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 Cats scraped together just three hits this afternoon after totalling 28 in the last two games. (Photo by JPM Photography)
Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats came up short in the third game of the series, falling 10-2 to the visiting Bellingham Bells.
As the tradition seems to go in this series, the game stayed scoreless until the fourth inning. Power-hitting outfielder Rohne Klein (San Jose State) got his pitch and didn’t miss, launching a two-run rocket between the derby wickets in right field to take the lead for the Cats.
Klein’s fellow San Jose State ballplayer Landon Marchetti made in impact in his second start of the season, going four innings with just one hit and four strikeouts to keep the Bells in check. Marchetti was tagged out for Easton Reimers (North Dakota State) who gave up a solo home run in the top of the fifth.
Despite loading the bases after that homer, Reimers was able to bear down and pick up a clutch strikeout to stride back to the dugout with the lead intact. Determined not to let another run by on his watch, Reimers returned to the mound for the top of the sixth and powered through a scoreless frame. Bellingham would not be denied, however, as they sent one deep in the top of the seventh to take a 5-2 lead.
Landon Marchetti kept things clean in his four-inning start, allowing one hit and no runs. (Photo by JPM Photography)
That go-ahead homer from the visitors introduced the need for a new pitcher, namely Tate Collins (Arkansas State) of Little Rock, Arkansas. Collins gave up a 2-RBI double to extend Bellingham’s lead to 7-2. Right-handed sidewinder Pierce Stone (Regis) appeared on the mound in the top of inning the eighth, walking one batter and allowing a single to set the stage for a three-run dinger from the Bells.
Flynn Warren (Hawaii Pacific) tossed a scoreless top of the ninth out of the pen, but Victoria’s offence went down quietly in their last chance at the plate, giving up the chance at a series sweep with a 10-2 loss.
With their clash with the Bells complete, the Cats will regroup tomorrow before hosting the Nanaimo NightOwls on Tuesday night at 6:35 pm for the first of a three-game set.
Single game tickets for all HarbourCats games and the 2026 West Coast League All-Star Game and Home Run Derby are now on sale at http://harbourcats.com/tickets. Season tickets, 12-pack and 32-pack game vouchers may also be bought online or by stopping by the HarbourCats office at 101-1814 Vancouver Street.
Cats hitters have racked up a total of 28 hits over two games in this series so far, 12 of them coming from tonight. (Photo by JPM Photography)
Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats clinched a series win over the Bellingham Bells on Saturday night, outworking the Bells on the way to a 6-2 victory.
Seattle native Quincey Brown (UCSD) was not messing around in his first start as a HarbourCat. Brown sat down three Bells on strikes on the first inning and stacked up two more punchouts before stepping aside for Davis Lee (Calgary) in the third inning.
The Cats finally broke the deadlock in the bottom of the fourth inning. Shortstop Brady Hewitt (Fresno State) got on base with a leadoff single and stole second, later wheeling around third on a Rohne Klein (San Jose State) base hit to score the first run of the game. Lukas Le Gras (Westmont) doubled the lead with a double off the wall, bringing Klein in to score before stealing home on a wild pitch to widen the lead to 3-0. David Krahn (UBC) clubbed his second homer in two games over the left field fence, and a double from Jacob Silva (UTSA) capped off the inning with an RBI double to widen the lead to 5-0.
Davis Lee called it a night in the top of the sixth after holding the line for 2.2 innings and keeping Bellingham’s score at a nice round number. Leif Friedrich (Concordia-Nebraska) came in for his HarbourCats debut and kept it rolling, securing the outs needed to move on to the bottom of the inning.
Lukas Le Gras had a strong offensive showing, going 2/4 with a double. (Photo by JPM Photography)
The Cats added some insurance in the bottom of the sixth, a Tristan Buehring (Whitman) sacrifice fly for Victoria’s sixth run. Carson Ackermann (Tacoma) was the next arm out of the pen for the HarbourCats. The right-hander quickly found himself in a bases-loaded jam and allowed the first two runs of the ballgame for the Bells before escaping the frame.
Ackermann stuck it out until the top of the ninth, when Anson Stuckly (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) took over, stranding a couple of runners and closing out a 6-2 win.
The Bellingham series comes to a close at 1:05 pm on Sunday afternoon, preceding a midweek series against the Nanaimo NightOwls beginning on Tuesday night.
Single game tickets for all HarbourCats games and the 2026 West Coast League All-Star Game and Home Run Derby are now on sale at http://harbourcats.com/tickets. Season tickets, 12-pack and 32-pack game vouchers may also be bought online or by stopping by the HarbourCats office at 101-1814 Vancouver Street.
Victoria unleashed 11 runs in the sixth inning, paving the way to a resounding win over the top team in the West Coast League. (Photo by JPM Photography)
Victoria, B.C. – A grand slam followed by an 11-run inning led to a robust win over the Bellingham Bells on Friday night, with the Cats claiming a 17-6 win.
The Cats looked a little trigger-happy in the first third of the game, only seeing 15 pitches from Bellingham’s starter. This enthusiasm didn’t earn much, with just two HarbourCats reaching base in a quick three innings.
On the other side of the coin, Jeremiah Arnett (Rice) made quick work of the Bells as well, refusing to allow them the luxury of a hit through four innings and earning five strikeouts on the side. Jake Rafferty (Tacoma) took up the torch for the fifth, getting himself into a sticky situation with a couple of wild pitches before finding his way out with a zero on the board.
Jeremiah Arnett allowed zero runs in a four-inning start. (Photo by JPM Photography)
The HarbourCats finally dug their claws in for the bottom of the fifth, loading the bases just in time for David Krahn (UBC). The British Columbia local stepped up to the plate and delivered, utterly pulverizing a ball to left field for an electrifying grand slam, breaking the seal and taking a 4-0 lead for the home side.
Bellingham responded passionately in the next inning, sneaking a run in on a base hit followed by a three-run blast off of Cats reliever Spencer Kratt (San Jose State). Victoria shrugged it off and pulled out all the stops in the bottom of the fifth, taking advantage of a Bellingham error and finding hits from Lukas Le Gras (Westmont), Bryan Bradshaw (UC San Diego), Rohne Klein (San Jose State) et al to jump out in front of the Bells. By the time the smoke cleared on a long sixth inning, the Cats were suddenly up 15-4. Not too shabby.
Surrey, B.C.’s Marcus Janovsky (UBC) entered the game in the seventh to face a battered and bruised group of Bells, who snuck home on a sloppy relay from the outfield to scratch away at the 11-run lead standing over them.
Unwilling to let up after taking a comfortable lead, the Cats kept their foot on the gas in the bottom of the seventh. Designated hitter Jacob Silva (UTSA) batted in a pair of runs with a one-out single, pushing the score to a humble 17-6 with two innings to go.
Hunter Daniels (Phoenix College) came in from the bullpen to dot the i’s and cross the t’s on a booming victory for the HarbourCats in their first game against the top team in the West Coast League Standings.
The Cats get another crack at the Bells on Saturday night at 6:35 pm, and the series comes to an end with an afternoon game on Sunday.
Single game tickets for all HarbourCats games and the 2026 West Coast League All-Star Game and Home Run Derby are now on sale at http://harbourcats.com/tickets. Season tickets, 12-pack and 32-pack game vouchers may also be bought online or by stopping by the HarbourCats office at 101-1814 Vancouver Street.
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