Canada is off to the semi finals

Canada bucked the trend of losing to the underdog in the quarter finals. They beat team Italy 11-1 in 7 innings to advance to the semi finals on the shoulders of a homer night from right fielder Rowan Wick. Canada also got a solid outing from starting pitcher Jonathan Paquet who allowed one run in 6 innings of work and struck out 9. Canada will now take on Chinese Taipei in tomorrow's second semi final. The opening pitch will go at 7:00 at Port Arthur Stadium. Team Canada Manager Greg Hamilton says they got solid pitching and a strong night at the plate and says the added confidence is important moving forward.

In other action today, Cuba knocked off the US 3-2, Australia managed to upend Korea 5-4, Chinese Taipei advanced to the semi finals with a 4-2 win over The Netherlands, France lost to Panama 5-3 and Venezuela topped the Czech Republic 9-6.

Cuba shocks the US

One of the heavy favourites at the World Junior Baseball Championships will be going home without a medal. Cuba downed the US 3-2 on the shoulders of a complete game 9 hitter from their starting pitcher Luis Omar. The US managed to come back and tie the game twice but an RBI single by Cuban third baseman Lazaro Hernandez brought home the winning run. The States managed to get runners in scoring position in the bottom of the inning but to no avail. Cuba will now move on to face the winner of tonight's game between Korea and Australia, while the US will take on the loser. Both of those games will go tomorrow.

Comuzzi-Stehmann to seek Tory nomination

There's a Comuzzi getting back into politics. This time it's Maureen Comuzzi-Stehmann, the niece of former Conservative MP Joe Comuzzi. Comuzzi-Stehmann is seeking the federal Tory nomination for the Thunder Bay-Rainy River Riding. No date has been set for the nomination.

Gilbert bids goodbye

Today is Fred Gilbert's last day as president of Lakehead University. Brian Stevenson officially takes over Sunday.  Gilbert says he has no real regrets to speak of and adds he's had a wonderful 12 years in Thunder Bay. Gilbert says his proudest accomplishment is improving LU's reputation. Where once the institution was considered as a last chance university, he turned it into an school that now attracts top scholars from Thunder Bay and the rest of the province. Vic Krasowski's interview with Dr. Fred Gilbert can be heard on the link below.

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OPP warn of counterfeit cheques

A fake cheque scam has made it's way to the community of Geralton. OPP say it's an old con game that sees you get a cheque in the mail which you are asked to cash. Police say through a series of bank transactions it usually ends up that the person cashing the cheque is left with no money and a hefty bank loan.

Question quota fizzles

It appears getting city councillors to cut down on their questions at meetings could be a challenge. As part of a trial phase they must only ask 3 questions of presenters or administration per round of questioning. It's designed to help shorten meetings, but last Mondays meeting went passed 1 o'clock the next morning.

ER ca$h is here

The Regional Health Sciences Centre is getting 1.9 million dollars from the provincial government to make emergency room improvements. Rhonda Crocker-Ellacott says the hospital must use the money to help reduce ER wait times.  The provincial standard is 8 hours for complicated cases and 4 hours for less serious ones.  Crocker-Ellacott says they manage to hit the targets over 90 per cent of the time. She says where the hospital  has a challenge is getting ER patients admitted to the hospital within the 8 hour goal.

Thunder Bay OPP officer awaiting sentance for harrasment

A Thunder Bay OPP officer will be sentenced in September after harrassing a woman on the internet. Constable Claude Montfort pled guilty in March after a two year investigation.  Both the crown and the defense are calling for a sentance without incarceration.  Montfort received a medal for bravery after he helped rescue people trapped in a burning vehicle near Marathon.

Kenora OPP officer cleared

The SIU has cleared a Kenora police officer who shot a knife wielding woman last month. The officer shot the woman after she started walking towards her with the knife pointed in the officers direction. The SIU says the officers didn't use excessive force in the situation.