Prince George, B.C. – The Prince George Lomak Knights peewee AA baseball team is in Chilliwack for the B.C. Minor Baseball Association’s provincial championship and will  hit the diamond  at noon today for the first game in the  tournament.  The  P.G. Lomak Knights will face the Rutland Rockies .

 

The Knights are in a pool with the Burnaby Braves, Rutland Rockies, Ladner Red Sox and Nanaimo Pirates, while the other pool in the 10-team tournament is comprised of the Kelowna Cubs, Duncan Cardinals, Cloverdale Spurs, Abbotsford Angels and Chilliwack Cougars. The top two teams in each pool advance to the semifinals on Sunday.

 

The Knights, made of up of players born in the years 1999 and 2000 (11-12-year-olds as of Jan. 1) are 14-11 this season, which includes an energetic travel schedule to the John Main Classic (North Delta), the Sussex Insurance Invitational (Kamloops), the Valley of Champions (Kelowna), and exhibition trips to Kelowna/Rutland, Chilliwack and Quesnel. Of the team’s 25 games, 20 have been played out of town.

 

Members of the team are Cole Schwing, Cole Beacom, Jarin Sutton, Devin Sutton, Michael Taylor, Michael Schwab, Zach Swanson, Jordan Arnett, Scott Walters, Nigel Thompson, Jeremy Gervais and Dustin Aldana. Schwing, Aldana, Arnett and the Sutton twins played in this tournament last year as first-year players and will be relied on for their experience. The roster includes 11 pitchers, 10 of which have started a game for the team this season.

 

The coaching staff includes Jim Swanson, James Sinclair, Jason Schwing, Mike Sutton, Darrell Gervais, Connor Flynn, Shane Taylor, Jack Hinsche and Laine Thomsen.

 

“This is a group of young men who love the game, respect the game, and are dedicated to improving every time they get to the park,” said Swanson. “It’s been a pleasure, these players work well together and support each other no matter what, and we have depth right through the batting lineup and no weak areas defensively. We don’t have a soft-tosser in the bunch with our 11 pitchers, and they do a great job throwing strikes and letting the defence do the work. We get a lot of leadership, vocal and by example, from people like Cole Schwing, Mikey Schwab and the Sutton twins. No one will take us lightly, but this is also considered a very competitive year in peewee AA so any team in this tournament can beat any other team – our guys are relaxed and determined to put their best on the field.”