Canada rallies past Bangor in sixth Quan’s 3-run HR ignites offense for British Columbia

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BANGOR – The Whalley Chiefs won the Canadian Senior League championship with an explosive offense that produced 86 runs in seven games.

That attack was subdued for much of the team’s Senior League World Series Pool A opener at Mansfield Stadium on Sunday afternoon, but Adam Quan was not about to be held in check.

The center fielder from Surrey, British Columbia, who hit a home run in the Canadian championship game and two more during the semifinal round, blasted a three-run homer to left in the top of the sixth inning to break a 2-2 tie as Whalley fought off Maine District 3 champion Bangor 7-2.

Quan’s homer was a no-doubt shot beyond the 330-foot sign on the left-field fence.

“The first time up I didn’t do the job,” said Quan, referring to a first-inning strikeout with a runner aboard. “I wanted to make sure I did something this time, and I got a pitch middle-in, saw it and unloaded.”

Tanner Morache started the sixth-inning rally by drawing a one-out walk off Bangor starter Kyle Savage. Nic Buse was then hit by a pitch, marking the end of Savage’s day on the mound.

“Playing a good team like that, we couldn’t afford to put people on,” said Bangor manager Ron St. Pierre.

Bangor reliever Joe Stanevicz retired Richard Lankmayr on a comebacker to the mound, but Quan then made full contact with a first-pitch fastball.

“We got all of our clutch hits early in games before, so when we didn’t do it today there was a little nervousness,” said Whalley manager John Parker, whose team is now 11-0 in postseason play. “But Anthony Quan came through with the big hit again. He’s been hitting .700 since we put this team together.”

Whalley padded its lead with two runs in the seventh. Consecutive one-out singles by Nick Rohla, Chris Fischer and Carsen Nylund produced one run, and Morache followed with a fielder’s choice to drive home Fischer and make it 7-2.

“We got off to a rough start in the first three innings,” said Whalley’s Justin Atkinson, who doubled twice and handled eight chances at shortstop without an error. “I think everybody was just anxious to get their first hit in the World Series.

“But when Quan hit that three-run shot that got us going.”

Nylund, the ace of the Whalley squad that went 2-2 in pool play during last year’s SLWS, earned the pitching win with three innings of shutout relief. The righthander retired nine of the 10 batters he faced, allowing just a seventh-inning single to Lonnie Hackett.

Savage worked 5 1/3 innings with two strikeouts, five walks, five hits allowed and a pair of hit batters during an 89-pitch performance.

“Kyle pitched very well, especially considering the way they hit and that he had to pitch out of trouble,” said St. Pierre.

Bangor struck first in the bottom of the second inning, when Ryan Larochelle – the only player back from Bangor’s 2006 SLWS team – hit a one-out single up the middle to drive home Devin Lyshon.

Lyshon led off the inning with a single to center off Whalley starter Chris Brien. Jacques Larochelle – Ryan’s younger brother – then walked, and a fielder’s choice grounder by Cody McInnis left runners on first and third before Ryan Larochelle delivered the first run of this year’s Senior League World Series.

The Canadians quickly tied the game in the top of the third. Quan grounded a one-out single up the middle and scored two pitches later when Atkinson hit his second double in three innings, a high drive beyond Bangor center fielder Tyler Desjardins.

Bangor threatened again in the bottom of the third, with Hackett hitting a leadoff single to right-center and Nate Lewis drawing a walk. Brien struck out the next batter, but a double steal by Hackett and Lewis – on a pitch that sailed over the backstop – gave the hosts runners on second and third with one out.

Lyshon then skied a sacrifice fly to deep left just in foul territory, driving home Hackett to give Bangor a 2-1 lead.

Lankmayr matched Lyshon’s sacrifice with one of his own to re-tie the game at 2-2 in the top of the fourth. Brandon Bufton was hit by Savage?s first pitch of the inning and sacrificed to second by Connor Nishimura. Buse singled to left, moving Bufton to third, before Lankmyer hit a liner to right that enabled Bufton to score.

eclark@bangordailynews.net

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CANADA 7, MAINE DISTRICT 3 2

Surrey, B.C. (1-0) Bangor (0-1)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Lankmayr, rf 2 0 0 1 Hackett, lf 4 1 0

Quan, cf 4 2 2 3 Lewis, 1b 3 0 0

Atkinson, ss 4 0 2 1 Desjardins, cf 4 0 0

Brien, 1b 4 0 0 0 Lyshon, 2b 3 1 1

Rohla, 3b 3 1 2 0 J.Larochelle, c 1 0 0

Fischer, 1b-lf 4 1 1 0 Kelley, pr 0 0

Bufton, lf 0 1 0 0 McInnis, ss 3 0 0

Nylund, p 2 0 1 1 R.Larochelle, 3b 3 1

Nishimura, 2b 0 0 0 0 Savage, p-1b 3 0

Morache, 2b 1 1 0 1 Stanevicz, rf-p 3 0 0

Buse, c 3 0 1 0

Wearing, pr 0 1 0 0

Totals 24 7 8 7 Totals 27 2 7 2

Canada 001 103 2 – 7

Maine District 3 011 000 0 – 2

LOB-Canada 8; Maine Dist. 3 7; 2B-Atkinson 2, Lewis; HR-Quan; S-Nishimura; SF-Lankmayr, Lyshon; SB-Hackett 3, Lewis; Buse

Canada IP H R ER BB SO

Brien 4 6 2 2 3 1

Nylund (W, 1-0) 3 1 0 0 0 2

Maine District 3 IP H R ER BB SO

Savage (L, 0-1) 5 1/3 5 4 4 5 2

Stanevicz 1 2 2 2 0 1

Lewis 2/3 2 1 1 0 1

HBP-Buse, Bufton (by Savage); WP-Nylund; Lewis; T-1:39; ATT-800 (est.)