NANAIMO, B.C. – The Victoria HarbourCats set season highs in hits and runs, beating the Nanaimo NightOwls 14-5, evening up the series.
For the second straight night, the Cats got on the board in the opening frame, this time through a Connor Ross (Cal Baptist) RBI infield single, making it 1-0. The NightOwls answered back right away in the bottom half when an Eli Watson double brought home two runs. The visitors then added a pair of their own in the top of the second to restore their one-run advantage. Owen Clyne (George Mason) hit an RBI single that was followed by a Jack Johnson (Baylor) sacrifice fly.
Robert Sanford (Paris JC) made his second start and third appearance of the season, going three innings, giving up two runs on three hits while striking out a pair.
The Cats added three more runs in the fourth inning, and it was the top of the order doing the damage once more. Clyne drove in two runs with a single and then came across to score on a Ross base hit.
In the fifth inning, Victoria tacked on five more runs to give them a resounding 11-2 lead. Clyne hit a two-run triple down the left field line, and Logan Shepherd (Tacoma CC) drove in a pair with a single. Clyne finished the night with four hits, two walks, five RBIs, and five runs scored.
Shepherd hit his third home run of the season and second in this series with a seventh-inning two-run blast, increasing the lead to 13-2. The sophomore is on a five-game hit streak with 10 hits and nine RBIs.
Ben Hewitt (Ottawa) threw back-to-back one-two-three innings in the fourth and fifth before Ethan McNish-Heider (Niagara) took over from there. He pitched 2-2/3 innings, giving up two earned runs on one hit, but struggled with his control, walking five. Jacob Thompson (Minot State) wrapped up the game with 1-1/3 shutout innings.
Cayden Munster (Fresno State) made his Cats debut and went two for five, including an RBI single in the ninth. His Fresno State teammate Jett Ruby was also in the lineup for the first time this season and walked twice and scored a run. Jacob Silva (TCU) made his second straight start behind the plate and went three for five and drew a walk.
The rubber match is tomorrow in Victoria at 11:00 AM. It is Mayfair Optometric’s annual School Spirit Game. Thousands of students will be in attendance to provide an incredible atmosphere. In last year’s game, the HarbourCats won on a walk-off single against the NightOwls.
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.
Cats hitters have racked up a total of 28 hits over two games in this series so far, 12 of them coming from tonight. (Photo by JPM Photography)
Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats clinched a series win over the Bellingham Bells on Saturday night, outworking the Bells on the way to a 6-2 victory.
Seattle native Quincey Brown (UCSD) was not messing around in his first start as a HarbourCat. Brown sat down three Bells on strikes on the first inning and stacked up two more punchouts before stepping aside for Davis Lee (Calgary) in the third inning.
The Cats finally broke the deadlock in the bottom of the fourth inning. Shortstop Brady Hewitt (Fresno State) got on base with a leadoff single and stole second, later wheeling around third on a Rohne Klein (San Jose State) base hit to score the first run of the game. Lukas Le Gras (Westmont) doubled the lead with a double off the wall, bringing Klein in to score before stealing home on a wild pitch to widen the lead to 3-0. David Krahn (UBC) clubbed his second homer in two games over the left field fence, and a double from Jacob Silva (UTSA) capped off the inning with an RBI double to widen the lead to 5-0.
Davis Lee called it a night in the top of the sixth after holding the line for 2.2 innings and keeping Bellingham’s score at a nice round number. Leif Friedrich (Concordia-Nebraska) came in for his HarbourCats debut and kept it rolling, securing the outs needed to move on to the bottom of the inning.
Lukas Le Gras had a strong offensive showing, going 2/4 with a double. (Photo by JPM Photography)
The Cats added some insurance in the bottom of the sixth, a Tristan Buehring (Whitman) sacrifice fly for Victoria’s sixth run. Carson Ackermann (Tacoma) was the next arm out of the pen for the HarbourCats. The right-hander quickly found himself in a bases-loaded jam and allowed the first two runs of the ballgame for the Bells before escaping the frame.
Ackermann stuck it out until the top of the ninth, when Anson Stuckly (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) took over, stranding a couple of runners and closing out a 6-2 win.
