Prince George Citizen
Saturday, August 26, 2006

Hosts have winning on their minds

by JASON PETERS, Citizen staff

They have the pitching.

The question the Prince George Black Bears will have to answer during the Canadian senior men’s fastpitch championship is this — can they hit?

If they can, they expect to be in contention for the national title.

“If we hit the ball, I think we have a chance of winning it,” said shortstop Evan Potskin, who owns one of the most potent swings in the Black Bears’ batting order. “We’ve got to hit, plain and simple.”

The eight-team, eight-day tournament starts Sunday at Spruce City Stadium. Other clubs vying for the title include the defending champion St. Thomas Evergreen Centennials and the 2004 champions from Saskatoon, the Aspen Interior Black Sox. The powerful Vancouver Grey Sox also have their eyes on the crown, as do the Jarvis Merchants, Charlottetown Razzy’s Roadhouse Fawcetts, Newfoundland Impact Signs and Stony Plain Twiliters.

The Prince George pitching staff starts with Korrey Gareau, a Team Canada member who is among the best throwers in the world. The intimidating Collin McKenzie will also toe the rubber for the Black Bears. At the American Softball Association world championship tournament earlier this month in South Bend, Ind., McKenzie was named top pitcher after his Circle Tap team defeated Jacksonville, Fla., 4-1 in the championship game. McKenzie ended the tournament with a 4-0 record.

“He’s pitching well right now,” said Bears infielder Randy Potskin. “I think he’s pitching the best right now, actually. He’s healthy and he’s throwing the ball hard.”

The third pitcher in the Black Bears’ rotation is Ryan Brand. The Calgary-based Brand also won a top pitcher award this season after helping California’s SoCal Bombers to a tournament title in St. George, Utah.

On offence, Evan Potskin is one of the hitters who will need to be hot for the Bears to sink their teeth into success at nationals. Others who will be counted on for production at the plate are Randy Potskin, Chad Ghostkeeper, Glenn Ormsby and Darrell Sandback.

Ormsby is a power guy, and Sandback has earned a reputation as a deadly hitter in all situations.

“He’s one of the best hitters in the world,” said Evan Potskin, who used his own bat to help Team Canada win a gold medal at the 2003 Pan American Games. “He’s not a power hitter, but he’s a real good contact hitter and he doesn’t strike out very often. He’s a tough out.”

Several members of the Black Bears are coming off appearances at the 32-team International Softball Congress (ISC) world championship tournament, which concluded last weekend in Kitchener, Ont. Evan Potskin, Randy Potskin and Norm Linton played for Portland CR Adidas, Gareau was named a second-team all-star for his work with The Farm Tavern, McKenzie was on the rubber for Circle Tap, and Brand and Ghostkeeper suited up for SoCal. Black Bears manager Nino Fabbro anticipates positive ISC ripple effects on his team’s hitters.

“They’ve faced some excellent pitching, so it’s definitely going to help here (at nationals),” he said. “Even seeing the pitching, it should really help.”

Fabbro, in particular, is looking for big things from Evan Potskin, whose home-run power is well-known in national fastball circles.

“I hope Evan comes ready to play,” Fabbro said. “If he’s ready to play, he can be the difference in the whole tournament. He’s a hell of a hitter. If he has a good tournament, we’ll be in the top four for sure.”

The Black Bears made their first-ever appearance at nationals last summer in St. Thomas, Ont. In a 13-team field, they finished in seventh place. This year, the Bears would love to follow the example of last year’s St. Thomas team by winning the tournament on home turf.

“We’re looking forward to playing in front of big crowds — hopefully everyone comes out,” said outfielder Brian Bailey.

“Everyone (in the draw) is solid, but we’ll be right there, I think. I don’t see why we shouldn’t be. No one’s going to fool us, we’ve seen pretty much (all the pitchers). A couple guys we haven’t, but for the most part we’ve seen everyone that’s coming here.”

The first game for the Black Bears is Sunday at 2 p.m. against Charlottetown. At 7 p.m. Sunday, right after the official opening ceremonies, the Bears will face Saskatoon. Round robin games will run through Thursday.

All eight teams will advance to the playoff round. For the top four teams, playoffs will follow a double-knockout format. The bottom four teams will be eliminated with a single loss. Playoffs are scheduled to start at 6 p.m. on Fri., Sept. 1. The championship final is planned for Sun., Sept. 3 at 1:30 p.m.

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