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Summer Collegiate

NorthPaws ‘pickled’ in home opener against Portland

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Author: Larry Read

KAMLOOPS BC—The Kamloops NorthPaws are still in search of their first victory of the young West Coast League season.

The NorthPaws hosted the Portland Pickles at Dearborn Ford Field at Norbrock Stadium in a three-game series Tuesday through Thursday (June 6-8).   Over 500 fans a night were treated to some entertaining baseball but went home a little disappointed as the Pickles swept Kamloops.

The scores were 11-4 Tuesday (June 6), 6-4 Wednesday and Thursday (June 7,8). 

The results leave Portland with a 5-1 record while the NorthPaws dip to 0-6.

The NorthPaws will continue their homestand with the first ever appearance of the six time defending West Coast League champions, the Corvallis Knights to Kamloops.   The Pickles will head down Highway 97 for a three-game set in Kelowna against the Falcons.  Crovallis has a record of 5-1 after downing Yakima Valley 8-1. Wednesday night.

Portland and Kamloops will tangle once more this season when the NorthPaws visit the Pickles for three games beginning June 27th.

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

SERIES RECAP:

Tuesday, June 6, 2023-Portland Pickles 11 Kamloops NorthPaws 4

Portland broke open a 1-1 tie scoring four runs in the third inning before adding two more in the fifth and three runs in the sixth. Kamloops scored twice in the bottom of the seventh to reduce the deficit to 10-3.  New Zealander Maclain Roberts was tagged with the loss as he started the game and went three innings giving up four hits, four runs, had one walk and one strikeout.   

Left fielder Andrew Stucky (Tuscon, AZ) and Right fielder Felix Chenier-Rondeau (Blainvile, QC) each had runs batted in.

The Pickles were led by Jackson Waller (San Marcos, CA) who was two for two and three runs batted in. Two of the runs coming in on a single in the sixth.   Jack Metcho (Fairfield, CA) was one for two with three runs scored.  Starter Aiden Garza (Ventura, CA) was the winning pitcher tossing a no hitter for three innings, giving up two runs, striking out two and walking three.

Portland moved to 3-1 on the year.  The NorthPaws dropped their fourth in a row.

Link to Scoresheet:  http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598675

Wednesday, June 7, 2023-Portland Pickles 4 Kamloops NorthPaws 4

All the scoring in this game occurred in the first three innings.  Portland rallied from a 2-0 first inning deficit to tally three in both the second and third. 

The NorthPaws were led offensively by first baseman Nolan Austin (Kamloops, BC).  He was two for four at the dish with two runs batted in.  Designated hitter Landon Clark was one for four with an R.B.I.. 

Matthew Romero started for Kamloops and was tagged with the loss going two and a third innings, giving up nine hits, six earned runs, with two walks and a strikeout.

Murphy Gienger (Castle Rock, CO), who came into the game after an inning and two thirds was the winner. He threw a three hitter with eight strikeouts.  Morris Austin (Keller, TX) earned the save as he came on in the ninth inning and struck out the side.

Offensively, the Pickles had three R.B.I. from left fielder Xiage Lancaster (Hilo, HI).  He was two for three with two runs scored.  Jack Metcho was three for five with two runs scored and two runs batted in.  Right fielder Nicky Markantanatos (Portland, OE) was three for five.

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=601034

Thursday, June 8, 2023-Portland Pickles 6 Kamloops North Paws 4

The NorthPaws jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning on the basis of a home run by Jude Hall (Chilliwack, BC).  It was Kamloops’ first home run of the season.  

The home team held a 4-1 lead until the sixth inning when the Pickles scored twice and then added three more in the seventh inning.  They wound up with six runs on six hits and one error. Kamloops had four runs on seven hits and one error.

Kamloops was threatening in the bottom of the ninth.  They had the bases loaded with two outs, but Felix Chenier-Rondeau (Blainville, QC) hit a long flyball which was caught in left field.

Sakemi Sato (La Quinta, CA) was the winning pitcher as he threw two innings of one hit ball with four strikeouts.  Portland was led offensively by Jack Metcho.  He was two for five with three runs batted in.  Nicky Markantanatos was two for five with an RBI.

Joey Adge (Parker, CO) was three for four for Kamloops with an RBI.   Hall was two for four with three runs batted in.

Christian Spitz (Overland Park, KS) was the losing pitcher.  He went three and a third giving up four runs (3 earned), striking out three and walking three.  Kamloops resident Tyrelle Chadwick had his second start of the year for the NorthPaws. He pitched three innings giving up two hits, four walks and one earned run.

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598677

HEAD COACH KEITH FRANCIS:

“It is always the little things in baseball that come back to haunt you. We run the bases improperly. We don’t get the right hit at the right time. Can’t throw the strike when we need it the most. Those things add up. I am telling them we need to win inning by inning.  This has been the underlying theme all season. There is just one inning where an error was started and the pitcher can’t come back from it.  We aren’t hitting. We haven’t scored more than four runs in any game. That is tough. “

FIRST BASEMAN NOLAN AUSTIN (KAMLOOPS, BC):

“It is not the start we wanted to have. We were in the game again tonight.  Just small little errors are keeping us from getting over that hump.  Once we can get the first one we will start to figure it out we are going to start to cruise and get some more dubs.”

NEXT UP:

The NorthPaws will conclude their six game homestand with the Corvallis Knights.  The Knights and NorthPaws will play a three-game series starting tomorrow (Friday June 7th).  It is the first time that the two teams will have ever met in West Coast League play. As mentioned earlier in this release, the Knights have won the league title the last six years in a row.   In 2022, they beat the Bellingham Bells in the final.

PLAYERS TO WATCH ON THE CORVALLIS KNIGHTS:

#5, Tyler Quinn, Inf./C, Pacific University, Oregon. He was the Knights MVP in 2022

# 7, Luke Thiele, Inf., Central Arizona College, he’s going to Purdue in the fall.

# 16, Blake Avila, Central Arizona, he’s going to Grand Canyon in the fall.

#17 Sean Wiese, LHP, Hawaii. A four-year Knight, he was the Knights top pitcher in 2022 as our closer.

# 20 Sam Stem, OF, Gonzaga. He hit over .300 for the Zags this spring as a freshman.

# 37, Neil Feist, RHP, Cal State-Northridge. A returnee and a key player from the 2022 champions.

If you can’t make the NorthPaws 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).

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.

For Everything NorthPaws – Go to the website : https://www.northpawsbaseball.ca/ 

Kamloops NorthPaws tickets: ticketing@northpawsbaseball.ca

West Coast League: westcoastleague.com.

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Summer Collegiate

NightOwls bring back all-star starter Mattix

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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.

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Summer Collegiate

Local players and returning talent set for 2025 NightOwls duty

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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.

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – VISL, HarbourCats, NightOwls enter strategic partnership

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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.

 

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