WCL Corvallis Knights

Corvallis Knights Coach Leads Perth to ABL Title

February 13, 2012 - West Coast League (WCL)
Corvallis Knights News Release


Corvallis Knights coach Brooke Knight directed the Perth Heat to their second consecutive Australian Baseball League title on Sunday as the Heat edged Melbourne 7-6 in 13 innings in the decisive third game of the ABL Championship Series.

The Heat won Friday's series opener 4-1; Melbourne prevailed 3-2 in 13 innings on Saturday to force the decisive third game. All three games were played at Barbagallo Ballpark in Perth.

Perth was the regular-season champion and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. It defeated No. 2-seeded Melbourne 3-1 in best-of-five first round to advance directly to the Championship Series. Melbourne, which had to lose two series because it was seeded second, then moved to the finals by eliminating Sydney in the second round.

The Heat defeated Adelaide in the 2011 ABL Championship Final to claim their first Claxton Shield, the league's equivalent of Major League Baseball's Commissioner's Trophy.

Knight has coached the Knights since 2008 and has guided them to four consecutive West Coast League West Division titles and the 2008 and 2011 WCL championships.

Former Knight Dylan Jones (2009-10) and 2008 Knights MVP Alex Burg, a member of the San Francisco Giants minor-league organization, played for the Heat this season. Ex-Knight/Linn-Benton Community College pitcher Liam Baron (2008-09) was on the roster but missed the season with an arm injury.

A pitcher/DH, Jones was 0-for-7 in the Championship Series but had a key sacrifice bunt in the decisive 13th inning of Game 3. He did not have a plate appearance in the regular season, but was 1-0 with a 4.91 in four mound appearances.

A catcher, Burg returned to the United States in January to prepare for the 2012 minor-league season. He hit .277 in 34 games, with 10 homers and 23 RBIs, and made the ABL World all-star team.



West Coast League Stories from February 13, 2012


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