Seven innings, 11 strikeouts and no walks.
That’s what it took for Nash Marven to prove he’s one of the “best in the west.”
A dominant performance from the Cawston-born pitcher helped the Penticton Tigers’ U13 baseball team glide to a Western showcase championship in Kamloops last week.
Marven, a 12-year-old left-handed hurler, struck out nearly a dozen against a Double-A Vancouver lineup during the annual Best of the West tournament on Oct. 2.
Penticton cruised to a 7-1 victory in the finals, thanks to an early offensive outburst and Marven’s complete-game effort. The Cawston resident threw 92 pitches and surrendered one unearned run before being credited with the win.
The Tigers emerged victorious in the five-team showcase against U13 teams from Vancouver, Kelowna and Edmonton.
Marven’s success on the mound during his time in Penticton hasn’t gone unnoticed.
The 12-year-old has been selected for a U13 roster in Las Vegas this November after a previous stint in Mesa, Arizona for a North American Big League Experience Team (BLE).
Marven has played in the Okanagan and Similkameen since he was five years old.
The Penticton Tigers U13 squad is currently in its fall program, just months removed from being the only Okanagan-based team to qualify for the provincials in North Vancouver from July 30. to Aug. 1.
Along with his time in Penticton as a Tiger, Marven takes part in B.C.’s version of the BLE. The team, who trains in Oliver, is off to Las Vegas next month.
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