(May 24) Lethbridge Niseis kicked off the Big Six League schedule trouncing the Pincher Creek Chinooks 18-2 in the first game of a double header. Chinooks bounced back to win the night game 12-8.
Rick Steadman fired a three-hitter, with 14 strikeouts, to pace the Niseis in the first game. Jack Ohno led the offense with a home run and a single. Dick Remple added a triple and single and Harpo Moriyama and Steadman each contributed a double and single. Dusty Rhodes had a homer and single for Pincher Creek. Jim Marshall was the losing hurler. He was sent to the showers in the first frame as Lethbridge scored 11 times.
Dennis Cleland was the hometown hero in the second game as he belted a homer, triple and single to lead the Chinooks' offensive. Vic Anderson helped with a homer and single while H. Gwyn had three hits. Rhodes, who went the distance on the mound, added a double and single at the plate. Bernie Haywood singled twice. Tricky Oikawa belted a triple and double for Lethbridge. Chris Bonnie, knocked out of the game in the fourth inning, took the loss for the Niseis. Spackman finished up.
At New Dayton, the home club took both ends of a double header, winning 17-11 and 15-4 over the Wateron Cardinals. The Gorrill brothers were stars for the winners. Harry Gorrill bashed a pair of home runs and Clem Kaupp added a singleton. Jerry Gorrill picked up the pitching win finishing up for brother Harry. Hilmer, in relief of starter Reed Chipman, took the loss for Waterton. New Dayton outhit the Cardinals 17-12. Waterton committed eight errors.
Jerry Gorrill hurled a two-hitter in the nightcap to pick up his second win of the day. Three errors behind him led to the four runs against the Ramblers. The winners got homers from Ken Reid, Harry Gorrill and Lee Minion. Les Lehr was the starter and loser for Waterton. Kay Nish relieved in the second inning.
Fort Macleod at Granum
(May 31) Tragedy struck Sunday in Big Six baseball action at Henderson Park. Jack Ohno of the Lethbridge Niseis was beaned by a pitch in the seventh inning. The 26-year-old center-fielder fell to the ground unconscious after being hit by a ball thrown by Waterton hurler Kay Nish. Ohno was revived and taken to hospital where he was x-rayed and later released. Monday morning he was rushed back to hospital where an operation was performed to remove pressue on the brain. He never regain consciousness. Ohno died June 9th. An inquest ruled the death to be accidental and recommended that all batters wear helmets.
Lethbridge took both games of the twin bill from Waterton, 9-5 and 17-1. At the time, Ohno's condition was not thought to be serious. Ken Heaton pitched a three-hitter in the first game for the win over Nish who gave up 12 hits in taking the loss. Wes Rice led the attack with three hits while Harry Blacker and Harpo Moriyama each had a pair.
Chris Bonnie fired another three-hitter in the second game while the Niseis were pounding out 14 hits. Dick Remple led the offensive with four hits - two triples and a pair of doubles - while Dennis Kosaka added three singles and Bert Nyrose had a triple and double. Reed Chipman was the losing pitcher.
Granum at Pincher Creek, New Dayton at Fort Macleod
(June 7) By scores of 8-1 and 8-0, Pincher Creek Chinooks took both games of a double-header from the hometown Fort Macleod Chiefs. Chinooks received outstanding pitching, a five-hitter by Dusty Rhodes in the first game and a five-hit shutout by Jim Marechal in the second. Chiefs' Ken Holcomb gave up 12 hits and his teammates committed six errors in the opener. Dennis Cleland pounded out a triple, double and single for the winners. Alvin Cyr contributed a double and single for the Chiefs. Marechal fanned eight in his complete game performance in the second contest. Eugene McCarthy took the loss.
Granum at Waterton, Lethbridge at New Dayton
(June 14) Bert Nyrose fired a no-hitter as Lethbridge Niseis trounced the Warriors 16-0 in the first of two at Granum. Nyrose was far from masterful as he walked seven and fanned six in the seven-inning contest. Dick Remple led a 13-hit attack with a double and two singles. Don Douglas took the loss for Granum. Ken Heaton fired a three-hitter in the second game as Lethbridge won, 4-1. Niseis managed eight hits off Al Munro, two apiece by Heaton and Remple.
Pincher Creek at New Dayton, Fort Macleod at Waterton
(June 21)
Waterton at Pincher Creek, New Dayton at Granum, Fort Macleod at Lethbridge
(June 28) Fort Macleod took a pair from Granum Sunday, 9-3 and 10-2. Ken Holcomb was the winner pitcher in both games. He fanned eight in the opener and 12 in the second game. Mike Jantzie provide relief pitching in the first game while Lloyd Kanewischer saw mound action in the second. Chiefs collected 13 hits in the first game against losing pitcher Al Munroe. Marvin O'Sullivan, Al Cyr and Jantzie each had two safeties. MacIntosh had a pair for Granum. Don Douglas went the route for the Warriors in the second game. Bernie Sparks and Fenton Sharpe each had two hits for Fort Macleod. Doug Phillips replied with a pair for Granum.
