Summer Collegiate

NorthPaws/HarbourCats split and rained out

Published

3 years ago

July 28, 2023

Dugout Wire Service

KAMLOOPS, BC—The Kamloops NorthPaws got back in the win column but unfortunately, they were unable to capture their West Coast League series at Dearborn Ford Field at Norbrock Stadium. On Thursday (July 27), the third game of the series was cancelled with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning because of a rainstorm. The game will be replayed at a later date.

The NorthPaws and the visiting Victoria HarbourCats were battling to see who would win the series after Victoria won 2-0 on Tuesday (July 25) and the Paws won their 10 th game of the season on Wednesday (July 26) with a 6-3 victory.

Victoria leaves Kamloops with a record of 11-6 in the second half and 30-14 overall. Kamloops is 10-33 overall and 3-13 in the second half.

The NorthPaws will hop the ferry and head to Nanaimo for a three game set against the NightOwls. It’s the first time the two teams have played against each other this season.

The HarbourCats hit the road after this game to entertain the Kelowna Falcons. They play tomorrow.

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

SERIES RECAP:

Tuesday, July 25, 2023:HarbourCats 2 NorthPaws 0

The NorthPaws honored their billet parents before the contest. They saw an exciting game and a strong pitching performance from Nathan Gray (Queen Creek, AZ). Gray pitched seven strong innings, giving up two hits, one run, striking out six and walking two. Gray is 0-1 on the year in nine appearances.

The HarbourCats lost Tyler Davis (Fresno, CA) in the fourth inning. He was ejected after arguing with home plate umpire Blaise Leveay. At that point, Davis had struck out twice. He was replaced by Ryan Magdic (Beamsville, ON).

Joey Baran (Austin, TX) got the start at catcher for Kamloops and threw two base runners out in the first five innings.

Victoria opened the scoring in the seventh when Dallas Macias (Parker, Co) walked and scored on a single from Tripp Clark (Waco, TX). Clark was 3-4 in the ball game with that run batted in. Macias was 0-2 with a run scored.

Then in the eighth, Jesse Brown (Seattle, WA) doubled and scored on a wild pitch. The HarbourCats had four hits and one error. Kamloops had three hits in the ball game.

Cody Howard (The Woodlands, TX) was the third of four Victoria pitchers and got the win. He went two innings, striking out four, walking one and giving up a hit. He went to 2-0. Carson Latimer (Delta, BC), pitched the final two innings getting his second save in 11 appearances. He walked two and struck out one.

Offensively for Kamloops, Drew Giannini (Tracy, CA) was 2-4. Anthony Manuel (Antioch, CA) was 1-3.

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598692

Wednesday, July 26, 2023: NorthPaws 6 HarbourCats 3

The NorthPaws snap a five-game losing streak with the victory as they pounded out 10 hits without committing an error.

Baran led the way going 2-3 with three runs batted in and a run scored. Two of those runs came in the bottom of the first inning on a double as he drove in Cooper Neville (Glendale, AZ) and Robin Villeneuve (Gatineau, QC). Baran hit a double in the third inning to drive in Neville who led it off with a ground rule double as the ball got stuck in the fence in right field. Matthew Ward (Mississauga, ON) hit a 385 foot shot over the left field fence for his first homer of the summer to account for one of the other Kamloops runs. Ward was 1-3. Manuel was 2-3 with a run batted in.

New Zealand lefty MacLain Roberts improved his record to 2-6 with the win. He went five and two thirds on a five hitter, giving up three runs while walking five and striking out five.

Jed Decooman (Vancouver, BC) was the starter and losing pitcher for Victoria. He lasted three innings giving up five hits on three hits. The HarbourCats offense was led by Magdic who was 2-3 with a run scored. Clark was 1-3 with a run batted in

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598693

Thursday, July 27, 2023: game cancelled due to lightning in fifth inning.

At the time of the cancellation, Victoria held a 2-0 lead with Kamloops batting with one out in the bottom of the fifth. The HarbourCats had scored both their runs in the top of the third inning when Marco Pirrcuello (Rockin, CA) advanced to first base on an error and later scored along with teammate Brandon Green (Olds, AB). Green had singled. Both players came home on an error charged to NorthPaws catcher Ward.

Alexis Gravel (Repentgny, QC) was on the mound for Kamloops at the time.

