The Warriors' weekend was filled with success as they travelled west to Amherstburg, Ontario for the OUA Far West Regional Championship, to compete with the Laurier Golden Hawks, Western Mustangs, and Windsor Lancers for a spot as one of the final four teams fighting for an OUA Championship. With the OUA's second-best record, the Warriors exited the tournament victorious, having punched their ticket to the final four and a shot at a championship this upcoming weekend in Kitchener.

The Warriors opened play on Friday with two games, one against their cross-town rivals, the Golden Hawks, and a second against the hosts, the Windsor Lancers. The Warriors' first game was a difficult match against Laurier. The Golden Hawks' aggressive approach allowed them to jump ahead to a 2-0 lead after the first inning. Despite Laurier's pesky offence, Waterloo starter Evan Morrison (Sebringville/) was sharp, putting up a zero in the second inning. Laurier's offence was resilient,

adding two more runs in the third inning for a 4-0 lead. Morrison would settle down, tossing three shutout innings after the second despite allowing a baserunner every inning until the sixth. Despite getting shutout through all nine innings, the Warriors collected three hits and three walks, putting runners on base in six of nine innings. Alex Seelman (Georgetown/) was the Warriors' only bat with an extra-base hit when he notched a ninth-inning double. Liam Kelly (Scarborough/) and Sean Skorupski (Mississauga) were the only others with hits to their names. Laurier's Quin McLane extended the Golden Hawks' lead to 5-0 with a sixth-inning home run, the last run of the game. Both Warriors starter, Evan Morrison (Sebringville/) and Laurier starter Julian Russell lasted the full nine innings, tossing complete games for their teams.

The Warriors were forced to rebound quickly with a game against the Windsor Lancers immediately after. The Warriors faced the Windsor on opening weekend when they split their first doubleheader of the season with the Lancers. This weekend, the Warriors didn't have any trouble dominating the Lancers. Despite hitting three singles, the Warriors were unable to plate any runs in the first, and the game remained scoreless through one inning. The same could not be said for the second inning. The Warriors absolutely went off, scoring not only their first run of the weekend but their first ten. It would take Windsor four batters to retire their first Warrior of the inning when they'd do so on an Alessandro Strazzeri (North York/) bunt. It would be 4-0 after they collected their second, and would take Windsor another eight batters to end the inning, by which point Waterloo held a commanding 10-0 lead. The Warriors would extend their lead in each of the next three innings, attaining a 15-0 lead through five innings, enough to call the game a mercy defeat. Waterloo's Varun Kuo (Mississauga/) and Stephen Whalen (Heidelberg/) both collected three hits, while Sean Skorupski (Mississauga), Nolan Misa (Richmond Hill/), and Whalen knocked doubles. Warriors starter Carson Hepburn (Newmarket/) pitched all five innings, shutting out the Lancers while striking out eight, allowing three hits and two walks, collecting the victory in the Warriors' 15-0 win.

Day two of the tournament began with a challenge: An early afternoon affair with the Western Mustangs in a winner take all game, for the right to play Laurier for the Far West Championship. The Warriors were able to retain their momentum after their eruption the previous evening, scoring three runs in the first inning with five singles and a walk. Western quickly retaliated against Waterloo starter Jake Roberts (Scarborough/), scoring two in the bottom of the inning, before Roberts shut down the Mustangs and sent the Warriors to the second. Waterloo would get one of those runs back in the second and get the ball back in Roberts' hand, who got to work adding three zeros to the board. Waterloo's next runs came in the fourth when a pair of doubles and singles cashed another couple of runs, putting Waterloo ahead by four. The Mustangs chipped at Waterloo's lead in the fifth when the dangerous top of Western's lineup manufactured a run. By the sixth inning, the Warriors had had enough and came together to put up their second massive inning of the weekend. In an offensive onslaught, Waterloo piled on eight runs to pull ahead 14-3. The Warriors collected eight singles and walks, setting the table for Warriors catcher Alex Seelman (Georgetown/), who dealt the biggest blow with a mammoth three-run home run. With a sizeable lead, Jake Roberts (Scarborough/) threw another scoreless frame, striking out his eighth and ninth Mustangs. With nine Ks on the day, Roberts struck out all but two starting Mustangs. After one extra insurance run extended the Warrior's lead to 15-3 in the top of the seventh, Waterloo shook Roberts' hand and gave the ball to Robbie Price (Guelph/) who set out to finish the game and secure the Warriors' second straight mercy win of the weekend. Despite allowing a run, Price did just that, locking down the Warriors' 15-4 win over Western to send them to the final game of the tournament against the Laurier Golden Hawks.

The frigid weekend would all come down to defeating the Golden Hawks, fellow Waterloo residents and the Warriors' most frequent opponent. In their fourth game of the weekend, Waterloo sent rookie Myles Robinson (Hamilton/) to the mound for his second career OUA start, and first of the postseason. Waterloo's offence continued to roll in their fourth game. The Warriors got their first run and lead in the top of the first when Varun Kuo (Mississauga/) hit a leadoff triple, enthusing the Warriors' dugout. Kuo would come around to score on a Liam Sutherland (Stoney Creek/) RBI single. Myles would toss a scoreless first, but Laurier would get to the righty in the second for a pair of runs to give Laurier the lead. It wouldn't last long, though, as Waterloo scored a crooked number in the third, swinging all the momentum to their dugout. That five-run third was powered by five singles and a walk, pushing the Warriors ahead. Their four-run cushion grew to five after Waterloo added a run in the top of the fourth. Robinson would be lifted midway through the fourth after allowing three runs in the inning on a bases-clearing double to inch within two behind Waterloo's seven runs. Windsor native, Jake Ray would come in to hold Laurier. He did just that, preventing Laurier from scoring any more in the third. He would continue to shut the Golden Hawks down, ultimately going four brilliant innings, allowing just two runs and striking out seven. Waterloo would add another run during Ray's outing, holding an 8-7 lead heading into the eighth. Waterloo quickly got to work, scoring a run in the eighth thanks to Evan Morrison (Sebringville/) when Liam Sutherland (Stoney Creek/) drove in Morrison yet again, and one in the ninth inning when a brigade of walks allowed the Warriors to extend their lead. Waterloo called upon one of their most trusted arms, rookie reliever Max Todd (Paris/) to silence Laurier in the final two innings. Despite loading the bases in the ninth, Todd performed an escape act to send the Warriors to the OUA Championship with a 10-7 victory.

Now, the Warriors turn their attention to this upcoming weekend, when they'll congregate in Kitchener, at their home park, as Laurier hosts the OUA Championship. The Warriors will look to defeat the University of Toronto Varsity Blues at 9:15 AM on Friday at Jack Couch Park. If they do, they'll play either the Queen's Gaels or the Guelph Gryphons for the 2022 title. We encourage all fans to come out and support the Warriors this weekend! Admission to OUA Championship games is FREE! In addition, fans can follow along with all of our action live this weekend on Twitter with in-game updates!