West Coast League
The Cats Report (Vol.1) – ‘10 Years of HarbourCat History with Jim Swanson’)
Good morning to all of my fellow Islanders and HarbourCats faithful spread around the globe. Here is hoping that you all managed a productive week filled with restful sleep & woke up inspired for yet another season with our beloved HarbourCats squad. How sweet it is! Although you may be more familiar with my fan-focussed…
Published
2 years agoon


Good morning to all of my fellow Islanders and HarbourCats faithful spread around the globe. Here is hoping that you all managed a productive week filled with restful sleep & woke up inspired for yet another season with our beloved HarbourCats squad. How sweet it is!
Although you may be more familiar with my fan-focussed rumblings regarding the Victoria Royals, I couldn’t be more excited to launch the 1st Annual ‘The Cats Report’.
What can the reader & community expect from The Cats Report this summer? Well, this platform has two specific purposes. Firstly, this creative outlet is both a fabulous & fun as heck method to sharpen my pen. That’s it. Secondly, as has always been the goal with The Royals Report, this website has been established to further connect this great organization with this incredible gathering of support on the Island. I love Sports. I love this community. So, without further adieu, let’s get this analysis rolling.
With this being the 10th Anniversary Season of the HarbourCats, I wanted to begin The Inaugural Cats Report with a 10th Anniversary-inspired bang. What would be the best way to accomplish that, you ask? I looked to none other than the man himself, Managing Partner, Head Honcho, & all-around good guy, Jim Swanson. We spoke at length & in detail for our first article, a Ten-minute / Ten Year historical analysis of the Victoria HarbourCats.
10-Minute History with Jim Swanson
Last week, I sat down with Jim Swanson to pick his brain about the last ten years of both his life & his memories of the HarbourCats. This 10-Minute History will be a continuous theme throughout this anniversary season, and I figured there was no better candidate to open up this segment with. So, let’s get it popping.
2013 – Inaugural Season (22W – 32L / Finished 9.5 Games Back / Missed Playoffs)
The 2013 HarbourCats season came and went without any involvement from Jim himself. During the inaugural campaign, the original ownership & management group struggled to navigate the collective complexities of launching & heading a WCL franchise. These complexities & the resulting falling-out of the two ultimately opened the door to Jim’s arrival on the Island in late ’13.
Outside of the Wins, fallouts, & Losses, Jim accredits that opening season to building a remarkably stable foundation for the Franchise on the Island. At a time when the sustainability of a baseball Franchise in Victoria was highly questionable, Victorian fan support was remarkable. Not only were large, knowledgeable, and vocal crowds a regular feature of the inaugural HarbourCat season, the fan base set an attendance record that year when hosting the WCL All-Star Game (4,200).
Jim’s Life: In 2013, Jim was living & working in Prince George, post his career as a renowned Sports journalist, investing his passion for baseball into coaching the Team BC Baseball PeeWee All-Stars to the World Series (Finished 3rd Place). In addition, Jim was busy in his third stint as the chairman of the World Baseball Challenge, which PG also hosted that year. At the end of 2013, Jim admittedly knew very little about Victoria, & less of the HarbourCats before receiving a call ‘out of the blue’ late that orbit.
‘Jim, what do you think about the idea of Victoria & baseball?’ was the question at the core of that unexpected call, and as one could expect, it was difficult for him to turn away and not be interested. Luckily for Victoria & the entire Island community, Jim wasted little time & accepted the offer to take over as GM, & later as owner, of the Franchise less than a year into its existence.
Headed into 2014, the Cats were under the new guidance, ready to take the organization to a whole new level by combining terrific talent on the field with a community-first focus off the field.
Franchise Highlights (2013):
—> Hosted the All-Star Game, set a then attendance record of 4,200 fans
—> Roster was Highlighted by Nick Pivetta (Boston Red Sox) & Alex De Goti (Minny Twins)
2014 – (25W – 29L / Finished 12 Games Back / Missed Playoffs)
Jim admittedly had a lot to learn at the onset of 2014. His first time living in Victoria. His first time running a baseball organization. His first time meeting long-standing members of the island community. Moving his family & life out to the Pacific coast. There were plenty of firsts to navigate throughout those initial steps of growth.
