Not bad for a guy who was supposed to play infield.
Fynn Chester, who pitched a one-hitter earlier in the tournament, took the complete-game victory in the gold-medal final Sunday as sa国际传媒 defeated Saskatchewan 7-2 in baseball to close out the 2015 Western sa国际传媒 Summer Games in Wood Buffalo, Alta.
鈥淔ynn was not even on our board to be a starting pitcher at the beginning of the season,鈥� said Anthony Pluta, Chester鈥檚 coach with the Victoria Eagles in the sa国际传媒 Premier League.
鈥淗e asked to start a game and hasn鈥檛 looked back [going 11-0 in sa国际传媒 Premier play this season]. You don鈥檛 expect those kinds of numbers from a Grade 10 player. He has nerves of steel. Nothing affects the kid. He shows little emotion on the mound, but has a very aggressive demeanor. The sky could be the limit for him.鈥�
The six-foot-two Chester is an all-rounder who plays the highest level U-16 VIPL soccer and also basketball for Lambrick Park Secondary.
鈥淏aseball is my first love,鈥� he said.
鈥淚 got the opportunity to pitch for the Eagles and I took the job of starter. I am throwing 82-83 [miles per hour] but pitching is all about location, location, location, and I hit my spots.鈥�
After bronze last year with the Island team at the sa国际传媒 Summer Games and now gold with Team sa国际传媒, Chester is gaining clarity about where he envisions baseball taking him.
鈥淚 want to get drafted [by an MLB team], get an education by playing collegiately and hopefully play pro,鈥� he said. 鈥淥f course, every kid鈥檚 ultimate dream is the majors.鈥�
Liam Kruse from the Victoria Mariners and Jayden Marsh from the Nanaimo Pirates were also on the victorious sa国际传媒 baseball team.
If there鈥檚 a podium anywhere in sight, you know Island rowers will be on it. Wood Buffalo was no different as Victoria pullers Miles Krakowec-Tickner, Oliver Dugbartey Liam Keane, Patrick Keane and Sean van Gessel won three gold medals each and Will James, Gemma Kerr, Emma Ayres, Antonia Frappell and Emma Gribbon two golds each.
The sa国际传媒 triathlon team with Brennen Smith and Hannah Henry of Victoria, Desirae Ridenour of Cowichan Bay and Michael Milic of Delta rallied for a dramatic come-from-behind gold medal in the mixed-relay Sunday. Smith finished the Games with two golds, Hannah Henry gold and silver, Holly Henry silver and Ridenour gold, silver and bronze.
Tristan Mandur of Mill Bay won team gold in golf and the silver in men鈥檚 individual behind sa国际传媒 teammate A.J. Ewart of Coquitlam.
Special Olympics swimmer Jesse Shade from Campbell River, who won five gold medals, carried the flag for sa国际传媒 during the closing ceremonies Sunday night at Shell Place Stadium in Fort McMurray.
鈥淵ou carry the team鈥檚 spirit on your shoulders when you carry the flag. It is a pretty cool honour. I鈥檓 speechless,鈥� said Shade, in a Team sa国际传媒 statement.
Campbell River Paralympics swimmer Ian Ralston also won five gold medals for sa国际传媒, while Mackenzie Padington added to Campbell River鈥檚 haul in the pool with six medals, three of them gold, while Brooke Lamoureaux won two golds. Molly Gowans of Victoria won eight medals in the pool, six of them gold, while fellow swimmer Lucas Tyler of Victoria took six medals, including two golds. On the pitch, sa国际传媒 won gold in women鈥檚 soccer with Victoria players Aislinn Shinomura and Ashley Cathro.
These second-week athletes added to the medals Island athletes won in the first week of the Games. sa国际传媒 topped the medals table for the 11th consecutive Western sa国际传媒 Summer Games, finishing with 280 in total, of which 134 were gold. The 2019 Games are in Swift Current, Sask. They are the middle portion of a multi-sport development chain that starts with the sa国际传媒 Summer Games and concludes with the sa国际传媒 Summer Games.
The Western sa国际传媒 Games have been part of the pathway for Olympic medallists from sa国际传媒 such as swimmer Ryan Cochrane of Victoria, shot-putter Dylan Armstrong of Kamloops, soccer goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc of Maple Ridge and also two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash of Victoria. There were 51 sa国际传媒 team alumni from past Western sa国际传媒 Summer Games competing in the recent 2015 Toronto Pan Am Games.
