Brock University Athletics

Brandon Underhill (right) hits the ball into the ground versus McMaster at Oakes Park in Niagara Falls on Sunday, Oct. 10.

Baseball 10/10/2021 7:57:00 PM Stephen Leithwood

Badgers fall to Marauders in OUA Baseball Regionals final

The McMaster Marauders are heading to the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Championships after upsetting the Brock Badgers 9-4 in the Regional final at Oakes Park in Niagara Falls on Sunday, Oct. 10.

The Marauders faced adversity en route to punching their ticket to the Championships.

After losing to Brock in the Saturday morning contest, a pair of McMaster players were involved in a horrific incident when Mark Zanette and Nicholas Velocci collided in the outfield while tracking down a ball in the sky versus Guelph.

Emergency services were quickly on scene at Oakes Park as an ambulance drove out onto the field. Rain during the previous game created an unfavourable environment as the ambulance struggled to find traction.

In a moment of solidarity, both the McMaster and Guelph players rallied to push the ambulance out of the outfield.

McMaster head coach Adam Strongman said the incident is something that transcends sport.

"If you look at yesterday's incident, it puts into perspective that we're just playing baseball. You had two teams come together and push the ambulance off the field," Strongman said. "The respect is so mutual between the two that even though we're out here battling one another, you can still be human at the same time. At the end of the day, we're just playing. We have lives to live afterwards."

Catcher Jeremie Veilleux echoed his coach's sentiments.

"We lost two key guys in a devastating way that shook us to the core," Veilleux said. "We're a family, and we wanted to play for Nicholas and Mark. That's why we were so passionate on the field today."

After scoring only a run in two losses on Saturday, the Marauders registered 10 runs to knock Guelph out of the semifinal and recorded nine runs against Brock, who earned the bye by going 2-0 during the tourney, in the final.

The Badgers fell behind early in the final against the Marauders and couldn't come back after McMaster posted six runs in the third inning.

Maclean Van Raay, Michael Ong, Ethan Seymour, Colin Heron, and Anthony Polowick each drove in runs during the inning.

Pitcher Matt Tyas secured the win for McMaster. The right-hander went four innings, allowing three runs on four hits and striking out two. Nate Hamel threw five innings in relief out of the bullpen.

For Brock, Ashton Feijo went two-for-three at the plate to lead the Badgers in hits. Cole Carpenter tallied two RBI, and Brandon Underhill added an RBI out of the leadoff spot.

Dan Howat took the loss on the mound for Brock after pitching the first two innings. Nick Davies pitched six innings while posting seven strikeouts.

McMaster, Guelph push ambulance Oakes Park — McMaster and Guelph players rally to push an ambulance stuck on the field at Oakes Park during the OUA Baseball Regional on Saturday, Oct. 9.

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Players Mentioned

Nick Davies: LHP; Third Year

Ashton Feijo: SS; Graduate Student

Brandon Underhill: SS/RHP; Third Year

Cole Carpenter: 1B; Second Year

Players Mentioned

Nick Davies
: Third Year
: LHP

Ashton Feijo
: Graduate Student
: SS

Brandon Underhill
: Third Year
: SS/RHP

Cole Carpenter
: Second Year
: 1B

Brock University Athletics

Scoreboard

Players Mentioned

Players Mentioned