15u Team

Team News:

August 18-20 - 15U Recap – EOBA Playoffs
In their opening game, the 15U Thunder jumped out to a 4-0 lead against first-place Whitby in the first inning, led by 2 RBI from Michael O’Donnell. Whitby fought their way back, but the Thunder managed to maintain the lead until the last inning, when Whitby rallied for a 6-5 walk-off win, avoiding what would have been the upset of the tournament. Archie Pearson, Matt McShane, and Reade Pearce had strong outings on the mound for the Thunder.
The Thunder rebounded in their second game against the Pickering Red Sox, winning by a score of 5-2. Harrison Nichols pitched a complete game, allowing only 5 hits and 1 earned run to earn the win. Gavin Gillis, O’Donnell, Curtis Pearce and Matt McShane each contributed 2 hits for the Thunder, and combined to score all 5 runs. McShane had two double plays in the field, one unassisted, and one assisted by O’Donnell.
With the win, the Thunder advanced to face the third-place Clarington Orioles. The Thunder jumped out to a 2-0 lead on back-to-back doubles by McShane and Nichols. In spite of solid pitching by Reade Pearce and strong team defence, Clarington battled back to take a 5-3 lead going into the final inning. The Thunder wouldn’t quit, however, and scratched together 2 runs to tie the game at 5. A one out triple by Clarington in the bottom of the 7th put the Thunder in a tough spot, with the runner eventually scoring to walk it off for the Orioles. Gillis, McShane and Alastair Graham all had multiple hits in the loss to the eventual champions.
Although it stung to lose two games by walk-off, the Thunder should be proud of how they improved over the course of the season, and showed everyone in the league that they can’t be overlooked.
Thanks for a great season!

July 14-16 - 15u Barrie Tournament Recap
The 15u Kingston Thunder participated in the Barrie Baycats tournament this weekend.
In their first game, against the London West Tincaps, the Thunder got a quick lead in the first inning on a 2 RBI single from Michael O’Donnell.  Patient at bats from Campbell Guthrie and Alastair Graham, and an RBI single from Matt McShane stretched the lead to 5-0 after two innings. Behind strong pitching from Archie Pearson, O’Donnell, and McShane, timely defense from Gavin Gillis in the outfield, and insurance runs from Reade Pearce and Cam Dee, the Thunder secured an 8-2 victory.
The Thunder had several chances with runners on base against Whitby in their second game, but couldn’t cash them in, losing by a score of 7-3.
In their final round robin game, the Thunder were underdogs against the Windsor Hawks. Reade Pearce and Guthrie pitched effectively, but the Thunder found themselves down 4-2 going into the last inning. A walk by Harrison Nichols and a single by O’Donnell set the stage for Curtis Pearce, who hit a massive 2 RBI triple and made it home on an errant relay throw to allow the Thunder to take the lead 5-4. A desperate Windsor team scratched out one more run, but the game ended in a 5-5 tie, guaranteeing the Thunder a spot in the playoffs.
Again in the underdog role against a strong and disciplined Mansfield Cubs team, the Thunder jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two innings. Gillis led the way on offence with 2 doubles and an RBI, and Payton Gray added 2 hits and a run scored. In spite of a great team effort, the Thunder couldn’t hold on, ending their tournament.

June 9-11 - Thunder 15u host Tournament
This past weekend, the 15u Kingston Thunder hosted a tournament at Woodbine Park and Megaffin Park. They opened the tournament with a convincing 20-3 win over the Clarington Orioles Select team. Curtis Pearce led the way on offence with 3 hits, including 2 doubles at 4 RBI. Evan Lyons added a single, a double, and 3 RBI’s. Archie Pearson, Harrison Nichols, and Reade Pearce combined to limit Clarington to 4 hits in a strong pitching effort.
On Saturday morning, the Thunder gave it everything they had against the Markham Mariners, but came up short by a score of 10-6. Matt McShane pitched a great game, striking out 6 with no walks. Michael O’Donnell had 3 hits, Harrison Nichols had 2 hits, and Payton Gray crushed a double in a losing effort.
In their third and final game, the Thunder ran out of gas against the eventual champions, the Stratford Nationals, losing 16-0. Harrison Nichols and Curtis Pearce contributed with hits for the Thunder.
Congratulations to Stratford on a well-deserved tournament win, and thank you to the tournament organizers and officials!

Sunday June 4th - Thunder hosts Clarington for a double header
Thunder 15u ran into a tough first place Clarington Orioles team on Sunday dropping both games of a doubleheader 15-2 and 13-3.
Matt McShane led the way offensively with a triple and several hard hit balls. Overall, the team continued their solid approach at the plate, with Reade Pearce and Archie Pearson providing several quality at bats.
McShane and Pearson pitched effectively in the second game, keeping the game within reach, but the Thunder were undone by uncharacteristic fielding and throwing errors, which allowed the Orioles to pull away in the 6th inning.
The Thunder will have to regain their defensive focus while they host a tournament this weekend. The Thunder’s first game is at 1:00 pm on Friday June 9th at Woodbine Park.

Saturday May 27th - Thunder splits twin bill with the Pickering Red Sox
Thunder hosted the Pickering Red Sox on Saturday for a double header at Woodbine Park. After some 1st inning jitters, the Thunder settled down but couldn’t catch up to Pickering, losing the opener 12-5.
In the second game, the Thunder fell behind early and trailed 10-2 after four innings. A 2 RBI triple by Harrison Nichols started a 3 inning rally, capped off by a 6 run 7th inning, as the Thunder came away with their first win by a score of 17-11. Nichols went 5 for 5 to lead the way for Kingston, with Gavin Gillis and Michael O’Donnell chipping in with 3 hits each. Archie Pearson, Payton Gray, and Campbell Guthrie pitched effectively, holding a good-hitting Pickering team to 1 run over the last three innings to secure the win.

Head Coach - Sean O'Donnell - seanodonnell@kingstonthunder.com

Team Manager - Polly Etmanskie - pollyetmanskie@kingstonthunder.com