The Bellingham series comes to a close at 1:05 pm on Sunday afternoon, preceding a midweek series against the Nanaimo NightOwls beginning on Tuesday night.
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.
Victoria unleashed 11 runs in the sixth inning, paving the way to a resounding win over the top team in the West Coast League. (Photo by JPM Photography)
Victoria, B.C. – A grand slam followed by an 11-run inning led to a robust win over the Bellingham Bells on Friday night, with the Cats claiming a 17-6 win.
The Cats looked a little trigger-happy in the first third of the game, only seeing 15 pitches from Bellingham’s starter. This enthusiasm didn’t earn much, with just two HarbourCats reaching base in a quick three innings.
On the other side of the coin, Jeremiah Arnett (Rice) made quick work of the Bells as well, refusing to allow them the luxury of a hit through four innings and earning five strikeouts on the side. Jake Rafferty (Tacoma) took up the torch for the fifth, getting himself into a sticky situation with a couple of wild pitches before finding his way out with a zero on the board.
Jeremiah Arnett allowed zero runs in a four-inning start. (Photo by JPM Photography)
The HarbourCats finally dug their claws in for the bottom of the fifth, loading the bases just in time for David Krahn (UBC). The British Columbia local stepped up to the plate and delivered, utterly pulverizing a ball to left field for an electrifying grand slam, breaking the seal and taking a 4-0 lead for the home side.
Bellingham responded passionately in the next inning, sneaking a run in on a base hit followed by a three-run blast off of Cats reliever Spencer Kratt (San Jose State). Victoria shrugged it off and pulled out all the stops in the bottom of the fifth, taking advantage of a Bellingham error and finding hits from Lukas Le Gras (Westmont), Bryan Bradshaw (UC San Diego), Rohne Klein (San Jose State) et al to jump out in front of the Bells. By the time the smoke cleared on a long sixth inning, the Cats were suddenly up 15-4. Not too shabby.
Surrey, B.C.’s Marcus Janovsky (UBC) entered the game in the seventh to face a battered and bruised group of Bells, who snuck home on a sloppy relay from the outfield to scratch away at the 11-run lead standing over them.
Unwilling to let up after taking a comfortable lead, the Cats kept their foot on the gas in the bottom of the seventh. Designated hitter Jacob Silva (UTSA) batted in a pair of runs with a one-out single, pushing the score to a humble 17-6 with two innings to go.
Hunter Daniels (Phoenix College) came in from the bullpen to dot the i’s and cross the t’s on a booming victory for the HarbourCats in their first game against the top team in the West Coast League Standings.
The Cats get another crack at the Bells on Saturday night at 6:35 pm, and the series comes to an end with an afternoon game on Sunday.
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.
Despite out-hitting the NightOwls, two solo homers in the fourth inning was all Nanaimo needed to overpower the visiting Cats. (Photo by JPM Photography)
Nanaimo, B.C. – The Island Rivalry Series came to an end in Nanaimo on Thursday evening, with the Cats offence held quiet in a 2-1 loss to the NightOwls.
Erik Rico (Fresno State) was dominant in the opening third of the ballgame, keeping Nanaimo scoreless with six strikeouts. The Cats starter wavered in the bottom of the fourth, surrendering a solo homer for the first blemish on his previously spotless ERA this season. The NightOwls took the opportunity to pummel another ball over the wall, taking a 2-0 lead by the end of the fourth inning.
The Cats had their first real offensive opportunity in the top of the seventh, moving Rohne Klein (San Jose State) over to third after a leadoff single. Nanaimo’s defenses held strong, however, and Klein was stranded to end the inning.
Victoria finally broke through in the top of the eighth on a sacrifice fly from Kade Davis, but one run was all they could muster. Nanaimo closed it out in the top of the ninth to claim a series victory in the first Island Rivalry Series of the year.
Northern Kentucky reliever Daniel Tovar was introduced to the ballgame in the fifth inning, powering through two scoreless innings before handing the ball over to Houston Tomlinson (Arkansas State). Tomlinson worked his way across the seventh and eighth, picking up a strikeout and allowing two hits in two innings.
With the Nanaimo series complete, the Cats will now host the Bellingham Bells in a weekend series at home, beginning Friday night at 6:35 pm.
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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