Despite all the uncertainties & difficulties of transition, Jim instantly understood the depth of baseball talent he had agreed to manage. Nathan Lukes & Alex De Goti headed an incredibly talented team that season, which admittedly, by Swanson, underachieved due to a lack of cohesion & style of play. Head Coach that season, Bob Miller & a young staff of assistants couldn’t harness the talents to achieve a winning record as the Cats missed the Playoffs by 12 games.
Off the field, the HarbourCats engagement & presence in the community flourished in 2014. Victoria’s beloved mascot, Harvey the HarbourCat, combined with several community focussed initiatives, helped grow attendance & establish long-standing roots.
At a time when the future of the Franchise was uncertain due to behind the scene issues & ownership changes, a new ownership group headed by Swanson took over, got down to business, and made some necessary changes to stabilize and save baseball once again on the Island. The stability established in the wake of this organizational turnaround ultimately set the tone for the Franchise headed forward into the 2015 season, both off & on the field.
Franchise Highlights (2014):
—> Roster was highlighted by Alex De Goti (Minny Twins) & Nathan Lukes (Toronto Blue Jays)
—> New Ownership Group takes over Franchise, saved organization from folding.
—> Graig Merritt (former Tampa Rays scout of 7 years) takes over HC duties.
2015 – (29W – 25L / Finished 3.5 Games Back / Missed Playoffs)
As with any significant alteration in life, there is always a feeling-out period that follows any massive adjustment. What happens at the top ultimately affects the rest. With the organizational & HC changes, the team on the field underachieved to begin the 2015 campaign going a fizzled 8W – 16L in their opening 24 games. What happened after that goes down in the lore of a now reputable winning organization. Not only was the respected & invigorating new coaching staff rounding the corner into becoming a Franchise focussed on developing winners, but the organization was now drawing players from major American Colleges & Universities. Once the community catches wind of UCLA, Arizona, and Texas being represented on the GameDay Program & over the loudspeakers, attention and excitement spike. Combine those two elements amid a beautiful Summer on the Pacific Coast, and you’ve immediately built a healthy recipe for stability & success. That’s exactly how it played out over the next 24 months.
The HarbourCats finished 2015 going a sizzling 21W – 8L, led by LHP Josh Mitchell (Minny Twins), but the red-hot Cats couldn’t qualify for the postseason, missing the Playoffs by 3.5 games. Despite the lack of mid-August ball, the community, staff, and returning players knew what 2016 had in store for the Franchise.
Franchise Highlights (2015):
—> Roster was highlighted by Josh Mitchell (Minny Twins), Alex De Goti (Minny Twins)
—> First time the Franchise finished over 0.500 Win %
2016 – (40W – 14L / Finished 1st Overall in WCL / Lost in Playoffs)
Not only did the HarbourCats end the 2015 campaign as hot as a pistol, but the organization & staff made it a focus to push their recruiting to a new level in 2016.
Despite stumbling out of the gates, mired with behind the scene chaos, and losing their first three games in Walla Walla, the Cats miraculously rattled off 19 consecutive Wins (a WCL Record) to finish off the 1st half of the Season 21W – 4L. Not only did the Cats clinch a playoff spot only 21 games into the season, but the Island also set a WCL attendance record on June 30th, when 5,240 faithful blessed Royal Athletic Park.
As the success continued, the community’s excitement & attendance surged in response. Victoria is not an ideal town for a struggling sports franchise to call home. Why? As the current cost of living can attest, failure is not a virtue looked upon with understanding on this Island.
Luckily for Victoria, the Cats cruised through the 2nd half of 2016 excellently, ending 17W – 10L, fully primed for a Championship run.
Victoria did end up being defeated in a pair of heartbreakers to Bellingham, ultimately falling short of the Championship lore. Despite the sting of the losses to close out 2016, the Franchise, as a success story, was now carved in both WCL & Victorian legend.
Franchise Highlights (2016):
—> Roster was highlighted by an incredible pitching Staff… Josh Mitchell went 7W – 0L leading the charge, AJ Alcantara (Cal. Irvine). Notably, Josh Mitchell went down with an injury in the 2016 Playoffs.
