Classic championship game on deck after WC topples Canterbury

 LLOYD ELSMORE - West City proved yet again that the club is a burgeoning baseball power, advancing to the National Club Championship final with a 10-0 classic against Canterbury in the semifinals in front of a good crowd on Saturday at Lloyd Elsmore Baseball Park.

 Now West City, which has won the title in 2006, 2007, and 2009, will test its mettle against heated rival Howick in the finals at 1:00pm on Sunday.

West City won behind left-hander Gordon Niemann, who pitched 7 strong innings, with the offense being paced by Lawrence Lotze and Robbie Turner.

The teams were pretty evenly matched, until West City jumped all over Canterbury starter Sam Ballinger, scoring two runs in the third inning, and breaking it wide open in the sixth.

"We won today, but we did not expect to win," West City manager Ken Sommers said. "We knew it would be a good game, and it was. The boys showed today that we can go toe to toe with the best"

"We knew a little about the pitcher, and he had already thrown in the morning game, and we talked about it a lot," said Sommers, who hit a timely single in the fifth inning. "We believed a lot of fastballs were going to be thrown, and I was aware of it. And that's how we were able to hit."

Niemann was too much for the Canterbury offense that was held scoreless in the game against Howick earlier in the day. The left-hander allowed just one hits over 7 innings while striking out three.

"I felt great as a starting pitcher," Niemann said. "And I was proud and I was confident as a starting pitcher. Rather than being nervous, I had confidence, even though they are good hitters. And I knew a couple of the guys, so I was confident against those hitters."

West City did its job and eliminated Canterbury, and now will face Howick, who dispatched of Canterbury 2-0, and the IPC 7-1 earlier in the day. Sommers said his team is ready to face their rival.

"It does not matter who we face" Sommers said. "We came all the way here, and the best two teams are in the final. Today’s game showed that we can win this thing."