Summer Collegiate

NorthPaws take two of three from defending league champs

Published

2 years ago

June 12, 2023

Dugout Wire Service

Author: Larry Read

KAMLOOPS BC—It was a noteworthy weekend for the Kamloops NorthPaws.

The NorthPaws finally got into the win column in the West Coast Baseball League. It took them six games to do it, but the North Paws won a game. They did it against the six-time league champion Corvallis Knights. Friday night (June 9), the Paws shutout the Knights 1-0.

They then did something they have done only twice before since entering the league: that was play a doubleheader. After being rained out Saturday (June 10), the Paws and Corvallis played a ‘double dip’ on Sunday (June 11) playing a pair of seven inning affairs.

The first game saw a brilliant pitching performance from Hayden Walker propel Kamloops to a 2-0 victory. The night cap saw the Knights shutout Kamloops 9-0 as they hammered out 15 hits and scored six runs in the sixth inning.

Kamloops moves to 2-7 on the year while Corvallis is 6-3.

The NorthPaws hit the road now for three games in Edmonton against the Riverhawks. The set begins June 13th at ReMax field. The Knights are off until June 15th when they begin a nine game homestand with a trio of contests against the Bend Elks. Three of those home games will be against the NorthPaws. They will hook up beginning June 24th.

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

DOUBLEHEADER HISTORY:

The Paws played two doubleheaders in their inaugural West Coast League season. All of them were on Dearborn Ford Field at Norbrock Stadium. June 2, 2022, Kamloops swept the Edmonton RiverHawks 8-7 and 4-3. On July 23, 2022, they split with the Nanaimo Night Owls. They lost the opener 8-0 but won the nightcap 8-7.

SERIES RECAP:

Friday, June 9, 2023-Kamloops NorthPaws 1 Corvallis Knights 0

526 people were on hand to see the NorthPaws notch their first win of the young season. All the scoring was done in the first inning. Tommy Green (Courtenay, BC) singled to start the inning. He scored on an RBI triple off the bat of third baseman Drew Giannini (Tracy, CA). Giannini was one for three at the plate. Green was one for four.

Griffin Almond (Thornbury, ON) made his second start of the year and went six innings for the win. Almond surrendered two hits, walked one and struck out three. Kolby Lukinchuk (Prince George, BC) earned the save in one inning of work. He was the fourth pitcher of the game for Kamloops.

Lefty Merit Jones (Idaho Falls, ID) struck out eight and had two walks in five innings of work. He was the losing pitcher. Tyler Quinn (Mililani, HIJ), Tyler Howard (Vancouver, WA) and Ty Yukumoto (Waipahu, HI) were all one for four at the dish for the Knights. They fell to 5-2 on the year with the setback.

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598108

Sunday, June 11, 2023-Game 1-Kamloops NorthPaws 2 Corvallis Knights 0

The first game of the doubleheader saw a brilliant pitching performance from lefthander Hayden Walker (Corrales, NM). Walker, who transferred to New Mexico State this year after two seasons at Pepperdine threw 90 pitches over six innings. He had seven strikeouts, gave up four hits and walked one for his first victory of the year. Noah Louw (Chelon, WA) came on in the seventh to earn the save as he struck out three.

The Knights were threatening in the top of the seventh with two men on before Louw struck out the side.

Both Kamloops runs were scored in the fifth inning. Catcher Joey Adge (Parker, CO) walked and scored on a wild pitch delivered by Knights losing pitcher Neil Feist (Torrance, CA). The other Kamloops run was scored by Landon Clark who was hit by a pitch and plated on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Drew Giannini.

Stanley Schoppe (Tigard, OE) and Johnathan Stone (Roseberg, OE) were both one for three.

Kamloops had only one hit in the ball game. That came from Tommy Green (Courtenay, BC). He singled in the third inning.

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=601168

Sunday, June 11, 2023-Game 2-Corvallis Knights 9 Kamloops NorthPaws 0

The Knights had a 3-0 lead until the sixth inning when they scored six runs on five hits. Corvallis was led offensively by right fielder Sam Stern (Erie, CO) who was four for five with an RBI and two runs scored. Third baseman Tyler Quinn (Mililani, HI) who was two for five with two runs scored. Catcher Tyler Howard (Vancouver, WA) was three for four with three RBI. JC Ing (Foster City, OE) was one for three with two runs batted in and a run scored.