Pincher Creek at Lethbridge, Granum at Fort Macleod, New Dayton at Waterton
(July 1) Lethbridge Niseis captured the Jack Ohno Memorial Trophy with a 6-2 victory over New Dayton Ramblers in the final at Henderson Park. The tournament was an effort to raise funds for Ohno's family. Ohno, the Niseis centerfielder, died last month after being beaned during a Big Six League game.
Niseis broke a 2-2 tie with a run in the 8th and three in the 9th to win. Jim Kitaguchi doubled in Dick Remple with the winning marker. Jerry Lawlor tossed a seven-hitter, with 11 strikeouts, in going the distance for Lethbridge. Jerry Gorrill, who pitched into the 9th inning, took the loss for the Ramblers. Lee Minion banged out three hits for New Dayton.
Niseis downed Pincher Creek 13-4 to reach the final as Ken Heaton held the Chinooks to five hits. Dusty Rhodes took the loss. Kitaguchi, Jim Giachetta, Bert Nyrose and Heaton all had two hits for Lethbridge. Dennis Cleland belted a home for Pincher Creek.
Ramblers reached the final with an 8-7 win over Granum. Gary Oswald picked up the win in relief of starter George Rodzinyak. Marv O'Sullivan, the third hurlder for the Warriors, took the loss. Rodzinyak led the attack for the winners with a triple and two singles.
Granum got by Fort Macleod 6-2 to advance in the tournament. Reg O'Sullivan went the distance for the win over Doug Walker. Alf Dunlop had three hits for Granum. Lloyd Kanewischer had a four-bagger in a losing cause.
New Dayton won the tournament opener, 9-1 over Waterton, as Harry Gorrill fired a two-hitter and collected three hits. Ken Reid added a homer and a single.
(July 5)
Pincher Creek at Granum, Fort Macleod at New Dayton, Lethbridge at Waterton (Rain)
(July 12) Lethbridge and the Ramblers split a pair of slugfests at New Dayton Sunday. Ramblers won the first game 16-5 while the Niseis took the second, 16-7. Both clubs have now lost two but New Dayton has won two more than Lethbridge. August Kaupp and George Rodzinyak each had three hits for the winners in the opener while Jerry Gorrill slugged a homer and triple and Ken Reid and Harry Gorrill each collected a homer and single. Harry Gorrill gave up 12 hits but went the distance for the pitching win. Ken Heaton was clobbered for 18 hits in taking the loss. Jim Giachetta had three hits for the Niseis and Harry Blacker and Wes Rice each had two.
Jerry Lawlor held New Dayton to eight hits in the second game as the Niseis won, 16-7, taking advantage of nine Ramblers' errors. The Niseis had six miscues in the error-filled contest. Jerry Gorrill took the loss as Lethbridge pounded out 20 hits. Dan Tessari led the attack with four singles. Les Mason, Rice and Blacker each had three. One of Blacker's blows was a homer. Reid had two triples and a single for the Ramblers.
(July 12) At Pincher Creek, the Chinooks and Fort Macleod split a twin bill. The Chiefs took the first 17-4 with the Chinooks rebounding for a 14-11 win in the second game. Ken Holcomb went the distance in the opener to notch the victory over Larry Davis of Pincher Creek. Lloyd Kanewischer powered the offense with a pair of homers. Doug Walker collected four safeties while Holcomb and Bernie Sparks each had three. Tapay was best for the losers with three singles.
Al Schneider chalked up the victory in the second game over Kanewischer. Tapay again was the big gun for the Chinooks with four hits. Vic Anderson and Giacomozzi each banged out three safeties. Sparks had a homer and two singles for the Chiefs.
Waterton at Granum
(July 19) Fort Macleod took both ends of a double-header from Waterton, 13-10 and 7-6. Ken Holcomb fanned 16 in picking up the win in the first game. Floyd Spackman was the loser. Mike Jantzie drilled a double and two singles to lead the winners at the dish. Jantzie hurled a three-hitter to win the second game. Les Lehr was tagged with the loss. Bernie Sparks paced the hitters with two triples and a single.