—> The HarbourCats set several league records that year, highlighted by an incredible 19-Game winning streak. Jim is on record stating that the 2016 winning streak will never be broken, and I won’t argue. That is an incredible number to marvel at.
—> Jim won WCL Executive of the Year in 2016 & named to Canada’s Top 100 in Baseball List.
—> After compiling a record of 69W – 41L at the helm, the Cats relieved HC Graig Merritt of his duties. Merritt was replaced by Brian McRae (Kansas City, among others in MLB).
2017 – (29W – 25L / Qualified for the Post-Season / Beat Kelowna 2 – 0 in Round One / Lost in Championship)
Under the tutelage of former MLB standout Brian McRae, HarbourCat baseball was at high tide at the outset of 2017. In addition to the impressive signing of a former MLB standout as HC, the Cats also signed a uniquely talented left-handed pitcher. Unlike most off-season signings in the WCL, this specific addition to the roster created a significant buzz in both the community & the baseball world when announced. Claire Eccles, the first-ever female to play in the WCL, joined the already stacked HarbourCats roster. Her presence, as well as her funky, swinging, left-handed delivery, caught the attention of everybody within the island’s limits.
With Eccles & Company in tow, the HarbourCats battled through the 2017 campaign to finish 29W – 25L, qualifying for the Playoffs & a 1st Round matchup with Kelowna.
Using the memory of 2016’s elimination as fuel, the Cats swept Kelowna, booking their ticket to the Franchise’s first-ever WCL Championship.
In what Jim describes as ‘The most exciting game in the team’s history’, facing the Corvallis Knights in Game One of the Championship series, The Cats rallied in the bottom of the 9th inning to win dramatically. Cats’ legend, Po Hao Huang aka Bernie! (First Taiwanese player in WCL History) drove home the game’s winning run with a laser over the CF’s head, locking in the City’s first-ever Championship Series Game win in front of the Island’s faithful.
Despite the heroic win in Game One at home, the Cats failed to complete the Championship run amid the next two games in Corvallis. Both games were nail-biters coming down to critical moments that could’ve gone either way in hindsight, yet weren’t meant to end in Victoria’s favour.
Jim made it precise that his squad overachieved in 2017, yet ultimately & remarkably, that resilient bunch was one swing away from a WCL Championship title. One thing for sure is the acknowledgement of an ongoing rivalry with Corvallis that is alive & well, and The Cats Report is here for that type of Tea in 2023.
Franchise Highlights (2017):
—> Roster was highlighted by Claire Eccles (Team Canada), Po Hao Huang ‘Bernie’ (Wei Chuan – CPBL), Andrew Vaughn (Chicago WhiteSox), Adam McKillican (Colorado Rockies)
—> The Cats featured two WCL 1st’s that year, with Eccles (1st Female Player) & Huang (1st Taiwanese-born Player) setting a standard of inclusivity & professionalism.
2018 – (27W – 27L / Finished 3rd in Conference / Missed the Playoffs)
In what would be HC Brian McRae’s last season at the helm, another deep bullpen featuring Eccles & Company, and a full-powered lineup featuring the likes of Hunter Vansau, Harrison Spohn, and Caleb Ricketts, the HarbourCats were in Championship or bust mode.
Unfortunately, being bluntly clarified as both a disappointing & underachieving campaign for the Islanders, the team meandered to a 27W – 27L record, missing out on the 2018 Playoffs in frustrating fashion in Portland, facing the rival Pickles on the last evening of the season.
Although Jim’s description of that season was tainted with the lingering frustration & bitter memories from how it ended early, he reiterated the following. The HarbourCats Organization intends to win & make the playoffs every year, and results like 2018 are not to be accepted as typical for the HarbourCats franchise. You’ve got to love that as a fan.
Franchise Highlights (2018):
—> Roster was highlighted by Claire Eccles (Team Canada), Hunter Vansau (Miss. State), Harrison Spohn (Miami Marlins), Caleb Ricketts (Philadelphia Phillies).
—> Hunter Vansau set a Franchise record for Home Runs that year by notching 14 spanning 2017-2018.
—> Brian McRae was relived of his HC duties in the fall of 2018, and was replaced by current HC Todd Haney, the Franchise.
