The Kamloops NorthPaws won a thrilling game on Sunday afternoon 10-9 to secure a season-opening sweep of the Port Angeles Lefties. The NorthPaws scored six runs in the top of the eighth inning but had to fight off the Lefties, who scored eight of their nine runs in the final five innings. 

Once again, the Lefties got the game’s first run in the bottom of the first. After having runners on the corners with only one out, they cashed in on a chopper to first that Keegan Drinkle elected to take to the base himself for an out. 

Kamloops answered when shortstop Anthony Setticasi had the bases loaded with one out and legged out a potential double-play ball that scored Kalen Applefield. In the third, second baseman Joey Marino drove in a run and would later score a run because of an error by the Lefty’s second baseman. A fourth-inning Manny Recchi sacrifice fly would put the NorthPaws up 4-1.

It was the Lefty’s turn to respond in the fifth with a one-out single that cut the lead to two. In the sixth, the Levites got a two-out rally going, capitalizing on a pair of walks, a wild pitch, and a single that scored both runners on base to tie the game. Port Angeles would take the lead later in the inning with another single. In the seventh, they kept their foot on the gas, bringing two more home with, you guessed it… another single.

The NorthPaws offence was shut down by right-handed pitcher Cade Stuart, who went three scoreless innings, giving up just one hit. Going into the top of the eighth, Stuart made way for Liam Karlson. The NorthPaws saw their opportunity and pounced.

A single and a walk set up right fielder Jared Hall, who sent an RBI single to right field. Center fielder Ethan Kodama walked and set up third baseman Kieran Gaffney with the bases loaded and nobody out. Gaffney delivered with a single that brought home two more runs, tying the game at seven all. Anthony Setticassi sent a sharp ground ball to third, and the force play at the plate was thought to have been made with the bases loaded, but the Lefties catcher didn’t have his foot on home plate, allowing the run to score and everyone reach safely. Two wild pitches would bring home the fifth and sixth runs of the inning as Kamloops sent 10 men to bat and now lead 10-7.

“It was great to see the offence stick with their approach and breakthrough in the eighth,” said Head Coach Reily Jepson.

The Lefties would hang around and score in the eighth and mount yet another two-out rally in the bottom of the ninth. A two-out bloop hit and a walk allowed the Lefties to load the bases with two outs. Righty Cade Webber was on for the save and walked his second straight batter on a controversial call on a full-count pitch that was deemed just high by the home plate umpire. Either way, a run scored, and the winning run was all of a sudden 180 feet away. Facing yet another full count, Webber delivered a high fastball in a similar shop that was called for strike three, ending the game. 

“I was a little stressed, but the team seemed very composed; I trust those guys in the back end of the bullpen, and they got the job done; it was a great win,” said Jepson

For Cade Webber, it was his first appearance of the season, and it came at a crucial moment for the NorthPaws. The inning could’ve gotten away from him, but his coach had faith in his abilities.

“You can tell he loves the moment; I don’t think that phased him,” said Pitching coach Jack Slominski.

With the sweep, the NorthPaws have started 3-0 for the first time since 2022, a milestone that has the team and coaching staff excited. 

“It’s awesome. Hopefully, this brings more of our fans out to home games, but before we get there, we’re going to have a tough test this week in Bellingham,” said Jepson.

The team will be off on Monday before travelling to Bellingham for a three-game series against the Bells. The NorthPaws will play their first home game on June 6th against the Kelowna Falcons.

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June 1, 2025

For immediate release

KELOWNA, B.C. – The Victoria HarbourCats went curling to start the season, breaking out the brooms on the Kelowna Falcons Sunday night, winning 8-3.

Hudson Lance (Coastal Carolina) started for the visitors and was in control early, retiring the first six batters he faced. However, he ran into trouble in the third inning, allowing four singles in quick succession, giving Kelowna a 3-0 lead.

The lead didn’t last long as the HarbourCats brought 10 batters to the plate in the top of the fourth, scoring five runs, including an RBI single from Victoria’s own Dominic Biello (Golden Tide). Patience was a virtue for the Cats tonight, drawing 12 walks on the evening, including two bases-loaded walks in the fourth to give themselves a 5-3 lead.

