Connect with us

Summer Collegiate

NorthPaws end longest road swing with defeat in Kelowna

Published

on

Author: Larry Read

KELOWNA, BC—The saying “home sweet home” means more to the Kamloops NorthPaws than ever before.

The Paws ended their longest road trip of the 2023 West Coast League season on Friday night (June 30) as they fell 14-4 to the host Kelowna Falcons.  The game was played at Elks Stadium and is the beginning of a three game weekend series between the two geographical rivals.  The NorthPaws have played their last seven games away from home.

Kamloops led 2-0 after a half inning.  It was the only time they would lead in the contest.   Kelowna scored five times in the first, added two more in the second, two in the sixth inning and added four more runs in the seventh inning as they moved to 13-11 on the year.

JP Smith (West Sacremento, CA) led the offence for the Falcons. He went 4-5 with five runs batted in and two runs scored. He smashed a two run homer off reliever Wyatt Hardy (Parker, Colorado) in the sixth inning.  It was his second home run of the season.

Jonas Salk (Fairfax, CA) was 3-6 with three runs batted in and two runs scored for the Falcons. Jacob Deveny (Prosper, TX) was 3-6 with four runs scored. Trey Duffield (Houston, TX) was 3-3 with two runs batted in and a run scored.

For Kamloops, Robin Villeneuve (Gatineau, QC) was 2-4 with a run scored and a RBI.  Jude Hall (Chilliwack, BC) was 2-5 with two runs batted in.

Nolan Patterson garnered his first win of the year for Kelowna. Sarting his fifth game of the year, the Henderson, Nevada pitcher went two innings giving up four hits, striking out three, giving up four runs and walking three.

Christian Spitz (Overland Park, Kansas) was tagged with the loss for the Paws.  He is 1-2 on the year. Spitz started and gave up seven hits, seven runs walked one and struck one in an inning of work.

Kamloops has lost their last seven outings and fell to 5-20 on the season.  They managed six hits and committed four errors while Kelowna had 19 hits and no errors.

The NorthPaws debuted two players in this contest: second baseman Phoenix Sommay and outfielder Casey Wayne.  Wayne was 0-1 with a run scored while Sommay was 0-2 Sommay was recently picked up after being released by the Victoria HarbourCats.

Link to Scoresheet:  http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598567

Kamloops and Kelowna head north for games tomorrow and Sunday. Opening pitch Canada Day is 6:35 PM.  Sunday’s tilt has a 2:05 PM start time. There will be Canada Day celebrations at Dearborn Ford Field at Norbrock Stadium on Saturday.  Sunday’s game will be “Family Day” at the park.  It is sponsored by Save On Foods.

All West Coast League games are available via their website: https://wcleague.watch.pixellot.tv/

I Some NorthPaws home games will also be shown on Shaw TV in Kamloops (Cable 10 or 105 with Blue Curve).

TAILGATE PARTY:

The Molson’s Tailgate Party is hoppin’ before every NorthPaws home game.   It runs Tuesday through Saturday 5-630 PM.  The Party runs Sundays noon-1 PM.  Hotdogs and a Pilsner are sold for $ 12.00 plus tax.

Source

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Summer Collegiate

NightOwls bring back all-star starter Mattix

Published

on

One of the best pitchers in the West Coast League is returning to The Nest.

All-star Adison Mattix will be back for a third season with the Nanaimo NightOwls. The right-hander from Everett CC made a team-high 10 starts in 2024 and was the only player from the NWAC college baseball conference to be named to the WCL all-star game, where he helped the North Division to victory.

 

The happiest person with this news is legendary NightOwls pitching coach Gorm Heimueller — and Heimueller’s presence on the staff of new head coach Cody Andreychuk is a major reason Mattix will be spending a third summer with the program in Nanaimo.

Mattix, a power right-hander at 6-4/200, was 1-2 with a 3.04 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 41.1 innings in 2024. He gave up just 30 hits and two doubles. He was a reliever, making nine appearances, in 2023, striking out 15 batters in 16 innings.

 

The highlight start in 2024 was an 11-strikeout effort over six innings in a 8-1 home win vs. Kamloops on June 25, that made him the league leader in strikeouts at that point. He gave up three hits and no walks or runs.

