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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – HarbourCats set for first-half North Division title showdown with Bellingham

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‘Cats beat Kelowna 11-4 Wednesday to take series and stay in the hunt for the first half North Division title

Story by Christian J. Stewart

For Immediate Release

June 29, 2023

Victoria, BC – It is hard to believe, but the HarbourCats are nearly through the first half of their season, with three key games against the Bellingham Bells coming up at home this weekend, games that could be key in deciding who wins the first half West Coast League (WCL) North Division title, and along with that, the number one seed in the North Division playoffs that would begin August 8th.

As it stands, with Victoria’s 11-4 and 11-3 wins over Kelowna this week, Bellingham and Victoria are now tied with 16 wins each, while the Wenatchee AppleSox are also in the mix with 15.  The HarbourCats however, have had eight losses, to only four by Bellingham and five by Wenatchee. Plus, Bellingham and Wenatchee have one more series to play before the end of their first half, whereas the HarbourCats first half comes to an end with the three games against Bellingham.

So what does this all mean?

Well first, relative to Bellingham, the HarbourCats realistically need to sweep the Bells this weekend to finish with a 19-8 record and then hope that the Bells lose at least two more games – either to Edmonton tonight – and then one or two more to Kamloops in their three game set next week.  If Victoria and Bellingham end up tied, it would come down to head-to-head records, which if Victoria sweeps, would be the same.  The next tie-breaker then would be head-to-head run differential, which heading into the weekend, sits at 10-5 in favour of Bellingham.

As to Wenatchee, they swept Victoria earlier in the season, so hold the tie-breaker in that respect.  Thus, the HarbourCats (and the Bells for that matter) have to hope that Wenatchee loses four of their next seven games, which include a game tonight against Port Angeles, a weekend series against Edmonton and three more next week against the Lefties in Port Angeles.

Whoever comes out of that mix, then knows their playoff spot is secured, while the other teams then try to vie for the second-half title, as well as two wildcard spots that are also available to the next two teams.

WCL Playoff Procedure Details at https://westcoastleague.com/playoff-procedures/

It may sound like a tough road for Victoria, but nevertheless, with playoff possibilities on the line, Canada Day Fireworks Friday and a Canada Day and Sunday matinee on the schedule, it is going to be a fabulous weekend of baseball at Wilson’s Group Stadium.

Tickets for all games are selling fast, especially Friday’s fireworks night with some sections already sold out, so fans are urged to avoid disappointment and get their tickets on-line as soon as they can at our one and only ticketing partner Select Your Tickets at https://harbourcats.com/tickets.

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Summer Collegiate

NightOwls get the call for International Events

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Righthanded pitcher Moosa Nonomiya, a 2024 Owl from Skagit Valley College, is a Japanese resident but his grandmother was from Pakistan, so he is going to be playing for Pakistan in Dubai in November at the Baseball United Arab Classic.

The tournament features nine teams, including India, Palestine, UAE and Pakistan, and is the top competitive event in the history of the Middle East and South Asia.

Nonomiya is also an outfielder for Skagit. Last summer, he started three games and made seven appearances in his 13.2 innings of work — and he has added velocity this fall after strong developmental work with NightOwls pitching coach Gorm Heimueller.

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Nanaimo Boy Returns Home To Lead The NightOwls

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A local product is coming home to historic Serauxmen Stadium.

 

Cody Andreychuk, currently the Head Coach of the University of Pikeville (NAIA, Pikeville, Kentucky), has been named the new top coach with the West Coast League’s Nanaimo NightOwls. He assumes the post immediately.

 

“Cody is a perfect fit in so many ways to fill the role with Greg Frady stepping down last week,” said General Manager Tina Cornett. “We obviously love that he’s from Nanaimo and will connect with the community very well, but he has a track record of developing players and winning games and will bring that local pride to the NightOwls.”

 

Andreychuk, who has a degree in Sports Management and a Masters in Business Administration, resides in Pikeville with his daughter Harper.

