Summer Collegiate

Owls Dominant in Season-Ending Victory

Published

2 years ago

August 8, 2024

Dugout Wire Service

Infielder Aaron Marsh, a third-year Nanaimo-raised player from UBC who was named Nanaimo’s top player in 2023, capped his impactful career with the NightOwls with a towering sixth-inning home run to lead the NightOwls to a 7-1 season-ending win over the visiting Edmonton Riverhawks on Wednesday night at historic Serauxmen Stadium.

It was the final game of the third season of NightOwls baseball, and the place was busy with 1,892 in the stands, saying goodbye to a memorable group of classy baseball players.

Boxscore

The Marsh blast extended the lead to 5-0, and his teammates and coaches, led by Greg Frady, urged him out of the dugout for a curtain call.

The NightOwls were the cardiac kids, involved in 15 games decided by a run in the final inning and 11 of those ended as walkoff victories — if you turn Nanaimo’s 5-10 record in those suspenseful games around, the NightOwls are in first place in the second half.

Standings

Marsh’s blast aside, the story was the pitching staff led by Gorm Heimueller — holding Edmonton to two hits and one run, with Josh Torres allowing one hit and striking out four in three innings, followed by a strong inning from Fareed Ahmed, two innings of dominant pitching from Caden Pearlman, and an adventure from Hayden Cuthbertson where he escaped with just one run allowed.

Paul Montgomery and Issac Araiza put up more zeroes to complete the combined two-hitter, with a total of 14 strikeouts.

Tickets

Marsh left with a 3-4 night, raising his average to .322, and fellow big bat Wylie Waters, named the 2024 Player of the Year prior to the game, was 3-5 with, ho hum, another pair of RBIs. Cowboy Cole Carmichael was 2-4 as part of a NightOwls offence that scored in every inning except the fourth and seventh.

The NightOwls pounded out 12 hits in total.

The NightOwls finished 25-28, the best record of any WCL team not in the post season — eight of 16 teams advance.

Serauxmen Stadium will have playoff baseball, however, thanks to the City of Victoria decision to push the Victoria HarbourCats out of Royal Athletic Park for the post-season so the facility can hold a CFL game at the end of the month.

The HarbourCats will use Serauxmen Stadium to hold Game 1 of the one North Division semifinal series on Saturday night, a 6:35pm start with the Wenatchee AppleSox in Nanaimo. The second game of that series will be in Wenatchee on Sunday night and the third game, if needed will be Monday.

NightOwls season ticket holders get free tickets for the game, with tickets available for other seats through Select Your Tickets website as of Thursday evening, or at the gate — Nanaimo baseball fans can get a taste of WCL playoff action, adopting the HarbourCats as the home team for one night, and one night only.

Those who cannot make the game on Saturday can watch the Chris Jaycox Productions high-quality live stream on…

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Cats Fall 4-1 to Falcons

Published

12 hours ago

June 6, 2026

Dugout Wire Service

Missed opportunities with runners in scoring position led to a disappointing outcome for the Cats. (Photo by Victoria Spotlight Photography)

Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats were defeated 4-1 by the Kelowna Falcons on Friday night in the first game of the series.

Both sides’ bats stayed quiet until the third inning this evening, when the Falcons drove a pair of base hits up the middle, jumping out in front to a 2-0 lead.

BOX SCORE

Easton Reimers (North Dakota State) entered the game in the top of the fourth to relieve Cats starter Bryson Toner (Hawaii). Toner allowed two runs on five hits through his three innings on the bump this evening, throwing in a walk and a strikeout as well.

Reimers was excellent throughout his first two innings until a leadoff homer in the sixth broke his hitless streak. A second run scored on a passed ball before Reimers was able to get out of the inning and pass the baton to Jack Clark (CSU San Marcos).

The Cats offence woke up in the bottom of the seventh, loading the bases and scoring a run on a ball that dropped just fair in left field from Rohne Klein (San Jose State). That was the only run they got on this crucial opportunity, as the Falcons picked up a big strikeout to escape the jam and maintain a 4-1 lead.

Tate Collins (Arkansas State) claimed control of the mound for the Cats in the top of the eighth inning. Despite a leadoff walk, the Little Rock, Arizona native tossed a zero on the board to bring about the bottom of the eighth for the Victoria offence.

The Cats were unable to pull off a comeback after loading the bases in the bottom of the ninth, leaving the runners stranded and losing the ballgame 4-1

WCL STANDINGS

Victoria and Kelowna will be back in action Saturday, June 6 at 6:35 pm for game two of the weekend series.

