here, especially moving from single-A to double-A that the games were going to be tough," said Johns. "Once again, the transition from aluminum bat to wood bat, it shows you that wood bats have a lot closer games."

With day one of the tournament now in the books, the Black Sox will play their second game at 9 a.m. Saturday morning. They will also play at 1:30 p.m. regardless of the outcome of the morning game. A Black Sox split or a pair of wins would also mean they would play at 6 p.m. as well.

GAME PHOTOS WILL BE ADDED.