New Dayton at Pincher Creek, Granum at Lethbridge
(July 26) Ken Holcomb tossed a two-hitter as Fort Macleod shaded Lethbridge 3-2 in the first of two. Niseis roared back to win 11-1 in the second. While Holcomb was stingy with the hits in the opener, he issued 12 free passes. Les Mason allowed just seven hits in taking the loss. Ken Heaton fired a three-hitter in the second game. Niseis erupted for 14 hits, two apiece from Heaton, Dick Remple, Jim Kitaguchi, Harpo Moriyama and Dan Tessari. Mike Jantzie took the defeat.
Pincher Creek at Waterton, Granum at New Dayton(August 6) Fort Macleod is to be the site of the remaining four games in the Big Six League's double knockout tournament to decide a representative for the Southern Alberta Intermediate championship. The Big Six winner will advance against the winnter of the Brooks - Medicine Hat series.
(August 10) Lethbridge Niseis and New Dayton Ramblers are headed for a sudden death playoff to determine the Big Six representative in the Southern Alberta Intermediate playoffs. Each club each finished with one loss in the double-knockout tournament and will face each other tomorrow in Lethbridge. Niseis and Fort Macleod entered the weekend undefeated, while New Dayton had been defeated once in opening play.
Ken Heaton pitched Lethbridge to an 18-9 win over Fort Macleod. Doug Walker took the loss. Dick Remple belted a homer and two singles for the winners and scored six times.
New Dayton bested Waterton and Fort Macleod to advance against the Niseis. The Ramblers then upended Lethbricge 11-8 to force a sudden-death contest. Harry Gorrill went the distance to top Jerry Lawlor in the final. Ken Reid smashed a homer and Clem Kaupp had three singles to pace the Ramblers. Jim Giachetta had a double and two singles for the losers.
(August 12) The game between Lethbridge and New Dayton was postponed because of rain.
(August 13) Lethbridge Niseis defeated New Dayton 10-7 at Henderson Park to advance against Brooks for the Southern Alberta Intermediate title. Ken Heaton tossed a five-hitter for the win. Harry Gorrill took the loss. Ramblers took an early lead as August Kaupp led off the game with a triple and scored on an infield error. Jerry Gorrill followed with a single and Harry Gorrill doubled as New Dayton plated three runs. Niseis came back with a pair in the second on Harry Blacker's triple and Jim Giachetta's run-scoring single. Ken Reid doubled and scored for New Dayton in the third but Lethbridge tied the count in the bottom of the frame helped by hits from Tricky Oikawa, Dick Remple and Wes Rice. Niseis stormed in front 7-4 in the 5th inning and clinched the decision in the 7th on a two-run triple by Bert Nyrose.
(August 16) Pincher Creek took a pair of one-run victories from Waterton Sunday in Big Six Baseball League action. Al Schneider went the distance to capture the pitching win in the opener as the Chinooks prevailed, 7-6. Vic Anderson and Bernie Haywood each had three hits to pace the attack. Les Lehr and Sanders each had three safeties for the Cardinals. Floyd Spackman took the loss.
In the second game, Dennis Cleland led the Chinooks to a 9-8 triumph with three hits. Anderson picked up the win in a relief role. Kay Nish took the loss. Sanders had three more hits for Waterton.
(August 16) Doug Marquardt pitched the Brooks Buffaloes to a 7-1 victory in the first game of the best-of-three series for the Southern Alberta Intermediate Baseball championship. John Charleton led the Brooks offensive with a homer and a single. Harry Blacker belted a homer for the only Lethbridge run. Jerry Lawlor took the loss. In an exhibition match, Niseis won 10-6 as Les Mason picked up the win.
(August 23) Brooks Buffaloes broke a 7-7 tie with a run in the top of the 9th to down Lethbridge 8-7 and take the best-of-three Southern Alberta Intermediate baseball series in two straight games. Buffs had taken the first game in Brooks last Sunday, 7-1. Doug Marquardt survived ten hits to go the distance for the win. He fanned eight and walked four. Ken Heaton, who allowed just seven hits was tagged with the loss. Heaton walked the first batter in the 9th and, after a sacrifice bunt by Marquardt, Bill Stratton drove in the winning marker with a single. Stratton led Brooks with a triple to go along with his game winning hit. Jerry Oswald, a pickup player from New Dayton, knocked out a pair of two-baggers to lead Lethbridge at the plate. In an exhibition game, Niseis downed Brooks 10-7 as Jerry Lawlor, with relief from Les Mason, picked up the win.
(October 9) Lethbridge Niseis, who captured the Big Six Baseball League title and won the Jack Ohno Tournament, held their year-ending banquet at the Shanghai Restaurant. Highlight of the night was the presentation of a Most Valuable Player trophy to Ken Heaton and trophy for player with the highest batting average to Dick Remple.