2019 – (39W – 15L / Finished 1st in Conference / Qualified for the Playoffs / Beat Wenatchee 2 – 1 in Round One / Lost in Championship)
The lead-up to the 2019 season saw an offseason filled with top-heavy organizational transition. As is usually the case with the talent on the field in the WCL, the HarbourCats brass was also privy to a complete makeover that year.
Current General Manager Christian Stewart was brought on board, solidifying the front office. A significant feather in the cap of this already dedicated staff.
Victoria also brought Curtis Pelletier into the fold that offseason, who continues to have a significant impact in both the Front Office & the betterment of the players on the field in 2023.
On the field, out was HC Brian McRae, and in, was another long-time MLB veteran and current HarbourCats HC, Todd Haney. During our interview, Jim made it exceedingly clear that there was only one candidate in his pursuit of the new HC, and he didn’t offer a discussion to anybody else but Haney in that regard. In his words, ‘Todd was absolutely the right coach, and he can stay as long as he wants.’.
As a team in 2019, the HarbourCats went a spectacular 39W – 15L. Despite their incredible record, Victoria still had to wait until the final hours of the regular season, a make-up game to be exact, to know their playoff fate due to the competitive nature of the WCL.
Regardless of the tight finish, they managed to sneak into the post-season, facing Wenatchee in the 1st Round. In the face of elimination after losing Game 1 on the road, the Cats took Games 2, and 3, once again qualifying for the Championship series.
Of note, Jim made sure to point out that if anybody, especially a Victoria baseball fan, needs to watch an incredible game on YouTube, watch the final four innings of Game 3 of that North Final. A rollercoaster of a Win that’s forever cemented in Franchise lore.
In their second Championship Series, the Cats faced none other than Corvallis, whom they played for all the marbles back in 2017.
Victoria did end up losing that hard-fought series 2-1 to their perennial nemesis.
Nonetheless, outside the W’s & L’s, there were a few significant & notable moments that took place in the finals for Jim’s family, and ultimately the connections of those moments to what ensued globally in the following months.
Firstly, Jim’s son, Zach Swanson (Park University-Gilbert), got the starter’s nod in Game 1 of the Championship Series. Truly an incredible Family achievement for the Swanson’s, one that would be celebrated as a player, executive and loving family.
In a weird twist of reality, by starting Game 1, Zach would end up in the history books as the last pitcher to start a baseball game on the mound in Victoria until almost three years later. And thus, we jump ahead to 2020.
Franchise Highlights (2019):
—> Roster was highlighted by Harrison Spohn (Miami Marlins), Dakota Hawkins (Washington State), Griffen Paxton (UTSA), Ryan Watson (Georgia State), Nick Plaia (California Baptist)
—> Cats solidify their front office with hiring of Christian Stewart, Curtis Pelletier, and HC Todd Haney
—> Victoria qualified for the 2nd Championship Series Final in its brief 6-Year history as an organization. Impressive stuff.
2020 / 2021 – (The HarbourCats paused all organizational activities due to the Covid- 19 Virus)
Ten days before the World shut down to a complete halt of all things related to normalcy, Jim was busy birthing another baseball Franchise on the beautiful Pacific Island.
On March 5th, 2020, the WCL awarded Jim his second WCL Franchise, and thus the Nanaimo NightOwls came to life. Not more than ten days later, the World was under the grip of the Covid-19 Virus, and baseball on the Pacific Coast & around the planet came to a screeching halt.
Despite the absence of live sports & entertainment opportunities during that stretch, the fans & community still rallied around the HarbourCats & the WCL.
Buy-in offers were abundant, and within the chaos created by the Virus, the pause, & its handling, true philanthropic empathy was on display.
Jim mentioned that the organization was much closer to folding in 2014 than it ever was during the 2020/21 pandemic years, and he thanked the community for that respect.
The entire WCL paused all activities in 2020 as a whole, yet put together a schedule for 2021 that didn’t include the HarbourCats. Why? Due to a last-minute decision by the Canadian government to keep the U.S./Canada border closed due to Covid-19 restrictions, the Cats were obligated to opt out of their second consecutive season. This after they had successfully recruited & signed complete rosters for both years.
