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Okanagan College Coyotes carrying momentum into college World Series

The Coyotes finished the regular season in first place with a 25-5 record
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Okanagan College Coyotes pitcher Chris Wyslobocki will start game one of the CCBC playoffs (Photo - Contributed)

After a historic regular season, the Okanagan College Coyotes open up the Canadian College Baseball Conference (CCBC) World Series today (May 19) in Lethbridge, Alberta.

The Coyotes go into the double-elimination playoffs as the number one seed after finishing with a 25-5 record. They even closed out the season in historic fashion by throwing a no-hitter for the first time in the club’s history.

“The coaching staff is extremely proud of this group of student athletes that have worked very hard to get to this point,” said Coyotes Head Coach Geoff White. “After missing two seasons due to COVID, to come back out and play very well consistently is rewarding for the program. We had high expectations heading into the season, however there is still a championship to compete for, so we are not satisfied.”

Being the number one seed, the Coyotes get to open up the tournament at 1 p.m. (12 p.m. Pacific time) against the eighth-ranked Victoria Golden Tide.

“They’re feeling good and we’re in a good spot,” said White. “Everyone’s healthy and excited to get to the tournament.”

White told Capital News that Chris Wyslobocki will be starting game one against Victoria. The right-handed pitcher finished the regular season second in strikeouts, tied for second in wins and fourth in ERA. (5-1, 1.53 ERA, 67 strikeouts).

“He’s been our most consistent arm and our most experienced guy,” said White.

After the team’s last practice on Tuesday before heading to Lethbridge, White reminded his team to stay in the moment and play the same way they have all season long.

“We talked about enjoying the moment and to not get too high or too late,” said White.”We approach everything the same way, it’s just a matter of going out there and executing, what we’ve been doing all year and enjoying it”.

Tonight, after the Coyotes first game, the league will have it’s annual dinner and awards ceremony, followed by a home run derby. McCoy Pearce and Elias Erdman will be the Coyotes participants in the event.

In the double elimination format, if the Coyotes win on Thursday, they don’t play again until Saturday morning (May 21) at 10 a.m. If they lose the first game, they will play at 4:30 p.m. on Friday (May 20).

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The Coyotes last won the CCBC Championship back in 2018 when they beat the University of Fraser Valley in the finals.

To follow the Coyotes and the entire tournament, click here.

To watch the tournament, you can subscribe and watch here.

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Jordy Cunningham

About the Author: Jordy Cunningham

Hailing from Ladner, B.C., I have been passionate about sports, especially baseball, since I was young. In 2018, I graduated from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops with a Bachelor of Journalism degree
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