It all came down to the final weekend of the regular season.
The Canadian College Baseball Conference had playoff positioning and even a couple of spots left to figure out going into the May long weekend.
And the teams didn’t disappoint, with Prairie Baseball Academy pulling away in the end to capture the regular season pennant.
Meantime, just two games separated Okanagan College, the University of Fraser Valley and Edmonton Collegiate.
The University of Calgary swiped the fifth playoff spot early in the weekend while Vancouver Island University snagged the sixth and final berth on the final Sunday in what is the first year where not every team was making it to the CCBC World Series in Lethbridge.
On the outside looking in: the new University Baseball Club out of UBC, Thompson Rivers University and Victoria Collegiate.
After the opening day of championship weekend, where PBA eventually captured its first championship since 2017, the circuit held its annual awards banquet to celebrate the best of the spring.
OVERLOOKING THE VALLEY
When you’re among the league leaders in almost every offensive category, it’s easy to see why you would be in the running for most valuable player.
Such was the case for Keegan Drinkle of the UFV Cascades as he nearly doubled everyone else in the league in doubles as his 24 were 10 more than the next closest players.
He also drove in 59 runs, which was 14 more than second place Caedyn Colford of Edmonton Collegiate.
The Cascades catcher was also third in the league in average (.429) and tied for fifth in home runs (seven).
“I came into the year with the mindset of doing everything I can to help my team win games and, during the winter, I worked hard to get to where I am,” Drinkle told Alberta Dugout Stories.
“I’m just happy to see that my hard work paid off and happy to have helped my team win and get us to where we were able to this year.”
The freshman edged out Nick Sauve of Okanagan College and Will Turner of Prairie Baseball Academy for most votes.
TOP PITCHER ON THE PRAIRIE
In a year dominated by massive offensive outburst, a handful of pitchers were able to keep things relatively in check.
For Prairie Baseball Academy hurler Sean Bavis, he did it right from his first moment on the bump with a seven-inning masterpiece in his debut.
He tied for the league lead in wins with five, was fourth in earned-run average at 3.78, and tied for fifth in strikeouts with 47.
Not bad for a freshman, who says it means a lot to have the coaches from around the league think that he was the best.
“It shows the work I put in to get better over the offseason and show how much playing baseball means to me,” he told Alberta Dugout Stories. “It also shows how much support my team gave me to help me achieve this award. Without them, I wouldn’t have won it.”
Ryan Powers of Okanagan College and Alex Lee of the University Baseball Club rounded out the top three vote-getters for Pitcher of the Year.
FRASER VALLEY FRESHMAN
Even through Drinkle and Bavis were both freshman, voters decided to go in a different direction for Rookie of the Year.
That’s where they found Cascades outfielder Brady Dorwart, who put together an exceptional season near the top of the batting order.
He hit .382 with five doubles and four triples, while finishing third in the league in RBI (43) and second in stolen bases (29).
Dorwart gives credit to his family for their support and to the group of Coquitlam players who helped make some fun drives to the ballpark for practices and games.
“It means a lot to me to win this award and to see all my hard work pay off,” he said. “A big thank you to my coaches and teammates who helped keep me in a straight line and kept my head high throughout the season. I’m excited to keep improving moving forward.”
Logan Cassidy of the University Baseball Club and Drinkle captured second and third, respectively, in voting.
WINNING AS A TEAM
Looking back on the year that was, it was the UFV Cascades offense that shined through.
The team led the CCBC in several offensive categories including average (.327), doubles (90), runs batted in (312), total bases (623) and stolen bases (155).
On the mound, it was PBA leading the charge in team ERA (5.37) while the Cascades held opponents’ batting average to a league-low .245.
And defensively, the expansion University Baseball Club took care of the ball the best with a fielding percentage of .964, committing a circuit-low 45 errors.
First Team All-Conference
| Name | Position | Team | Hometown |
| Sean Bavis | SP | Prairie Baseball Academy | Canmore, AB |
| Alex Lee | SP | University Baseball Club | Burnaby, B.C. |
| Ryan Powers | SP | Okanagan College | Beausejour, MAN |
| Lazlo Clements | RP | University Baseball Club | San Rafael, USA |
| Riley Starko | RP | Edmonton Collegiate | Vermilion, AB |
| Nick Sauve | C | Okanagan College | Calgary, AB |
| Caedyn Colford | IF | Edmonton Collegiate | Drayton Valley, AB |
| Keegan Drinkle | IF | University of Fraser Valley | Maple Ridge, B.C. |
| Nate James | IF | University of Fraser Valley | Burnaby, B.C. |
| Will Turner | IF | Prairie Baseball Academy | Calgary, AB |
| Jacob Carlson | OF | University of Calgary | Stillwater, USA |
| Logan Cassidy | OF | University Baseball Club | Bolton, ON |
| Brady Dorwart | OF | University of Fraser Valley | Langley, B.C. |
| Trevor Nicoll | DH | Vancouver Island University | Errington, B.C. |
| Colin Baxter | Utility | University of Calgary | North Vancouver, B.C. |
Second Team All-Conference
| Name | Position | Team | Hometown |
| Ketih Manby | SP | Thompson Rivers University | White Rock, B.C. |
| Ethan Webster | SP | University of Calgary | White Rock, B.C. |
| Zach Willard | SP | Prairie Baseball Academy | Mission, B.C. |
| Brady Augustin | RP | Okanagan College | Nelson, B.C. |
| Zak Wright | RP | Prairie Baseball Academy | Claresholm, AB |
| Jake Tanner | C | Edmonton Collegiate | Calgary, AB |
| Ryan Deagle | IF | Victoria Collegiate | Campbell River, B.C. |
| Nate Garth | IF | Prairie Baseball Academy | Calgary, AB |
| Coleman Kawaguchi | IF | Okanagan College | Squamish, B.C. |
| Koby Smith | IF | Edmonton Collegiate | Sundre, AB |
| Dominic Biello | OF | Victoria Collegiate | Victoria, B.C. |
| Tyler Burton | OF | Victoria Collegiate | Victoria, B.C. |
| Jared Sucro | OF | Thompson Rivers University | Kamloops, B.C. |
| Jai Berezowski | DH | Victoria Collegiate | Victoria, B.C. |
| Alex McLauchlan | Utility | Vancouver Island University | Nanaimo, B.C. |
Gold Glove Awards
| Name | Position | Team | Hometown |
| Lucas Miracle | C | Thompson Rivers University | Trail, B.C. |
| Jack Swinton | 1B | Okanagan College | Victoria, B.C. |
| Aiden Mackenzie | 2B | Prairie Baseball Academy | Headingly, MB |
| Coleman Kawaguchi | 3B | Okanagan College | Squamish, B.C. |
| Kaden Collins | SS | Okanagan College | Penticton, B.C. |
| Dominic Biello | LF | Victoria Collegiate | Victoria, B.C. |
| Tyler Burton | CF | Victoria Collegiate | Victoria, B.C. |
| Jared Sucro | RF | Thompson Rivers University | Kamloops, B.C. |
| Ethan Webster | P | University of Calgary | White Rock, B.C. |