One major accomplishment of the HarbourCats organization, and Jim’s most critical takeaway from the Pandemic years, was the reality that they managed to keep everybody within the franchise employed & working towards the inevitable return to baseball, not just the operations. As we all were privy to the chaos & unemployment that became a reality in those years, this was borderline a heroic response by this much-heralded franchise.
After the World returned to normalcy, it became clear that the HarbourCats survived the pandemic in unprecedented fashion. This survival was especially triumphant, considering it occurred in a city that had cycled through numerous baseball & sports franchises spanning the previous 30+ years. Yet another reason to ride full-tilt with the Cats in 2023.
2022 – (26W – 28L / Qualified for the Playoffs / Lost out in 1st Round)
After the chaos of the pandemic years, the Cats were back to business in 2022. Despite fielding a team for the first time in two years, the organization felt a bit of a pinch establishing a winning culture lost during the previous 24 months. With that said, Victoria got out to a slow start but rounded into typical HarbourCats form down the final stretch of the playoff push. Despite a lack of depth in the bullpen & on the mound, multiplied with incomprehensible roster adjustments due to the transfer portal & collegiate commitments, Victoria still managed to rally late in the season to make the Playoffs last year.
In the Post-Season, Victoria ended up getting swept in the opening round by Bellingham, but the core of this talented roster & returning 2023 players gained some invaluable experience that can only bode well headed into this year.
Franchise Highlights (2022):
—> Roster was highlighted by Joseph Redfield (Sam Houston St.), Andre Duplantier II (Texas), Grady Morgan (Fresno St.), Jesse Brown (Santa Barbara), Cooper Crompton (Iowa Western)
—> A significant number of talented players from 2022 will be returning for the 10th Anniversary of the Franchise.
—> The Cats renewed their City of Victoria lease with Royal Athletic Park, solidifying their homebase for the next 5+ years.
—> Todd Haney will return in 2023 furthering his quest to bring a WCL Championship to the Island.
In Conclusion:
Let me conclude by thanking Jim Swanson and the HarbourCats for granting me such an incredible interview & piece of local Victoria lore. Despite my best efforts to condense this almost hour-long interview into a blog/social media format, there were numerous gems that I had to leave out of the article and save for future fodder. With that said, I will be interviewing Jim again several times throughout this 10th Anniversary Year, and I can’t wait to keep bringing HarbourCats content your way from here on out. It’s truthfully my pleasure.
PS. Send me a message if you’d like to hear the full audio.
If you’ve read this far, thank you very much for your time & concentration. Let’s go, Cats.
A new 10-Minute History with HC Todd Haney is dropping next Week.
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Summer Collegiate
Weird, Wild and Wacky: NorthPaws get the W in their home opener




Published
4 hours agoon
June 7, 2025The Kamloops NorthPaws finally returned home after a six-game road trip and treated their fans to a 12-8 victory over the Kelowna Falcons on Friday night. The team’s home opener had a little bit of everything. The two teams combined for 20 runs, 23 hits and eight errors, keeping the crowd on the edge of their seats.
Kelowna would waste no time getting on the board, with three singles propelling them to a 2-0 lead. In the bottom of the first, shortstop Elijah Clayton would walk and then steal second base. A high throw by the catcher sent the ball into center field; additionally, the center fielder misplayed the ball, allowing Clayton to score.
Back-to-back walks and a base hit loaded the bases with no one out as first baseman Keegan Drinkle sent a sacrifice fly to left field, tying the game. Later in the inning, right fielder Jared Hall doubled, bringing in two more runs and taking the lead.
The seesaw battle would begin as the Falcons scored in the second via a wild pitch and took a 5-4 lead off a fielder’s choice and an error in the third. In the bottom of the fourth, Ethan Kodama singled, tying the game, and would later advance to third after an error on a failed pickoff attempt. Kodama scored via a sacrifice fly to restore the NorthPaws lead.
The Falcons would stay pesky by driving in a run in the fifth and score two more runs in the seventh, taking an 8-7 lead. Kamloops tied the game after yet another RBI from Jared Hall. This time, it was a sacrifice fly. The seventh inning ended strangely, however, as second baseman Anthony Setticassi sent a single through the left side. Keegan Drinkle rounded third and was heading for home when the throw beat him. As he tried to avoid the tag, he ran into the side of the Kelowna catcher, knocking the ball loose from his glove.
