ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ

By Earl Zukerman

TROIS-RIVIERES – Centerfielder Ted Davis of North Andover, Mass., and third baseman Alexandre Chouinard of Montreal, were the heroes Friday night as visiting ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ swept a crucial doubleheader from College Lafleche in Trois-Rivieres, Que., to capture the Canadian Intercollegiate Baseball Association’s regular season pennant.

The Redbirds tied Lafleche atop the CIBA Northern Division with identical 16-5 records but claimed the pennant with a 3-1 record in head-to-head confrontations, which included a split doubleheader at Pierre Elliot Trudeau Park in Cote St. Luc, Que., on Thursday.

Davis, a civil engineering sophomore, went 3-for-4 with three runs batted in an 8-5 win on Saturday. His two-run double in the sixth inning tied the game at 3-3.

Chouinard, a freshman, knocked in teammate Max Tierno for the game-winning RBI in the nightcap of a 2-1 victory over the Dragons.

There’s no rest for the weary, however, as the Redbirds get only one day off before playoffs. The will open the CIBA Northern Conference best-of-three semifinals with a doubleheader against fourth-place Concordia (9-7) at Trudeau Park, Sunday. The first game is scheduled for 12 noon, followed by the nightcap at 2 pm. If a rubber match is need, it is slated to be back at Trudeau Park on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Concordia won three of their four meetings against ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ this season. The Redbirds won 8-7 in the season opener, the lost 2-1, 7-4 and 9-4.

Lafleche will take on third-place John Abbott College (10-6) in the other semifinal series, with the winners scheduled to meet for the divisional title the following week.

ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ, which previously captured the CIBA national championship in 2006, will host the national tourney, Oct. 16-18.