The game will be replayed before the end of the 2023 West Coast League season. Date, time and venue will be determined later.

NEXT UP FOR THE NORTHPAWS:

The North Paws will play the Night Owls in Nanaimo tomorrow (July 28) through to Sunday (July 30)

They return home to host Kelowna on August 1st before going to Elks Stadium in the “Little Apple” to meet the Falcons for their final two road games of the West Coast League season.

If you can’t make the home games, they are all webcast on https://wcleague.watch.pixellot.tv/ . Some home games will also be shown on Shaw TV in Kamloops (Cable 10 or 105 with Blue Curve).

PLAYERS TO WATCH ON NANIAMO:

1. Jakob Fleury (Burlington, WA) leads Nanaimo with 4-0 record coming out of the bullpen. He has an E.R.A. of 2.32 in 10 appearances.

2. Payton Robertson (Lynden, WA) is 4-1 with an E.R.A. of 3.68. He has started seven of the eight games he has appeared in.

3. Wylie Waters (West Vancouver, BC) is ninth in the West Coast League in batting average (.343) with 18 R.B.I.

4. Aaron Marsh (Nanaimo, BC) is 19th in the West Coast League with a batting average of .313 with 16 R.B.I.

5. Ethan Rivera (Chino Hills, CA) has a team leading four home runs.

TAILGATE PARTY:

The Molson’s Tailgate Party is operating 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.

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Cats Stun Elks with Thunderous 18-5 Victory

Published

16 hours ago

July 8, 2026

Dugout Wire Service

Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats welcomed the Bend Elks to Victoria this evening with a monumental 18-5 takeover to start the series off right.

Although the Elks opened the scoring with a single to centre field in the top of the second, the Cats answered back quickly in the bottom half of the frame. With runners on the corners and nobody out, Bryan Bradshaw (UCSD) dug in for a sacrifice fly, driving in Rohne Klein (San Jose State) from third and tying the game at one apiece.

BOX SCORE

Cats starter and freshly-crowned All-Star Erik Rico (Fresno State) called it a night after three solid innings of work. Rico allowed one run and struck out seven to push his league-leading strikeout count to 40. Flynn Warren (Hawaii Pacific) filled the gap for the fourth, striking out two before letting one batter get away and surrendering a two-run homer. The New Zealand product eventually got the final out he needed, but not before the Elks took a 3-1 lead.

Erik Rico’s league-leading 40 strikeouts are just part of the reason he was selected as a WCL All-Star. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Warren returned for the fifth and gave up a solo homer, but that was the only damage sustained before the Cats defence returned to the dugout down by three.

Victoria finally found some contact in the bottom of the fifth, putting runners on the corners with nobody out once again. A Bend throwing error allowed a run to come in, but a big baserunning mistake by the Cats led to the Elks getting two outs on the play as well.

Inning the sixth showed yet more promise for the HarbourCats, as a couple of early base knocks made it – stop me if you’ve heard this before – runners on the corners with nobody out. The home side continued to put wood on the baseball, eventually bringing in five runs on base hits from Rohne Klein, Tristan Buehring (Whitman), and WCL All-Star David Krahn (UBC). Unsatisfied with a one-run lead, Matt Westley (George Mason) stepped up to the plate with two outs and banished a baseball to the great unknown, busting the game wide open with a three-run homer to make it 10-5.

Matt Westley’s home run was a back-breaker for the Elks. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Patience was the name of the game in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Elks walked the bases loaded and bounced a pitch in front of the plate that allowed Jacob Silva (UTSA) to score. Tristan Buehring followed that up with an RBI single, and David Krahn obliterated his seventh homer of the season. 15-5 for the Cats with two innings to go.

The Cats kept the pressure on, adding a Rohne Klein homer for good measure before Spencer Kratt closed out a three-inning relief appearance, securing a much-needed blowout win for the good guys.

WCL STANDINGS

The HarbourCats are back on the hunt tomorrow night for the second of three games this week against the Elks.

Single game tickets for all HarbourCats games 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.

GET YOUR ALL-STAR TICKETS BEFORE THEY ARE GONE! Tickets for the 2026 WCL All-Star Home Run Derby (featuring former Blue Jay Kevin Pillar) and the West Coast League All Star Game on July 14-15 are selling fast. Get yours today! Each event is now on sale separately, or grab the package deal for both and save a few bucks at http://harbourcats.com/tickets! Or call the office at 778-265-0327 to order by phone.

