The Fanshawe Falcons baseball team has gone back-to-back. With an 8-4 win over the Lambton Lions Saturday at Norm Aldridge Field in London, Ont. the Falcons won their second straight Ontario Colleges Athletics Association (OCAA) title completing a two-game sweep of the Lambton Lions. Neil McComb went the distance on the mound for the champions in the final game. “We knew that we had a good team coming in here, and it was just about the grind and coming together as a family,” McComb told CTV news after striking out five batters in the win. “You can have a good team, but if the chemistry is not there, you know, it falls apart. But you know, we had chemistry from day one and it was a battle the way through. You know, we just kept our heads in the game and it was just it was such a fun season with these boys.” The Falcons finished the year with a 21-1 record combining the regular season with a pair of two-game sweeps in the playoffs. Pitcher/third baseman Holden Heipel was named OCAA Championship MVP. “This is so exciting man,” said Heipel. “This team all year round, we were just battling for everything and we love it. We had a great time. We had absolutely everything from hitting, pitching, defense, offense, anything. Coach (Manager Brian Harvey) was always right and any move he made was always great.” MUSTANGS READY FOR REMATCH WITH RIVAL GOLDEN HAWKS Minutes after losing their final regular season game to the Laurier Golden Hawks, the Western Mustangs realized they will face their rival again next Saturday on the exact same field in the opening round of the OUA playoffs. Laurier (4-4) came to Alumni Field in London, Ont. and pummelled the Mustangs (6-2) 55-39 to win their fourth straight game against Western dating back to when (Mustangs head coach) Michael Faulds was the head coach of the Hawks. “In our locker room both offense defense and special teams, there’s glimpses there of how good we can be, but there’s also glaring glimpses of where we need to get better,” Faulds said in a media scrum after the game. “That’s kind of the X’s and O’s matchup. The Hawks looked like a juggernaut offensively Saturday and it was puzzling how a team that talented could have finished 4-4 and been the number seven seed entering the playoffs. “I said it all week to our guys, if you look at a lot of their losses, they were very close games,” said Faulds. “The Mac (McMaster) game, the Ottawa game, those came down to the very last couple plays. They are definitely a better four and four team than that record.” The Mustangs looked great at times (scoring 35 points in the first half) but also looked like a team that needs a lot of work (scoring just four points the entire second half). “I think playing a bit more of a balanced game obviously still having those explosive plays in the first half, but being able to carry that momentum into the second half is what will be key,” said Dasani McIntosh about what they need to do better next week against the Hawks. McIntosh had 200 yards receiving and a touchdown as Western had 614 yards of total offence but it still wasn’t enough. “I think today was a great wake up call,” said McIntosh. “Guys like me who played them before, we never took them as a four-and-four team. They came out today and they kept their season alive. We look forward to seeing them again.” Faulds described the OUA as an “absolute dogfight”. “The playoffs are going to be really good,” said Faulds. “There’s going to be seven teams that have a chance to win a Yates Cup and then if you have a chance to win a Yates Cup you have a 1 in 4 chance to win a Vanier Cup.” KNIGHTS LOSE IN OWEN SOUND FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2023 The London Knights are not used to walking out of the Harry Lumley Bayshore Arena without two points. The Owen Sound Attack broke a 1-1 tie in the third period with four unanswered goals beating the Knights 5-1 Saturday. Ranked #2 in the Canadian Hockey League coming into the week, the Knights lost two of their three games to suffer just their second and third regulation losses of the year. Carson Harmer scored the lone goal for London who went 0-4 on the power play, while surrendering two goals with the Attack man advantage. After 12 games, the Knights remain one point behind the Guelph Storm for top spot in the Midwest Division. MEDWAY COWGIRLS EARN OFSAA BERTH WITH TVRA FIELD HOCKEY TITLE The Medway Cowgirls are headed back to OFSAA after a dominant season on the turf in TVRA Girls Field Hockey. The Cowgirls went a combined 11-0 after a perfect regular season and a 4-0 semifinal win over Parkside Collegiate and a 2-1 win over Saunders S.S. in the TVRA final Thursday. The defending OFSAA champions coached by Dana Kajan will have a stiff test in the WOSSAA game Wednesday at CityWide Field in London, Ont. They will face the South Huron Panthers who finished 12-0 in the Huron Perth Athletic Association. Both teams are guaranteed a spot at OFSAA but Wednesday’s result will determine seeding.
