Jets compete in PBA tournament 

By Cole Parkinson
Taber Times

The Vauxhall Academy of Baseball Jets were looking to repeat as champions at the Prairie Baseball Academy Prairie Showcase Classic this past weekend. After winning the 2024 tournament, the Jets were looking to repeat in 2025 as they started on Friday with a pair of games at home.

First up was a game against the Calgary Blues which saw both teams score plenty of runs in the game. It was the Jets who were able to carve out a 15-8 victory thanks to a few timely knocks. The Jets had 12 hits in the game as Kaz Harris had three of them including a double. Callum Thomson had a home run and a single, Langdyn Cummins had a pair of hits, Kaleb Bozek hit one out, Aaron Fuzesy and Alex Laurence each had a double, and Graham Thiessen and Noah McIntosh each had a hit in the win.

On the bump, Hudson Kozicki got the start and went four innings with five strikeouts, four hits allowed, three earned runs, and three walks. Carter Bevans closed out the final two innings with three punch outs, two hits allowed, one earned run, and three walks. Both teams struggled defensively as they each committed five errors in the game.

With one win under their belts, the Jets were back at it on Friday evening when they took on the Badlands Badgers. Another big game at the plate saw the Jets cruise to a 9-1 victory. VAB had 13 hits in the game — Thomson had three while Fuzesy contributed with a home run, double, and single. Laurence and Bozek had another pair of hits while Rogan Rivard, Ben Simmons, and Harris all had a hit in the win. Sheamus Ryan was back on the mound for Vab and gave the Jets a quality start with three K’s while only giving up two hits and one unearned run. Kaden Coldwell went three clean innings to wrap it up as the right-hander allowed three hits and a walk but didn’t give up a run. He also struck out two Badgers in his appearance.

After a successful Day 1, the Jets moved into Lethbridge on Saturday to wrap up the round-robin. The final game saw the Jets take on the AHP Rustlers Black and VAB was all business as they dominated with an 11-0 victory. Right-hander Calum Andersen was untouchable as the pitcher had a five-inning perfect game. The pitcher struck out 10 batters in the win. The Jets continued to swing the sticks as they notched another 10 hits. Rivard and Thomson each had a pair while Cummins, Simmons, Fuzesy, Bozek, Jaxon George, and Harris all had one.

After a great round-robin, the Jets were off to the semi-finals where they took on Okotoks Dawgs Black. Unfortunately, the Jets were unable to find any momentum after scoring the first run of the game as they eventually fell 9-2. Thomson and Rivard had another two-hit game while Easton Kitura, Laurence, and Fuzesy each notched one hit in the game. Thiessen got the ball to start and went four innings where he struck out four batters, and allowed five runs (one earned) on four hits and two walks. Cedric LeBlank came in and gave the Jets 1.1 innings where he allowed one earned run on one hit and a walk, and struck out two. Aiden Sloan got a single out after allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits. Bozek collected the final out of the game with a strikeout.

The Dawgs would beat the Webber Wildcats 6-1 to clinch the tournament’s top team. The Jets’ next action comes in the Best of the West Tournament. The first game goes on April 30 when they take on the Whalley Chiefs at 4:30 p.m.