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Former HarbourCat Austin Russell, a WCL all-star, hired to coach Collegiate Cats program

Published

2 days ago

July 6, 2026

Dugout Wire Service

July 5, 2026

VICTORIA, B.C. — Former HarbourCat and WCL All-Star Austin Russell has been handed the reins of Victoria’s year-round collegiate baseball program.

The local product has been hired to lead the Victoria Collegiate Cats of the Canadian College Baseball Conference (CCBC), effective August 1. The team formerly called the Golden Tide will enter its sixth season this fall, based primarily out of Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park.

“I’m incredibly grateful for this opportunity and excited to help build a Victoria Collegiate Cats program that the players, alumni and community can be proud of,” said Russell, who played with his brother Ty on the 2013 HarbourCats team. “My time playing college baseball had a tremendous impact on my growth as a person, both on and off the field, and my priority is to provide these young men with that same opportunity — an experience they can look back on with pride and one that helps prepare them for success as they move forward in life.”

Russell, 34, was a member of the inaugural HarbourCats team and the outfielder was selected to play in the WCL all-star game in 2013. He also played summer collegiate baseball in Moose Jaw, and played collegiately at Colby Community College, Southern Polytechnic State, and MacPherson College.

Russell won conference awards as a player at Colby and MacPherson, and still plays in the Mavericks League locally. He represented Victoria in the 2018 Baseball Canada Men’s Nationals on home soil, earning a silver medal.

Russell (left), along with Nick Pivetta (centre) and Connor Russell (no relation)(right) were three of the first HarbourCats players to be signed for the 2013 season (Photo: Christian J. Stewart).

He coached for many years in the Victoria Mariners youth system, and is excited to return to the college level. Pitching Coach Darius Opdam Bak and Assistant Coach Colton O’Brien will return and round out the coaching staff.

Russell will also join Opdam Bak and other WCL HarbourCats coaches in taking an active role with community development initiatives and youth camps.

“This is an exciting announcement for us and we could not be happier to put Austin into the leadership role with the Collegiate Cats as Head Coach,” said Jim Swanson, Managing Partner of the group that owns the Collegiate Cats, the Victoria HarbourCats and Nanaimo NightOwls (West Coast League), and the Edwards Family Training Centre (EFTC) indoor facility.

“Austin is well-known and respected in the baseball world, especially locally, and we know he will put tremendous effort and skill into the role as we continue to grow the Collegiate Cats. He’s excited to get started.”

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Cats Drop Third Game of Kelowna Series

Published

3 days ago

July 5, 2026

Dugout Wire Service

Kelowna, B.C. – The HarbourCats took on the Kelowna Falcons for the third game a row this afternoon, losing the final matchup by a score of 9-2.

The Falcons were the first side to find purchase on the offensive side in a long third inning. Cats starter Daniel Tovar (Northern Kentucky) allowed a couple of baserunners on a walk and an error, and was swapped out for right-hander Houston Tomlinson (Arkansas State). Kelowna strung together a few singles together on Tomlinson over the course of the inning, taking a 3-0 lead.

BOX SCORE

The home team followed that up with an uppercut in their next trip to the plate, smashing a three-run homer off of Tomlinson in the fourth to blow the game wide open.

Tate Collins (Arkansas State) took over for the fifth and pitched a clean inning, but was accosted for another scoring trio in the home half of the sixth. A single, a wild pitch, and a sacrifice fly gave the Falcons a daunting 9-0 lead.

The Cats at last found life in the seventh frame, kicked off by a solo bomb off the bat of Fresno State outfielder Marcus Nolen. Matthew Westley (George Mason) followed that homer up with a fine job of manufacturing a run. The Virginia product drew himself a walk, stole two bases, and advanced all the way home on a wild pitch to continue cutting a chunk out of that mountainous lead.

Carson Ackermann (Tacoma) took to the pitcher’s mound in the seventh and only allowed two baserunners across his two innings of work, but in the end the lead proved insurmountable and the Falcons secured a 9-2 win on home turf.

WCL STANDINGS

The HarbourCats will now travel back to Victoria and look to rebound on Tuesday night in the first matchup of a three-game mid-week series versus the Bend Elks.

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