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Bandits capture district title

Cranbrook baseball ends on a high note in Hamilton, Montana
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The Cranbrook Bandits were victorious at their district tournament in Hamilton

Brandon Ouilette made the third out in the final inning against the Medicine Hat Majestics, snagging a fly ball that clinched the district tournament title for the Cranbrook Bandits in Hamilton this past weekend in Montana.

After going undefeated in round-robin, the Bandits headed into the final against the Majestics, utilizing a monster fourth inning to post an 11-5 win that gave them the 'B' division championship.

Connor Armstrong and Ouilette scored early for a 2-0 lead at the bottom of the third,  but the Majestics came back early in the fourth, scoring four runs to jump ahead.

However, the Bandits rallied afterwards, as Devon Marra hit a huge triple that allowed Robert Nickell, Brenden Bird and Ouilette to make it home.

By the end of the inning, the Cranbrook squad went up 8-4, and added another three runs in the fifth.

The Majestics couldn't recover, scoring only a single in the seventh.

Marra was a dual threat on the mound as well, throwing six strikeouts and two walks, allowing eight hits and four runs. Connor Armstrong came in for relief, tossing one strikeout and one walk.

Caden McCormack and Marra both had three RBI's, while Ouilette had two and Cedar Kemp drove home one.

It caps off a pretty successful weekend for the team, which won all four of their round robin games with double-digit scores. The Bandits opened the tournament with a 12-2 decision over Bitterroot on Thursday evening, and followed up with a 12-0 blowout against the Majestics.

They continued their march throughout their schedule, demolishing the Gallatin Valley Outlaws 20-2 after scoring 18 runs in the third inning alone, and overcame the Helena Senators 11-3 to wrap up the round-robin.