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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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Cats Take Home Series Win on School Spirit Day

Published

2 days ago

June 5, 2026

Dugout Wire Service

Local schools packed the park for game three of the homestand!

Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats sent the School Spirit Day crowd home happy on Thursday afternoon, defeating the Edmonton Riverhawks 6-2 to clinch the series win.

The Cats got on the board early in this one thanks to a sizzling long ball off the bat of Matt Westley (George Mason) to lead off the second inning.

BOX SCORE

Right-hander Erik Rico (Fresno State) was utterly dominant through a four-inning start, allowing just one hit and racking up a septet of strikeouts over that span. Austin Lindsey (Hill College) took up the torch in the fifth inning, securing a quick three outs to preserve a 1-0 lead for Victoria.

The Cats put on a show in front of a crowd of 3,128 at Royal Athletic Park.

Victoria found another chance to score in the bottom of the sixth, with infielder Jax Heid (Southeast Oklahoma State) putting pressure on the Edmonton defence and bringing home a run to make it 2-0 for the HarbourCats. Dryden Fuoco (Hill College) wasted no time following up, rocking a line drive to left field and driving in two more.

The very next inning, Brady Hewitt (Fresno State) kicked the score and the energy up a couple notches. The Cats infielder utterly obliterated a baseball, ensuring same-day delivery to Pembroke Street on his second homer in as many days.

Hunter Daniels (Phoenix College) made a relief appearance in the eighth inning for the HarbourCats. The Arizona native allowed two runs, but a shutdown ninth inning from Asher Clark (Northern Colorado) cemented a 6-2 victory for the home team.

WCL STANDINGS

With a series win under their belts, the HarbourCats will take on the Kelowna Falcons for a weekend series, beginning Friday, June 5 at 6:35 pm.

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – HarbourCats Comeback Bid Unsuccessful in Loss to Riverhawks

Published

3 days ago

June 4, 2026

Dugout Wire Service

The Cats were unable to claw their way back in game two of the homestand. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats hit the field for a skirmish with the Edmonton Riverhawks Wednesday evening, coming up short in a 13-11 loss.

HarbourCats starter Daniel Tovar (Northern Kentucky) wrestled with command issues early on, hitting a batter and issuing two free passes to load the bases in the top of the first inning. Edmonton took advantage, driving a pair of doubles to take a 4-0 lead before Houston Tomlinson (Arkansas State) entered the game from the bullpen to get the final out of the opening frame.

BOX SCORE

The Riverhawks stayed on the attack in the second inning, driving in two more runs on a screamer down the left field line to extend their lead to 6-0.

Brady Hewitt (Fresno State) showed up ready to slug. The shortstop notched two leadoff hits; a triple and a homer. (Photo by JPM Photography)

A second-inning leadoff triple from shortstop Brady Hewitt (Fresno State) sparked a Victoria comeback attempt. After Hewitt scored on an errant throw by the Riverhawks catcher, a sacrifice fly off the bat of Rohne Klein (San Jose State) would bring in another run for the Cats, closing the gap to 6-2 in favour of Edmonton.

Edmonton answered right back in the top of the third, driving home a run that ended Houston Tomlinson’s outing. Tomlinson, an Arkansas State sophomore from Spring, Texas, pitched 1.2 innings, allowing three runs on four hits with two strikeouts. Summoned from the pen was Landon Marchetti (San Jose State), who quickly secured two outs to head back to the dugout down 7-2.

Marchetti found himself in the midst of a tough spot in the top of the fourth, and a barely fair ball down the line in right field gave the Riverhawks a 9-2 lead.

Outfielder Kade Davis (UTSA) earned three walks in the loss. (Photo by JPM Photography)

The Cats struck back in the bottom of the fourth. Brady Hewitt (Fresno State) blasted a solo homer well beyond the left field wall, followed up by two more runs when the Edmonton infield decided to engage in a snowball fight. The inning came to an end with a sizeable dent in the Riverhawks’ lead, bringing the score to 9-5.

HarbourCats hurler Spencer Kratt (San Jose State) assumed control of the mound to begin the fifth inning, deftly tossing a much-needed zero on the board. Kratt returned for the sixth, surrendering a run to push the Hawks to double digits.

Victoria made things interesting two more runs in the seventh inning and three in the eighth, but Edmonton’s three-run shot in the top of the eighth inning kept them in front for a 13-11 win.

WCL STANDINGS

The HarbourCats take the field at 11:05 am tomorrow for the first School Spirit Game of the season, and will host the Kelowna Falcons for a three-game series this weekend.

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