Ethan Collins (Rossmoor, CA) went three innings for the win. He gave up one hit, struck out four and walked three. Wyatt Hardy (Parker, CO) went the first two and two thirds’ innings and was tagged with the loss. He gave up three runs on seven hits, with two strikeouts and two walks.

Catcher Joey Aldge was the only NorthPaw to garner a hit. The Parker Colorado backstop is hitting .350 for the season.

Link to Scoresheet: http://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=598110

NORTH AWS HEAD COACH KEITH FRANCIS:

“If you would have told me Thursday night that ‘Hey Keith..you were only going to get five hits this weekend total between three games but you were going to win two out of three, I would have said you were out of your mind. It was impossible. But that was the case. Our pitching was outstanding the first two nights. It struggled a bit today in the third game. We have some issues at the plate which we have to get worked out. I don’t have a magical answer. We have to start hitting the ball. We can’t win games with five hits over a weekend.”

On pulling Hayden Walker in game two after six innings (of a seven-inning contest):

“ There was some thought of having him pitch a complete game. But when I asked how many pitches he threw and found it was 91, he was done for the day. He has a career ahead of him and this is a long season. It was a short-lived consideration.”

NORTHPAWS PITCHER HAYDEN WALKER:

“It was a good performance by the team all around (when asked about the win in game two). I got the win which was nice. Joey Adge did a great job behind the plate for me getting some throw downs. Today my fastball and changeup were going well. I was able to locate the fastball on both sides of the plate which helped a ton.”

On chemistry with a new catcher:

“It hard to build a relationship super quick. I think we both know we can trust each other with whatever we need to do on the field. It helps us out a lot.

NORTHPAWS CATCHER JOEY ADGE:

“It was a pretty good weekend getting two victories. I thought we could have got more hits but I thought our pitching was great which helped us out a lot.”

On Hayden Walker’s six inning victory in game two:

“He had great command of his three pitches. He pitched with a lot of confidence and was a pleasure to catch.

NEXT UP FOR THE NORTHPAWS:

The NorthPaws and Edmonton Riverhawks will square off at ReMax Field in Edmonton starting Tuesday June 13th. In 2022, These teams met four times with Kamloops sweeping a series at home in early June (8-7,4-3,1-0). The Riverhawks beat the NorthPaws when the teams met in Edmonton. The score was 12-3 on July 26th.

Their next home series will be Friday June 16 th when the Port Angeles Lefties will venture onto Dearborn Field at Norbrock Stadium. Kamloops took four of six games against the Lefties last year including 6-5 and 7-4 at home. They were played June 24-25, 2022.

PLAYERS TO WATCH ON THE RIVERHAWKS:

Tom Poole – 1B/3B – Dallas Baptist University, not quite with the team as DBU made a push at regionals

KJ Ward – RHP – Park University Gilbert

Jonny McGill – OF – University of British Columbia

Jack Wheatley – MIF – Liberty University

Kelly Corl – MIF – Niagara University.

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).

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 North Paws tickets: ticketing@northpawsbaseball.ca

West Coast League: westcoastleague.com.

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Summer Collegiate

The Losing Streak Continues For the NightOwls As They Fall 14-12 To The RiverHawks

Published

6 hours ago

July 5, 2025

Dugout Wire Service

EDMONTON, A.B. — The NightOwls bats continue to pop, but they can’t seem to outscore their opponent as they fall 14-12 to the Edmonton RiverHawks on Friday Night. Despite two home runs from Jacob Hayes and one from catcher Nathan Davis, Nanaimo drops to 12-16 on the season.

The two teams went back and forth all game, and the NightOwls had a late lead in the eighth inning but couldn’t hold on, and the RiverHawks were able to get a late lead. Nanaimo has a chance at redemption tomorrow at Re/Max Field as the two teams are back at it at 7:05 MST. That’s 6:05 our time in Nanaimo, and the game can be streamed on the link below.

https://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=622688

Leading the way at the plate was first baseman Jacob Hayes, who went yard twice on the night for his fifth and sixth Home Runs on the season for the NightOwls. Catcher Nathan Davis also went deep for his first home run of the year. Jacob Hayes spoke on his recent hot streak.

