White Rock Senior U18 Tritons had a spectacular Sunday (June 23), pitching a combined no-hitter and winning both games of their double-header against UBC.
Star pitcher Ben McKinnon, who has been dominant for the British Columbia Premier Baseball League team all season, went five innings of no-hit baseball with eight strikeouts and just one walk; seven of the strikeouts were consecutive.
"His stuff was on and he was doing a good job of keeping the UBC hitters guessing all day." senior Tritons head coach Tyler Lawson said.
"Luke (Thomas, who pitched the last two innings) has also had a great year — he went two innings of no-hit ball recording three strikeouts. He also picked up a six-out save in the process."
No hitters, which happen only once every 787 games in Major League Baseball, remain a rarity on any ball diamond.
Lawson was happy to see his players have such success.
"The no-hitter is a cool accomplishment because of how rare it is. The odds of you recording 21 outs without the other team getting a single hit is incredibly rare. Credit to both Ben and Luke, they threw great games and attacked UBC hitters all day," Lawson said Tuesday.
He noted the atmosphere leading up to the 3-0 no-hit win was incredibly calm.
"There was just their confidence level that our pitchers were going to pull it off."
While it was great to celebrate the no-hitter and the pitchers, Lawson said the two were likely just happy to be major contributors to the win.
"It’s just one of those feel-good moments. Everyone’s happy for the two pitchers, but as a whole, your entire team is fired up. It took a group effort to both secure the win and get the no-hitter."
McKinnon was humble about his participation in the win.
"I felt super mobile on the mound and the ball seemed to jump out of my hand all day. It felt very rewarding at the end of the game and I was super happy for my teammate Luke to finish off the game," he said Wednesday.
Thomas, also modest, said it was great to experience his first combined no-hitter.
"When I came out to relief the last inning, I just mainly focused on throwing strikes and to trust my defence," he said. "After the win, I felt pretty good about myself... you always need to be mentally prepared when (pitching)."
Tritons also won their second game 5-2, with the wins helping to bump them to fourth place in BCPBL standings, up from sixth place last week.
In Game 1, the team mustered out six hits, with Walker Kokotalio going two-for-two with an RBI. Kadyn Armitage went one for four with an RBI, while Matty Ng got the offence started on the day after a big RBI single in the top of fourth, said Lawson.
In Game 2, the team got strong pitching performances by starter Jaxon Mosher and Devin Wood was great out of the bullpen, Lawson continued.
Ryan Connell had a great game at the plate, going two for three with a double and an RBI, with Max Edwards-Ryland and Ng also contributing doubles.
"It was a two-for-four day with an RBI for Mason McCleary and Caleb McFarlane was on base after every plate appearance," Lawson said. "He (drew) three walks, resulting in an RBI and a run. Matt Hughes played two great games in the field as well & had some success at the plate."
Lawson said the team's hitting has started to come alive.
"We’re playing good baseball at the right time of the year, so lots to be happy about for our group right now. We just got to keep it going as we continue to prepare for the playoffs in Whalley in just under a month," Lawson said.
"The situational hitting has really started to come along the past month, and if we continue to stick with it, we’ll continue to be a tough team to beat. This is a confident group right now."
Find out more about the Tritons on their website.