Drinkle stepped on home and was initially called safe, but the Falcons catcher was furious and tried to go after him but was held back. Drinkle continued to walk toward the dugout, but the home plate umpire ejected him from the game right there, and he was called out, negating the potential game-tying run.
Kalen Applefield would replace him at first base, but the NorthPaws were determined to retake the lead in the eigth. A pair of Falcon errors put runners on second and third. Third baseman Kieran Gaffney sent a single to right field that tied the game. Outfielders Austin Coyle and Jared Hall both doubled, scoring four runs and sending the crowd into a frenzy.
“My teammates put me in a great position, and I’m thankful I was able to come through tonight,” said Hall
The five-run eighth inning was enough, as hometown kid Nolan Austin shut the door, securing the fifth win of the season for the NorthPaws. Austin was terrific on the mound, going two and two-thirds innings, giving up just two hits while not surrendering a run.
“Nolan was fantastic; he had all of his pitches working and was going after hitters all night,” said Pitching Coach Jack Slominski.
After a series in Bellingham that saw the NorthPaw bats cool down, it was a refreshing sight to see situational hitting work in their favour.
“We left a lot of guys on base in Bellingham, so it was nice to come home and execute,” said Assistant Coach Trey Newman.
For many of the NorthPaw players, this was their first taste of intense baseball at Norbrock Stadium. For Trey Newman, it was a similar experience in 2022, and he remarked on how cool it was to hear the stadium loud again. Newman is eager to help the NorthPaws regain what they had three summers ago.
“I was telling everyone that this is what the stadium sounded like when we played at home. Keep coming out to Norbrock. I promise we will give you something to cheer about,” said Newman.
The NorthPaws will visit Kelowna for the first time tomorrow night. That game will be available on West Coast TV as well as the NorthPaws Mixlr. On Sunday, the team is back home for an afternoon game to conclude the three-game weekend series. The first pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.
Summer Collegiate
Victoria HarbourCats – Lefties take game one in resounding fashion




Published
21 hours agoon
June 7, 2025

Logan Shepherd celebrates his first home run of the season (Photo: Justin P. Morash)
June 6, 2025
For immediate release
VICTORIA, B.C. – The Port Angeles Lefties won their second straight game, spoiling the party on the Victoria HarbourCats home opener, cruising to a 9-3 win.
The HarbourCats got off to a great start when Logan Shepherd (Tacoma CC) hit a 109 MPH laser over the left field wall for a two-run home run, giving his team an early 2-0 lead. The designated hitter went two for four tonight, adding a single in the eighth.
Jack Finn (Illinois State) started for the hosts and looked good through his first two innings of work. The Victoria native added velocity to his fastball, sitting high 80’s and touching 90 MPH tonight. That is up from last season, where he pitched 25 innings for the Cats, posting a 3.96 ERA. Finn struck out four, walked three, and gave up two earned runs on four hits in 2-2/3 innings of work.
Eric Valdiva tied the game in the third inning with a two-out, two-run double to deep left-centre field. He came home after a Jack Johnson throwing error allowed him to score, giving the Lefties a 3-2 lead.
Jake Cumming pitched four innings out of the bullpen for Port Angeles and was utterly dominant. He gave up zero runs on zero hits while striking out seven batters. His fastball sat mid-90s, which he paired with a wipeout slider that the HarbourCats hitters had no answer for.
Xander McAfee has four hits in his first four games (Photo: Justin P. Morash)
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Hudson Lance (Coastal Carolina) ate up meaningful innings out of the bullpen and was efficient in doing so. He threw 4-1/3 innings in just 50 pitches, loading up the zone using his entire repertoire. The freshman gave up two runs on five hits.
Jalen Sami (Golden Tide) pitched the eighth inning, giving up two runs on two hits while striking out one. John Ondus (Niagara) pitched the ninth and didn’t fare much better, giving up two runs on three hits while striking out three.
Jack Johnson (Baylor) continued his hot start to the season, crushing a hanging breaking ball over the left field fence for a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth.
Debutant Connor Ross (Cal Baptist) played third base and recorded his first HarbourCats hit, going one for four.
