Titans’ Top Ten CPBL Performances for Week 4

by Jim Stewart

Including a big shout-out to Coach Bailey for placing all 22 our student-athletes from the Class of 2024

Rain has ruined many games this season as unseasonably high temperatures and boggy field conditions have tested the Canadian spirit in June.  However, a strong core of Titans managed to dance between the humidity and raindrops, put up big offensive or pitching numbers, and brightened gloomy ballparks with their shining performances.

Indeed, our organization’s top performers were outstanding during Week 4 in the Canadian Premier Baseball League as Owen Norris, Noah Durance, Kai Hernandez, Matteo Sersta, Sam Szkola, Caiden Moncada, Josh Hill, and Sam Hess impressed the coaching staff with either eye-popping offensive numbers or quality starts on the mound.

In Coach Denis Bailey’s case, he’s been outstanding over the last 9 months during which he tirelessly placed all 22 of our student-athletes from the Titans Class of 2024, including #22 last week.  

Here are last week’s outstanding performers-- both on and off the field:

Owen Norris’s offensive production was noted by 18U Head Coach Kirby Smith.  The pitcher/infielder from Aurora, who will be playing  for the Glenville State University Pioneers in West Virginia in September, went 2 for 8 with a double and triple, 2 RBI, 2 BB, and 2 stolen bases.

Coach Smith also singled out Noah Durance’s sparkling performance on the mound for the 18U Titans.  Durance, from Wasaga Beach and committed to the West Virginia University-Potomac State College  Catamounts, gave the organization’s senior club a quality start that featured 5 innings, 5 strikeouts, and zero earned runs.

Another impressive pitching performance by the 18U Titans was put forth by Kai Hernandez who is bound for the NJCAA Division 1 Rend Lake Warriors in Illinois.  The Newmarket resident and graduate of Sacred Heart CHS threw 5 innings, struck out 5, and picked off a runner in another quality start by the 18U Titans’ rotation.

16U Titan Matteo Sersta made the most of a call-up to the big club on Tuesday and posted some impressive midweek game numbers for the 18U Titans.  The Bill Crothers SS student batted .500 (3 for 6)  with a home run, double, and single.  Sersta also drove in 3 runs to pace the 18U offensive attack.

Sersta’s teammate Sam Szkola impressed 16U Titans Head Coach Eddie McKiernan.  Szkola went 3 for 7 with a double, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored.

15U Titan Caiden Moncada put forth a hitting performance that caught 15U Head Coach Denis Bailey’s attention. Moncada—who is a fixture in the Titans Top Ten features-- batted .500  (5 for 10) including two doubles and a triple, drove in 2 runs, and scored 3 runs.  Moncada continues to be a hitting machine as he was last year with the Titans.

Moncada’s teammate, 6’8” pitcher Josh Hill, gave the 15U Titans a quality start by throwing 4 innings, yielding only 2 hits, and surrendering 1 earned run.

Hill’s pitching rotation partner Sam Hess just missed pitching a CG on the weekend. Hess pitched 6 1/3 innings and surrendered 4 earned runs in a strong outing for the 15U Titans.

Our Top Performance of Week 4 goes to College Placement Officer and 15U Head Coach Denis Bailey.  Coach Bailey completed the Herculean task of placing all 22 Titans in post-secondary destinations in the USA and Canada.  Our College Placement Officer consistently finds the right school for our players where they can thrive in a competitive athletic environment and succeed in an academic environment to secure a degree and/or diploma.  The Class of 2024 was the biggest in the Titans’ five-year history and Coach Bailey placed the following student-athletes in these schools across the continent:

  • Jayden Bailey to the Eastern Michigan University Eagles in Ypsilanti, Michigan (NCAA D1);
  • Liam Beninati to the Seneca Polytechnic Sting in Toronto, Ontario (OCAA);
  • Ronan Burke to the University of Toronto Blues in Toronto, Ontario (OUA);
  • Adam Darlison to the University of Northwestern Ohio Racers in Lima, Ohio (NAIA);
  • Colin Dudgeon to the University of Rio Grande Red Storm in Rio Grande, Ohio (NAIA);
  • Noah Durance to the West Virginia University—Potomac State College Catamounts in Keyser, West Virginia (NJCAA D1);
  • Colby Edwards to the Florida National University Conquistadors in Hileah, Florida (NAIA);
  • Luc Gelinas to the Saint Xavier University Cougars in Chicago, Illinois (NAIA);
  • Kai Hernandez to the Rend Lake College Warriors in Ina, Illinois (NJCAA D1);
  • Michael Kennedy to the Dalhousie University Tigers in Halifax, Nova Scotia (ACUA);
  • Ricardo Lora to the University of Toronto Blues in Toronto, Ontario (OUA);
  • Graham Marshall to the Garrett College Lakers in McHenry, Maryland (NJCAA D2);
  • Brice Matthews to the Fanshawe College Falcons in London, Ontario (OCAA);
  • Henry McCutcheon to the Western University Mustangs in London, Ontario (OUA);
  • Brandon Nandoo to the Saint Xavier University Cougars in Chicago, Illinois (NAIA);
  • Owen Norris to the Glenville State University Pioneers in Glenville, West Virginia (NCAA D2);
  • Matt Paolucci to the St. Thomas Aquinas College Spartans in Sparkill, New York (NCAA D2);
  • Ricardo Pontual to the Queens University Golden Gaels in Kingston, Ontario (OUA);
  • Tyler Pridham to the State College of Florida Manatees in Bradenton, Florida (NJCAA D1);
  • Sam Puttock to the City College of New York Beavers in New York, New York (NCAA D3);
  • Lucas Seto to the University of Rio Grande Red Storm in Rio Grande, Ohio (NAIA);
  • Jordan Sfyndilis to the Saint Xavier University Cougars in Chicago, Illinois (NAIA).  

The Titans’ Class of 2024 will be residing in Michigan (1), Ontario (6), Ohio (3), West Virginia (2), Florida (2), Illinois (4), Nova Scotia (1), Maryland (1), and New York (2) for the upcoming school year, thanks to the continental network, dedication, experience, and resourcefulness of Coach Bailey.