A pack of Dawgs has suddenly turned into a family. Nothing brings a family closer together than being tied for first-place in the Western Major Baseball League standings.
The Dawgs won their sixth consecutive game when they bulldozed the Lethbridge Bulls 10-1 on July 2 at Seaman Stadium. Okotoks has been stumbling at around the .500 mark, but the victory over the Bulls gave them a 15-7 record and a share of first-place in the league’s West Division.
“We have been swinging the bats really well,” Dawgs coach Brandon Newell said. “I think the main thing is we are starting to get to know each other — they (the Dawgs) aren’t playing for themselves, they are relaxing and not pressing like they were earlier in the season.”
The most relaxed guy in the Dawgs’ 10-1 win over the Bulls may have been starting southpaw Bret DeRooy. He was spotted a 4-0 lead after the first inning.
“That was nice, it just allowed me to go right after the batters,” said DeRooy a Washington State University product. “This team has started to gel.”
The Dawgs provided plenty of explosives in hanging on to beat the Swift Current Indians 8-6 in front of a sold-out Seaman Stadium on Canada Day.
With the game tied at 6-6 going into the bottom of the seventh, veteran Dawg Austin Voros doubled to score Stetson Olson to give Okotoks a 7-6 lead. Jordan Procyshen then singled to bring in Voros to up the Dawgs lead to 8-6. Paul Geuy picked up the win in relief.
The Dawgs started their nine-game home stand by slipping by the Indians 4-3 in front of 2,560 fans June 30.
The winning-run came on a two-run fifth-inning blast by shortstop Trace Tam-Sing, his third of the season. The product of Washington State also flashed the leather. He snared a groundball on the other side of second base and threw out the batter.
The Dawgs played the Saskatoon Yellowjackets on July 3 but results were too late for the Western Wheel’s publication deadline.
The Dawgs host the Yellowjackets on July 4. The Edmonton Prospects come to Seaman Stadium on July 5. The Bulls are back in Okotoks on July 7. All the games are at 7 p.m.
Okotoks will play two exhibition games on July 8 when they play the Medicine Hat Mavericks and the Bulls at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. respectively.