Source

Continue Reading

Summer Collegiate

Local players and returning talent set for 2025 NightOwls duty

Published

on

Five names, all familiar to local baseball fans.

Head Coach Cody Andreychuk, a local product entering his first year at the helm of the Nanaimo NightOwls, is pleased to announce the signing of five players for the 2025 duty. Three are returnees from the 2024 squad, two are Mid-Island Pirates graduates.

 

All five players are at the junior college level, with previous announcements featuring mostly NCAA D1 scholarship athletes.

Nonomiya, from Japan but whose mom is Pakistani, recently was the starting pitcher and hit a home run for Pakistan to win the final of the Arabic region tournament. In the summer of 2024, he made seven appearances as a pitcher — three of those as the starter.

 

Florence, as a graduating high school player, saw action in 25 games last summer and drove in seven runs, playing strong defence. Known for his big arm from the left side of the infield, and an instinctual baserunner, he was an offensive catalyst in high school and has carried that to Scottsdale.

 

Carmichael, a Swiss Army Knife for the NightOwls in 2024, is being used primarily as a right-handed reliever at ELAC this season, but can still play nearly every position and run the bases, providing a hard-throwing bullpen option for pitching coach Gorm Heimueller, and giving Andreychuk the ability to make moves in the last half of the game. Carmichael has the nickname ‘Cowboy’ because he has competed in junior NFR events — and is a real glue guy with teammates. Carmichael made five pitching appearances in 2024, and batted .195 with a couple of doubles and three stolen bases in limited action.

 

Cathers spent time with the Canadian national junior team and the power hitting outfielder has made a good first impression at Cloud County.

 

Laukkanen, whose brother Josh was on the inaugural NightOwls team in 2022, was with the NightOwls for a few days in 2024 prior to setting foot on a college campus. Lucas left the team to stay at a lower level with less competition for playing time. Lucas has plans on being starting shortstop this spring at Cloud County.

 

Both Cathers and Laukkanen played in the Futures Showcase put on by the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto.

 

Season tickets and 10pks are available now by emailing GM Tina Cornett, tina@nanaimonightowls.com, and tickets and merchandise make great Christmas gifts — nanaimonightowls.com to find the Team Shop.

Source

Continue Reading

Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – VISL, HarbourCats, NightOwls enter strategic partnership

Published

on

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 21, 2024

VICTORIA, B.C. — Different sports, but the same community ideals.

The Victoria HarbourCats and Nanaimo NightOwls, of baseball’s West Coast League, and the Vancouver Island Soccer League (VISL), have entered into a strategic partnership intended to assist the entities in growing grassroots sports and improving facilities on Vancouver Island.

The VISL provides programming and championships on the Island and leads leagues which give the best soccer players an avenue to play the sport for life. Championships such as the Jackson Cup, with many finals played at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, serve as the crown jewel of the VISL.

More than 6,000 participants are involved with the VISL — sports fans, who will keep track of the Island’s top baseball programs, the HarbourCats and NightOwls, who combined to draw more than 100,000 spectators in 2024.

The baseball teams and VISL will jointly promote each others’ schedules, and provide opportunities for youth participation.

“The atmosphere at HarbourCats and NightOwls games showcase the top fan engagement on the Island, a true gathering point in our communities,” said VISL Executive Director Vince Greco.

“Baseball fans are soccer fans, and soccer fans are baseball fans — it’s about supporting quality programs on the island and furthering awareness. Adding youth opportunities between the two will be the cherry on top.”

Watch for VISL events to recognize the work of the HarbourCats and NightOwls, and feature baseball games to celebrate the success of the VISL.

For more information on the VISL and their programs and offerings, please visit their website HERE.

The HarbourCats 2025 schedule has now been announced!  DETAILS HERE

Single-game tickets and 10-game flex pack voucher renewals are NOT YET AVAILABLE, but will be once the ticketing system is set up for the 2025 season.  We will announce this when ready!

Season tickets and 10- game flex packs ARE available for sale by dropping in to the office at 101-1814 Vancouver Street or calling 778-265-0327.

Existing Season Ticket holders are encouraged, if they have not already done so, to renew their seats as soon as possible so as to lock in their seats for what is going to be another great season of HarbourCats Baseball.

 

Source

Continue Reading

Trending