The team headed to Cape Breton on Friday evening needing one win over the weekend to eliminate the league-best Sydney Sooners and advance to the finals. The Bearcats ended up needing all three weekend games – and then some – before notching an 8-7 extra innings victory in Game 5 to advance.
After losing a three-run lead in the fourth inning on Friday en route to a 16-7 loss, the Bearcats came back on Saturday ready to do battle.
With John Chapman on the hill, the Bearcats kept it close but eventually fell 6-4 to the Sooners to force the fifth and final game.
Guy Pellerine took the mound and threw four innings, with the Bearcats down 6-4 at the end of four. Despite throwing eight innings earlier in the day, Chapman came on in the fifth in relief as the Bearcats began to claw their way back.
With the game tied at 7-7 after nine innings, the two teams headed into extras. In the top of the 12th inning, centrefielder Jeff Chisholm drove in the eventual game winning run, making it 8-7 and sending the Bearcats to the league final.
Darson Murphy was the offensive star of the game, putting up four singles and a double and driving in three runs. Mike Tobin posted a pair of singles, while Chapman walked three times and doubled once. Pellerine also picked up three walks and added a single.
The Bearcats now await the winner of the Halifax Canadians and Dartmouth Dry. The Dry currently lead the series 2-1, with the fourth game going tonight at Mainland Common, 7 p.m. Dartmouth finished the season in second place with a 17-10 record, while the Canadians finished one spot ahead of Truro with a 13-14 record.