The two teams are back at it tomorrow at 6:35 PM for the first of four FIREWORKS nights! Gates open early at 5:00 PM. Get tickets at harbourcats.com/tickets
Missed the game? Catch HarbourCats in 30 airing at 10:30 PM after every home game all season long on CHEK TV.
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.
Summer Collegiate
A wild first inning proves to be enough as the NorthPaws avoid the sweep in Bellingham




Published
2 days agoon
June 6, 2025The Kamloops NorthPaws avoided the sweep in Bellingham and defeated the Bells 6-2 on Thursday night. The NorthPaws scored all six of their runs in the first inning and held the fort down, shutting down the Bell’s offence and only giving up five hits.
Bellingham would turn to highly touted South Dakota right-handed pitcher Jackson Dial, who will be attending Washington State in the fall. The first NorthPaw he faced was center fielder Ethan Kodama, who saw three straight balls before getting hit by the next pitch. Dial would strikeout left fielder Cade Palkowski, walk third baseman Kieran Gaffney, strikeout right fielder Kalen Applefield and hit catcher Brendan Burke, loading the bases with two outs.
With first baseman Joe Gagnon at the plate, Dial would throw a wild pitch, allowing Kodama to score the first run of the game. Gagnon would later draw a walk, reloading the bases. Second baseman Joey Marino was next up, and Dial would plunk him, bringing in another run.
The nightmare wasn’t over yet for Dial as he issued his third walk of the inning to shortstop Anthony Setticassi. Designated hitter Dylan Dekker was making his debut at the plate and sent a line drive down the first base line, driving in two runs and making it 5-0.
Dial was pulled after only two-thirds of an inning. Kodama was back at bat with Dekker on first and Setticassi on third. Before Kodama saw a pitch, Dekker took off for second while Setticassi ran home. Dekker sacrificed himself, ending the inning but allowing the sixth run to score.
Kamloops sent out righty Owen Fernandes on the mound to make his second start of the season. The Bells would get a run back via a sacrifice fly at the bottom of the first. In the third, a leadoff triple set up the Bells to capitalize on yet another sacrifice fly to make it a four-run ballgame.
Fernandes would throw four strong innings, giving up only one earned run while striking out two batters. Righty Jayson Tamayo was the first call out of the bullpen and walked the first to hitters he faced. A flyout and an infield hit loaded the bases with one out as the Bells were all of a sudden within striking distance. Tamayo got a clutch strikeout and a groundout to leave the bases loaded and preserve the four-run lead.
“If they convert there, it’s a different game. He made big pitches when he had to, and that definitely helped us lock up the game,” said Pitching Coach Jack Slominski.
Rightys Daxton Vanderkooi, Lukas Dykstra and Cade Webber each came into the game and pitched clean innings giving up three combined hits all while not walking a single batter. Webber struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth, securing the win.
In game two, the NorthPaws scored first, but mistakes on the mound cost them; tonight, the NorthPaws flipped the script on the Bells.
“The last two nights, we were behind the eight ball for most of the game, so it was nice to get a big lead early; I think it helped everyone settle down,” said Head Coach Reily Jepson.
The six-game road trip is over, and with the win, the NorthPaws head back to Kamloops with a 4-2 record.
“It’s been a tough stretch playing six games on the road in two separate trips, but it will be nice to get back home and play in front of our fans,” said Jepson.
Next up for the NorthPaws, a weekend home-and-home series against the Kelowna Falcons, with games at Norbrock Stadium on Friday night and Sunday afternoon.
Weird, Wild and Wacky: NorthPaws get the W in their home opener


Victoria HarbourCats – Lefties take game one in resounding fashion
A wild first inning proves to be enough as the NorthPaws avoid the sweep in Bellingham
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Smart hitting, aggressive baserunning and stellar pitching on display in opening-day victory
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Summer Collegiate1 week ago
Victoria HarbourCats – HarbourCats comeback late, win opener 6-4
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Summer Collegiate7 days ago
NorthPaws fall behiend early but claw their way to another dominant victory
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Summer Collegiate6 days ago
Victoria HarbourCats – New coffee cart highlights impressive food truck lineup
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Summer Collegiate1 week ago
Victoria HarbourCats – Before the ‘Cats land at home, Wilson’s Group Stadium will be busy!
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