“This game has a lot of ups and downs, so making adjustments is crucial. I definitely have felt more confident at the plate. I think using a whole field approach at the dish has given me that. Cody has been talking a lot about that recently, and just trusting him with his advice has also allowed me to feel freer up at bat.”

Asher De Leo came in relief for the Nanaimo Night Owls and was the only pitcher not to allow a hit or run in this very offensive game against the Edmonton RiverHawks. Starting pitcher Aidan Boice had three strikeouts in his five innings pitched and didn’t factor into the decision on the night.

https://wcleague.watch.pixellot.tv/

I spoke to the manager of the Nanaimo NightOwls, Cody Andreychuk after the game about the play of Jacob Hayes and how they could balance the pitching and hitting, “Hayes has been on a tear in the last little bit there’s a lot to like about how he drives the ball out of the ballpark , Talan Zenk has also been swinging a hot bat . As far as the balance between pitching and hitting the pitchers won us the series against Edmonton earlier in the year we are going through a rough patch and I’m confident they will respond and bounce back.”

Talan Zenk went one for three with a single, walk and RBI, and three runs as he was also hit by a pitch. Nathan Davis had a great stat line going three for four with three RBI, a HR, two singles, three runs, a walk, and a stolen base. Shortstop Andrew Nykoluk also had a nice day at the plate with two hits, an RBI and a walk.

http://Nanaimonightowls.com/tickets

The series continues on Saturday and Sunday July 5th, and 6th in Edmonton against the RiverHawks. Note the start times as Saturday is a 6:05 first pitch PST and Sunday is an afternoon affair that goes at 12:05 PST.

Then the team will have a well deserved day off after 10 straight days of games. The NightOwls return home with a three game series against the Kelowna Falcons in a mid week matchup. That starts Tuesday July 8th at 6:35pm and continues Wednesday and Thursday at the same time. Make sure to follow us on social media for the latest NightOwls news and use the hashtag #IlluminateTheDark!

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Cats crush Raptors in 20-5 rout

Published

6 hours ago

July 5, 2025

Dugout Wire Service

July 4, 2025

For immediate release

RIDGEFIELD, WA – On the Fourth of July, the Victoria HarbourCats scored four times as many runs as the Ridgefield Raptors, winning the series opener 20-5.

The fun started in the top of the third inning when the HarbourCats brought 13 batters to the plate and put up nine runs in the frame. Xander “Boogie” McAfee (Texas Arlington) opened up the scoring with an RBI single to make it 1-0. Boogie also had an RBI double later in the inning.

Logan Shepherd (Mercer U) and Dillon Lopez (St Mary’s) drove in one run each with singles, while Tanner Beltowski (Westmont) and Connor Ross (Cal Baptist) each hit two-run singles in the inning. Garrett Brooks (St Mary’s) drove in his first run of the season with a double.

BOX SCORE

The Victoria offence was relentless this afternoon as they put up five more runs in the fourth inning to extend their advantage to 14-0. Shepherd’s RBI single was followed by a Jack Johnson (Baylor) sacrifice fly. Boogie McAfee then hit his second RBI double of the game, and Beltowski smacked a triple to the wall to score another run.

Johnson has reached base in all 24 games he has played this season.

Shea Lake (West Texas A&M) started the game for Victoria and was fantastic through his first four innings of work, surrendering just two hits. He retired the first two batters in the fifth but then pitched into trouble. After the next two Raptors reached base, Taylor Takata hit an RBI single to get the home team on the board. Andrew Estrella then hit a three-run home run to the opposite field to make it 14-4 and put an end to Lake’s outing.

WCL STANDINGS

Marcus Janovsky (UBC) pitched the next 2-1/3 innings and gave up one run on three hits while striking out a pair.

If you thought that complacency would become an issue for the HarbourCats’ offence after 14 runs, you would be sorely mistaken. The visitors tacked on another five runs in the seventh inning through a two-run single by Johnson and a three-run home run from Ross.

