Bulls Wrap Up Preseason

The Lethbridge Bulls wrapped up their exhibition games against the Vauxhall Baseball Academy Jets at Spitz Stadium today in an affair that went down right to the wire. On a day where the heat shattered the forecast to reach 31 degrees, the friends, family, and select media in attendance were treated to a great afternoon at the ball park.

The Bulls picked up an early lead but trailed through most of the second half, before a double in the bottom of the 8th brought two runs in to tie it up and set the Bulls up for a 5-4 walkoff to end the game. A highlight in the turnaround was Coaldale native Ethan Smith’s debut on the mound for the Bulls, managing to strike out 5 batters over 2 innings to bolster the Bulls’ defense until they were able to mount their offensive comeback to tie the game.

Vauxhall had a strong representation in the stands for the game, with the cheering favouring the “visitors” for most of the game. We were caught by a few proud parents in the parking lot whose son has been a long-standing member of the southern Alberta baseball community. Currently playing infield as #11 for Vauxhall, Kayden Hleucka hails from Medicine Hat originally and hit a home run in Saturday’s game to put the Jets ahead for the first time in that game. Hleucka is an alumni of the Junior Canadian Little League tournament hosted in Lethbridge annually.

The Bulls roster is coming together and will be finalized this week, ahead of their home opener this Friday. Look for more Lethbridge Sports coverage of that and the rest of the Bulls season, and make sure to stop by the Bulls website to purchase your tickets for Friday’s game before it’s too late!

You can find all of our photos from the game here: www.mppphotography.ca/p989663835