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After Lance completed three innings in his HarbourCats debut, he turned it over to a bullpen that put on a show. Ethan McNish-Heider (Niagara), Marcus Janovsky (UBC), Dillon Dibrell (Central Oklahoma), Dustin Davidson (Brookhaven), Jacob Thompson (Minot State), and Robert Sanford (Paris JC) all pitched one inning and combined for nine strikeouts. two walks, one hit, and zero runs. It was about as dominant a team-wide pitching performance as you will see this season.

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On the other side of things, the HarbourCats’ approach at the plate continued to force mistakes, adding two more runs on wild pitches in the latter stages. Enrico Carrion, a commit to the University of Hawaii, drove in his first run in his debut with a sacrifice fly in the seventh.

Victoria played great defence behind the stellar pitching, committing just one error all series compared to Kelowna’s eight.

Jack Johnson (Baylor) and Bobby Filler Jr. (Niagara) had a pair of hits each, adding to their strong starts to the season.

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After a day off tomorrow, the HarbourCats are in action on Tuesday, June 3, opening a three-game series in Edmonton. They return for the home opener on Friday, June 6 at 6:35 PM, followed by the first of four fireworks nights on Saturday, June 7 at 6:35 PM.

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.

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The Kamloops NorthPaws started their 2025 campaign off strong with a 8-0 victory over the Port Angeles Lefties. Notable performances from designated hitter Keegan Drinkle and right-handed pitcher Kaden Douglas-Pluff helped the NorthPaws cruise to win on Friday night.

Kamloops came out of the gates swinging, scoring one run in each of the first three innings courtesy of singles from Drinkle and catcher Matt MacDonald, along with a sacrifice fly from shortstop Anthony Setticassi.

Right-hander Owen Fernandez got the opening day nod and didn’t disappoint, going three shutout innings while allowing only three hits and striking out a pair of hitters. Lefty Kaden Douglass-Pluff was first out of the bullpen and pitched a gem. He threw five shutout innings, giving up three hits and striking out five while not allowing a walk.

“You couldn’t have drawn it up and better,” Said pitching coach Jack Slominski. “That’s one thing I’ve preached to them: if we are going to get beat, they going to have to hit their way on.”

Douglas-Pluffs’ brilliance on the mound allowed the offence to keep attacking. In the fifth, a hit-and-run attempt was perfectly executed as Matt MacDonald broke for second while Drinkle sent a double to the gap, scoring the fourth run of the game.

In the sixth, some aggressive baserunning put another run on the board as both runners on base attempted the double steal. The Lefties catcher threw the ball over his second baseman’s head, allowing Ethan Kodama to score. The NorthPaws were aggressive all night, creating chaos on the basepaths.

“I think we’re really athletic one through nine and have seven or eight guys who can run at all times, so we’re going to do that a lot and put pressure on teams,” Said Assistant Coach Trey Newman.

In the seventh inning, after yet another double steal, Keegan Drinkle drove in his third run of the ball game, this time via a sacrifice fly. He and Matt MacDonald were all over the bases, combining for seven hits and four RBIs. It’s noteworthy that of those hits, only one was for extra bases.

“This is what I expect from him (Drinkle). The guys in front of him did a great job setting the table, and he cashed in,” said head coach Reily Jepson.

In the ninth, second baseman Joey Marino had runners on second and third and sent a single up the middle that scored the seventh and eighth runs of the ballgame for the NorthPaws.

To round out the performance, there were a few nice defensive plays. In the bottom of the first, Kalen Applefield couldn’t get to a fly ball on the right field line but quickly threw a missile to second base to record the out. A pair of nice double plays were turned in the middle infield, and the defence was capped off by a heroic catch by center fielder Ethan Kodama, who ran down a ball and then slammed into the wall and hung on to secure the catch.

The NorthPaws will look to build on Friday’s performance in game two against the Lefties on Saturday night. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35. You can watch on West Coast League TV or listen on the Kamloops NorthPaws Mixlr.

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