Preston Baseballers eye third straight premiership after preliminary final win
Preston Baseballers kept their Jika Shield premiership three-peat dream alive and ended Rivergum’s incredible streak of 11 consecutive grand finals.
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Preston Baseballers are one win away from a historic premiership three-peat.
The reigning premier scrapped through to the North Metro Jika Shield grand final with a thrilling one-wicket win over arch-rival Rivergum at Kelynack Reserve on Saturday.
The Kookas finished on top of the ladder with just one loss but crash out in straight sets, ending the club’s incredible streak of 11 consecutive grand finals.
Chasing 116, Baseballers stumbled to 7-67 before tail-enders Jedd MacDonald (21), Louis Hill (10), Tate Volitakis (12 not out) and Ian Brincat (2 not out) saved the day.
Despite the heart-stopping finish, Baseballers captain Michael Sortino had confidence.
“I think everyone was very nervous at the end and there was a big crowd involved in the game. It was a rollercoaster,” he said.
“Chasing in a final and their bowling attack, it seemed a long way away.
“Jedd is a really important part of our team, if you look at his season you might think he’s not done much but whenever he does bat he contributes.
“He probably had a bad day in the field and was feeling s--t about himself, so it was great to see him take the opportunity.
“Tate (Volitakis) shouldn’t be batting at No.10, in other teams he probably bats in the top six and opened in a couple of games this year, so we have a short tail and were still confident with 10 or 15 runs to get.”
Baseballers still needed nine runs for victory with one wicket in hand when MacDonald was dismissed but Volitakis and Brincat steered their team home, sparking wild celebrations.
After winning the toss and batting first Rivergum surged to 4-89 before top-scorer Nathan Fowler (52) fell to Brincat, triggering a 6-27 collapse.
The Kookas lost their last four wickets for just one run, which proved match-defining.
Andrew Boughton did the damage taking three of the final four scalps and finishing with 3-26, while Brincat snared 2-26.
“Andrew’s bowling has gone next level in the last couple of week, he’s bowling quick and accurate, and you can rely on him to finish off the tail,” Sortino said.
“It was the difference in the game, we got the last four wickets for not many and that was to do with Andrew. He’s a superstar.”
Baseballers will meet Holy Trinity in the grand final at Fairfield Park with a premiership hat-trick up for grabs.
Rivergum was the last club to win three flags in a row, from 2013-14 to 2015-16.
Holy Trinity has won both meetings this season, claiming a 60-run win in Round 10 and 44-run victory in Round 6.
Sortino said his team had been inconsistent this season, which made making the grand final a success in itself.
“Obviously, it would be nice to get the third in a row but it’s a massive achievement just to make it, especially after the year we’ve had,” he said.
“We’ve been pretty poor, we lost six games, so it is pretty rare for a team only winning just over half their games and making a grand final.”
Baseballers junior and now Holy Trinity coach Cale Volitakis has been dominant against his old side, scoring half-centuries in both games and taking 4-21 in the first.
He and brother, Tate, will go head-to-head for the flag on Saturday.
“It’s going to be an interesting day for their mum and dad and I think they’re pretty pumped to play against each other in the big one,” Sortino said.
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Elsewhere, Camrea will take on Lalor Warriors for the Quick Shield premiership and promotion to the top flight.
Lalor secured its grand final berth with a 55-run win over Dennis in the preliminary final, bouncing back from a 158-run hammering from Camrea in the qualifying final.
And in Kelly Shield, Holy Trinity has a chance to make it a premiership double after the club’s Second XI won through to the grand final with a seven-wicket win over Bellfield.
It will meet Strathewen in the decider, looking to reverse a five-wicket loss in the qualifying final.
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