This week in Baseball : B.C.'s beckon ball clubs

Richmond minor baseball teams are competing in several provincial championships this weekend.

The Peewee AAs are in Parksville today through Sunday after finishing the season with a 6-2 record. They clinched a spot in the B.C.'s with a 14-4 mercy win (five innings) over Victoria Drive last week, getting strong pitching from Caleb Goertz, Connor Fuller and Chris Jang. Mathieu Jang was 2-for-3 and drove in three runs and Chris Jang was 3-for-3 with five stolen bases.

Wins over Tsawwassen (9-6) and Vancouver (9-7) last week lifted the Richmond Mosquito AA Division team into this weekend's provincials at Vancouver's Nanaimo Park, while the local Mosquito A team went 8-0 in zone playdowns to earn a spot in the B.C. championships in Rutland. This is the third year in a row Ron Popoff has coached a Richmond Mosquito team to the provincials.

Richmond's Peewee A are also playing for a B.C. title this weekend in Surrey.

Meanwhile, the Bantam AAs (5-2) have one game to play (Friday at 7 p.m. versus league-leading Ladner, 6-2) as they gear up for the provincials Aug. 5 to 8 in Kelowna.

Pitcher Daniel Hatud struck out the side through the first two innings as Richmond edged Burnaby 4-3 Tuesday at Brighouse Park. Jordon Forsch closed the game and also hit the fence with one of his base hits.

Chuckers ready for provincials

Richmond Chuckers host Chilliwack in their final home game of the B.C. Mainland Baseball Association season today at 7 p.m. at Latrace Field in Minoru Park.

Richmond, which also has two games scheduled Sunday atn Tri-City, split a pair of games with the Victoria Capitals last weekend winning the opener 8-5 and dropping the nightcap 5-0. Aaron Zuzartee was 3-for-7 with a home run and scored four times. Richmond (18-15-0) remains in third place and will play for the provincial AAA championship Aug. 12 to 15 in Kamloops.

Richmond's Ship of Fools paddled for the shore.

Isles '89A earn bronze

The Richmond Islanders '89A girls' fastball team capped its season with a third-place finish at the B.C. championships Sunday in North Vancouver.

After going 4-0 in round-robin play, the first-year Bantam Division club lost its playoff opener 3-1 to eventual tournament winners Delta Heat '89A and as a result had to fight back through the loser's bracket. With wins over Port Coquitlam Ravens (6-4) and Surrey Storm (6-0) a comeback looked promising, but the locals' title hopes ended with a 7-0 loss to the White Rock Renegades '89A whom Richmond had defeated 7-3 in round-robin play.

That round-robin win was the first by Richmond in five games against White Rock this season. The Isles scored four runs in the first inning and pitcher Meghan Dewar scattered 10 hits and didn't give up a walk in going the distance. She also went 3-for-4 at the plate with a double, and RBI and two runs. Several former Islanders helped Delta to its championship. The lineup includes Jennifer Bourne, Jacqueline Clarke, Michelle Fong, Amanda Pukalo and Stephanie Talbot. The Heat, which defeated the Renegades 5-0 in the B.C. final, will both represent the province at the national championships next month in Winnipeg.

Pitchers A.J. Bureyko and Danica Stanley have both been added to the Richmond Islanders '91A lineup in their quest for a Western title starting July 30 in Barriere.

Stealers lead Premier standings

Linux Software Stealers took a half-game lead over the Port Coquitlam Angels in the race for Lower Mainland Fastball League supremacy on Wednesday.

Gearing up to host the Western Canadian championships starting Aug. 12 at R.C. Palmer, the Stealers topped New Westminister's Van City 6-0. Dan Valachy struck out seven and didn't allow a hit in five innings.

Darren Strang led the Steveston-based club offensively with a three-run shot that cleared the fence in the first inning. He was 2-for-3 with four RBI's on the night.

Rich McGrath, the league's top hitter, was also 3-for-3 and drove in two runs.

The Stealers were scheduled to play Friday (after press deadlines) in Port Coquitlam in what is likely to decide the league title.

Ruggers change date for exhibitions

The Richmond Rugby Club's exhibition matches against England next week have been changed to Tuesday at 5 and 6:30 p.m. at Sea Island, instead of Wednesday.