KAMLOOPS — After claiming an exhibition game victory on Thursday versus rival Kelowna, the Kamloops NorthPaws dropped three straight to the visiting Nanaimo NightOwls over a hot and smokey weekend in the Tournament Capital.
The trio of losses moves the Paws to 5-8 in the second half of the WCL Season, 3GB of the North Division leading Wenatchee AppleSox, who the NorthPaws are set to see for three games starting on Tuesday south of the border.
GAME 1
A low-scoring pitchers duel took place on Friday night as the Nanaimo NightOwls squeaked out a 2-1 victory.
TRU’s Kolby Lukinchuk toed the rubber for Kamloops, taking a hard luck loss after tossing 7.0IP 5H 2ER. Lucas Smith followed with 2.0IP 2H 0R.
Kamloops did strike first in the third inning on an Anthony Setticasi double that scored Anthony Manuel from second.
The NightOwls responded with a single run in both the fifth and sixth innings to take the lead. Joshua Torres, RBI double, and Mitchell Middlemiss RBI single.
Jacob Fleury got the win for the NightOwls after silencing the bats of Kamloops over 6.0IP, 1H, 1ER, 2BB.
The Paws would get the tying and winning run into scoring position in the ninth as TJ Wachter missed a two-run walkoff by a matter of inches off the left field wall before a ground out secured the win for the visitors.
Ryan Inouye was credited with the save.
GAME 2
One bad inning spelled disaster for the NorthPaws on Saturday night, as once again the offense scuffled in a 6-4 Nanaimo victory.
Just like in game one, it was an early lead for Kamloops, as TJ Wachter singled home Joey Rico to make it 1-0.
Cade Johnson got the start for Kamloops pitching in and out of danger through 5.0IP, 7H, 1ER.
After Nanaimo leveled the score at 1-1 in the third, the NorthPaws would take a 4-1 lead in the sixth. Matthew Olivares doubled home Rico, followed by a pair of 2-out RBI singles from Jerry Nix, and Jacob Schlesselman.
From there the NightOwls would score 5 unanswered to secure the series win. Trailing by one in the eighth, Nanaimo scored three unearned runs against Paws’ closer Rico, as a ground ball slipped under the glove of Madden Ocko.
Ocko would single in the ninth to give the NorthPaws a shot, but he would be stranded.
GAME 3
The final game of the three game set was entirely one-sided, with the Nanaimo NightOwls completing the sweep in dominant fashion 12-2.
Keith Manby from the TRU WolfPack got the start for Kamloops in the contest and struggled to get outs, allowing 6ER, 7H 1K in 3.1IP. David Betancourt, Manato Tateno, Nolan Austin and Manny Recchi would also toe the rubber on Sunday evening, allowing six more runs to cross the plate in a crushing defeat.
The Paws managed just four hits in the ballgame, three of which came from Kamloops’ own Matt MacDonald who went 3-4 at the plate with an RBI.
Aidan Boice recorded the win for Nanaimo, allowing just two MacDonald hits over 6.0IP, with 7K.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE Monday, July 22 – Off-Day Tuesday, July 23 at Wenatchee, 6:35 first pitch Wednesday, July 24 at Wenatchee, 6:35 first pitch Thursday, July 25 at Wenatchee, 6:35 first pitch Friday, July 26 at Victoria, 6:30 first pitch Saturday, July 27 at Victoria, 6:30 first pitch Sunday, July 28 at Victoria, 1:00 first pitch Monday, July 29 – Off-Day Tuesday, July 30 vs Bellingham, 6:35 first pitch Wednesday, July 31 vs Bellingham, 6:35 first pitch Thursday, August 1, vs Bellingham, 6:35 first pitch
FOR MEDIA REQUESTS Jenna Forter General Manager Kamloops NorthPaws 250-200-1415 www.northpawsbaseball.ca
The HarbourCats will return to Wilson’s Group Stadium in Victoria (above) on Tuesday for their Home Opener against the Edmonton Riverhawks.
By Christian J. Stewart
May 31, 2026
Portland, OR – The Victoria HarbourCats looked to have things under control, until they didn’t.
The Portland Pickles used a nine-run fourth inning to overcome a 3-0 deficit and then cruise to a 18-5 win over the HarbourCats in West Coast League action Sunday night at Walker Stadium in Portland.
