A change in the format of OUA Baseball certainly created some challenges for the Laurentian Voyageurs this fall. Specifically, post-season aspirations were pretty much a pipe-dream given the gap in the depth of arms and bats between L.U. and the top dogs in the university ranks in the province.

That said, the smaller scale goals - racking up a few victories in an abbreviated 12 games schedule; keeping as many of those outings as competitive as possible - was definitely checked off the list with the fall of 2026 hopefully serving as a stepping stone for head coach Patrick Whalen and company.

A 3-1 setback at the hands of the Ottawa Gee Gees on the road gave way to three additional more one-sided losses before Laurentian settled down, edged out in a 3-2 affair by the TMU (Toronto Metropolitan University) Bold.

Leadoff hitter Luke Arruda punched out a pair of hits, driving in a run as Kyle Kennedy and Nick Amedeo crossed the plate, accounting for the Voyageurs' runs.

One week later in Kingston, the northern crew once again came close, dropping a 4-2 decision to the Queen's Gaels, as Noah Leveille 2 hits), Devan Madore (2 hits + RS) and Johnny O'Reilly (2 RBIs) all contributed offensively.

Finally playing at home, the Voyageurs hit the win column at the Terry Fox Sports Complex in late September, toppling the University of Toronto Varsity Blues 6-1 as starting pitcher Will Arsenault went the distance.

"I liked my approach," said Arsenault, a 20 year-old local product now in his third year of Accounting studies in Sudbury. "I had faced this team quite a bit in the past two to three years."

"Getting to know some of their hitters, knowing where to attack before arriving to the diamond, really preparing all helped."

Despite finishing the season at 2-10-0, Arsenault can see reason for optimism as Laurentian earned a split the next day in the final regular season two game set with the York Lions, also at home.

"We're still a very young team, but with talent," he said. "I think we're a more competitive team than we were two or three years ago. We are getting good pitching recruits, more pitching depth, quality arms in the bullpen."

But even while acknowledging a talent disparity, Arsenault suggested that he and his teammates could do more - even with what they have to work with. "In the past, our team has not been the most efficient team at the plate," he said.

"I think that our pitching as well as our hitting approach were two of the areas in the past where we have struggled. Getting guys to put in that work in the winter is crucial and has allowed us to put up more runs."

Facing York in the season finale, the Vees doubled the Lions 4-2 as James Dixon drove in three of the four runs for the winners, with Devan Madore adding another two hits to his stat-line.

The OUA Championships are taking place from October 9th to the 11th in Niagara Falls, with the Brock Badgers, Carleton Ravens, Queen's Gaels, Waterloo Warriors, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks and the University of Toronto Varsity Blues all vying for the crown.