The Unity Cardinals and Macklin Lakers had different results to open their respective league finals Monday night.
Both playing a best-of-three series, Unity edged out North Battleford in a tight one-run game to take a 1-0 lead in the North Saskatchewan River Baseball League final, while in the Battle River Baseball League, Macklin dropped a high-scoring home opener to Veteran as the Bulls and Lakers matchup in the finals for a third straight year.
Starting with the winning side, the Cardinals hosted Game 1 of the NSRBL finals from their temporary home in Wilkie.
This year's ballpark construction in Unity led to nearby Wilkie being called home for the season, and it provided a great location for the first game of the finals with North Battleford only a short distance away.
With a good crowd coming from each direction to watch the finals, the series opener didn't disappoint for home supporters. Going back and forth through seven innings, the game needed extras, and after shutting down their opponents in the top of the eighth it was Unity utilizing their home-field advantage in the bottom half to take a 5-4 walk-off win and 1-0 series lead over the Beavers.
Game 2 of the series is now set for Wednesday as Unity will make the road trip to North Battleford with a chance to win the league title. First pitch is at 7:30, and if the Beavers can stay alive, both teams will be fresh and ready to go for a winner-take-all Game 3 on Wednesday, August 6 back in Wilkie at 6:30.
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The other game in Macklin was a rivalry renewed as the Lakers welcomed in the Veteran Bulls to begin their third straight BRBL championship series in as many years, Macklin coming out on top each of the last two.
Hoping to finally make it their year, Veteran gained the early series lead winning Game 1 of the finals 9-7. Bulls' pitcher Jayden Buxton pitched six strong innings in the win as the Lakers not only fell short but lost home-field advantage with the loss
Game 2 of the BRBL finals is also set for Wednesday night at 6:30 in Veteran as Macklin puts their season on the line on the road, no info given yet for a potential Game 3.