The win gave the Pickles the series win, having won game one of the series on Friday.
Victoria appeared to have the game under control, building an early 3-0 lead, thanks in part to a first inning RBI single from Jax Heid, a second inning home run from Marcus Nolan and three innings of shut-out pitching from starter Schuyler Fairchild.
However in the bottom of the fourth inning, Victoria sent reliever Tate Collins to the mound and four walks and a hit batter later, the Pickles cut the deficit to 3-2. Collins was replaced by Houston Tomlinson, but he could not stem the bleeding, and after three more singles, a double, and a HarbourCats error, the Pickles emerged from the inning with a 9-3 lead.
The HarbourCats would never fully recover after that and when the Pickles scored five more runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and four more in the bottom of the eighth, their fate was sealed.
On the bright side, David Krahn had another strong day at the plate, going three for five with two runs scored, while Marcus Nolen finished three for three with a home run and pair of RBI.
The HarbourCats now return to the friendly confines of Wilson’s Group Stadium, where they will welcome the Edmonton Riverhawks for the Home Opener on Tuesday evening at 6:35pm. That is followed by our Help Fill a Dream Night on Wednesday at 6:35pm and the our first of two School Spirit Games on Thursday June 4th at 11:00 am.
RIDGEFIELD, WA — The Nanaimo NightOwls were licking some wounds as they rolled north on I-5 on Sunday evening, partially due to a 15-3 series-ending loss to the host Ridgefield Raptors.
Ridgefield took the series two games to one, as both clubs opened the West Coast League season. Nanaimo won the opener 7-6 then dropped the second game 4-3 despite having multiple base runners in the last two innings.
It wasn’t just the score on Sunday afternoon, the NightOwls used three catchers because starter Jack Bergstrom took a foul tip and left the game as a precaution, then second backstop Malachi Noet was hit flush in the face by a pitch while batting — an ambulance was called, but he was able to be on his own power and in good spirits by the end of the game. Third catcher Damian Cataldo, from Victoria of the CCBC, made his WCL debut in relief.
Adison Mattix started the game on the mound and was charged with five runs but only one was earned. Blake Hager, Kaleb Tenn, Josh Rego, Tyler Clementz and Cole Carmichael also pitched.
The NightOwls now set their sights on all the excitement of the home opener, which is on Tuesday against the Kelowna Falcons at historic Serauxmen Stadium (6:35pm first pitch). The brand new video scoreboard will make its debut and bring a whole new level of game presentation to the West Coast League.
Tickets for the home opener are going fast — nanaimonightowls.com/tickets for the official Showpass ticketing site, do not be fooled by googling and ending up at a third-party offshore ticketing website.
Portland, OR – It was billed as “Wrestling Night” in Portland Saturday night and while the wrestlers in the ring on the third base concourse of Walker Stadium did their best to ensure chaos reigned there all night, the HarbourCats did the same on the field, pummelling the Pickles by a score of 15-6.
Victoria atoned for their three-hit performance in the opener on Friday by body slamming the Pickles for 19 hits in total, 14 of which came in the first four innings, allowing them to build a 13-0 lead over that same time span.
The Pickles got up off the mat briefly in the bottom of the fourth, scoring all their six runs in that frame, but never threatened again after that, shut-out the rest of the way.
The HarbourCats offence was led by leadoff hitter David Krahn, who had four hits, including a double, four RBI and four runs scored. Right behind him was Dryden Fuoco with three hits, including a double and the first HarbourCats home run of the season. Max Bernal, Jax Heid, Lukas Le Gras, Matthew Westley, Rhone Klein and Kade Davis also contributed two hits each to the winning effort.
Victoria starter Erik Rico was flat out brilliant in his HarbourCats debut, going three shut-out innings, and allowing just two hits and one walk, while striking out six, including the first three Portland batters of the game. Relievers Bryson Toner, Hunter Daniels, Easton Reimers and Anson Stuckly were also solid, combing for 5.1 innings of scoreless relief with eight strikeouts.
The HarbourCats and Pickles will complete the rubber match of the series on Sunday night wth a 6:05 PM start. Victoria then travels home for their opener against the Edmonton Riverhawks on Tuesday, June 2 at 6:35. Tickets for that are selling fast and are available at http://harbourcats.com/tickets.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login