Ross had four hits, five RBIs, and scored three runs.

WATCH GAMES HERE

Shepherd drove in his third run of the game in the eighth inning on a sacrifice fly, pushing the lead to 20-5. The designated hitter, along with McAfee and Lopez, recorded three hits in the game. Beltowski drove in four runs and had two hits, increasing his season average to .342. The shortstop has two or more hits in five of his last seven games.

Dustin Davidson (Brookhaven) completed the final two innings, facing the minimum, giving up just one hit.

Thomas Bridges (Northwestern U) is the projected HarbourCats starter for game two tomorrow against the Raptors at 6:35 PM. The right-hander will enter the game with a 0.45 ERA in 20 innings of work this season.

The HarbourCats are back home for an exciting weekend series against the Kelowna Falcons Friday, July 11 at 6:35 PM. Friday is Harvey’s Birthday, Saturday is a Fireworks night, and Sunday’s matinee is the always popular Bark in the Park game, where all dogs are welcome! Get tickets at harbourcats.com/tickets.

Season Tickets, 10 and 32-Game Flex Passes and Single Game Tickets are now on sale for all 33 home games and four “Showcase” events through the HarbourCats’ new and one-and-only ticketing partner SHOWPASS at harbourcats.com/tickets.

Tickets and merchandise can also be purchased in person at the HarbourCats office at 101-1814 Vancouver Street or by calling 778-265-0327.

For more updates, be sure to follow @HarbourCats on all social channels (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram).

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Summer Collegiate

NightOwls Fall In The Final Game Of The Series Against The HarbourCats

Published

19 hours ago

July 4, 2025

Dugout Wire Service

VICTORIA, B.C. — The Nanaimo NightOwls dropped the final game of the series 8-3 to the Victoria HarbourCats on Thursday night. The HarbourCats jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning and continued to add to it with six more runs between the third and sixth innings.

Nanaimo was able to get a couple of runs back thanks to home runs from Jacob Hayes and Tyler Arnold, but they couldn’t complete the comeback and ended up dropping both games at Royal Athletic Park. The NightOwls had three runs on nine hits with no errors. The Victoria HarbourCats finished the night with eight runs on 10 hits and no errors.

https://baseball.pointstreak.com/boxscore.html?gameid=620557

Starting Pitching Lino Zepeda went three innings, surrendering three earned runs on six hits while striking out three. Brennan Kettle and Jakin Rohne both came in relief and threw scoreless outings.

Kettle, a junior from Hawaii Pacific University, pitched 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up no hits and striking out one. Rohne went two innings, giving up no runs, no hits, and striking out two.

https://wcleague.watch.pixellot.tv/

The NightOwls made a late push in the game against the HarbourCats thanks to a pair of home runs. First it was Jacob Hayes who had a two run shot, he finished the night one for three with a HR, two RBI and a walk.

Jacob Hayes (@Jacobhayes2023, @APUBaseball) hit a 2-run homer in the eight that put @wclNightOwls on the board, his fourth of the summer. pic.twitter.com/qrwfAA21W8

— PNW College Baseball Report (@PNW_CBR) July 4, 2025

Tyler Arnold also got into the home run action in the ninth inning. He smacked a solo shot and finished the day one for four. Raoul Fabian Jr. continues to wield a hot bat as he went two for four with 2 singles and a run scored.

http://Nanaimonightowls.com/tickets

The loss drops the Nanaimo NightOwls to 12-15 on the season and 0-3 to start the second half. No time to worry about the series against the HarbourCats as the team heads right out to Edmonton for a Friday night game. Nanaimo swept the RiverHawks when they were in Nanaimo last week.

The road trip to Edmonton against the RiverHawks goes, Friday, Saturday and Sunday July 4th, 5th and 6th. Then the team will have a well deserved day off after 10 straight days of games. The NightOwls return home with a three game series against the Kelowna Falcons in a mid week matchup. That starts Tuesday July 8th at 6:35pm and continues Wednesday and Thursday at the same time. Make sure to follow us on social media for the latest NightOwls news and use the hashtag #IlluminateTheDark!

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