 

“I’m grateful and humbled for the opportunity to be the next baseball coach for the Nanaimo NightOwls, and I’d like to thank Jim Swanson and the ownership group for believing in a local guy to come in and lead this program at historic Serauxmen Stadium,” said Andreychuk, 32.

 

“My daughter and I are excited to be back home on the island for the summer and I look forward to meeting all the fans throughout the season.”

 

Andreychuk has been head coach at UPike since July of 2021, and his Bears team posted a 30-19 record this past spring. Prior to that, he was at Lindsey Wilson College as both assistant and head coach, and served as an assistant at UPike in 2016 and 2017.

Andreychuk knows summer collegiate baseball well — he was hitting coach and camps coordinator for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the Cape Cod League, the top collegiate summer baseball league.

 

“Growing up in Nanaimo and playing baseball through the Nanaimo Minor Baseball Association still to this day are some of the most special memories I cherish. I hope we can impact the youth the same way I was impacted growing up playing baseball in Nanaimo.”

 

Andreychuk is certainly not a stranger to the WCL. In addition to supplying strong UPike players to WCL teams — Riley Paulino and Richtter Castillo among those to be NightOwls — he played for the Kelowna Falcons in 2013, posting a .298 average in 33 games, driving in 17 runs. He played collegiately for the VIU Mariners, and with Tusculum Pioneers of the South Atlantic College before embarking on his coaching career. He batted .437 over 29 games in his first year at Tusculum, with two home runs and 29 RBIs. With VIU, he set records for batting average and triples.

 

His younger brother Griffin was a star with the Victoria HarbourCats, playing three seasons and having his number retired at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park. He helped lead the HarbourCats to a then-league record 40-14 record in 2016, a team that set a WCL mark with 19 straight victories.

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Summer Collegiate

Frady steps down as NightOwls Head Coach

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It will be more than a little odd to not see Greg Frady in the Nanaimo NightOwls dugout next summer.

The veteran college and international coach has stepped down as Head Coach of the West Coast League team after three seasons of dedication to setting a strong culture with the Nanaimo NightOwls.

 

The search for a new Head Coach is expected to be completed shortly and even announced this coming week.

 

“Greg was our first coach, and his classy way of interacting with the community and leading our players and coaches will never be forgotten,” said Jim Swanson, Managing Partner.

 

“He set the tone for teams that performed well on the field, and handled themselves with tremendous class on and off the field — he set a professional tone for the NightOwls and was respected by the players and people around the league. We have been blessed to have someone I consider a close friend as our head coach.”

 

Frady, 61, and his wife Rhonda spent three summers in the Harbour City, enjoying the perfect weather and endless scenery. Frady, a US Open pickleball champion, gave back in many ways but one of them was to hold skills clinics with Nanaimo pickleball players, where he was always smiling and teaching.

Frady had the team in playoff contention all three years, alive for a spot the final week of the expansion 2022 season, and within a couple games of the top eight playoff spots in 2023 and 2024. The last two seasons, the NightOwls finished ninth overall in the 16-team WCL — and eight teams advance. Players selected in the MLB draft from those teams include Elijah Ickes (2023) and Connor Caskenette (2024).

 

Frady led the expansion edition to a 22-32 record, with a late shot to win the North Division second half, and then posted identical 26-28 marks in 2023 and 2024, for an overall mark of 74-88.

 

The Fradys have endured some exciting times in the last three years, including the wedding of daughter Bailey, and engagement of son Riley. They also, like all Floridians, have seen hurricanes make a mess of their lives and homes the last few years — Hurricane Ian did damage to their Port Charlotte home two years ago, and Hurricane Milton was a direct hit this past week, leaving the Fradys to deal with damage over the next while, and leading to the decision to let the NightOwls install a new Head Coach.

“We thank Greg and Rhonda — they are tremendous people, and they will always have so many friends in the mid-Island area,” said Swanson.

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