Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Victoria Golden Tide Announce 2023 Spring Schedule

Published

2 years ago

February 22, 2023

Dugout Wire Service

2023 HarbourCats signee Brady Wilson (above) will lead the Tide into the 2023 CCBC season

February 22, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Victoria, BC – With spring training underway in Florida and Arizona, baseball fans in Victoria won’t have to wait much longer for the return of high level baseball to Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park, as the Victoria Golden Tide will begin their 2023 Spring Season on Saturday March 11th with a pre-season doubleheader against the Langley Blaze.

The Golden Tide are entering their second season of play in the Canadian College Baseball Conference (CCBC), an eight team college level league that also includes the Vancouver Island University Mariners, Thompson Rivers University Wolfpack, University of the Fraser Valley Cascades, Okanagan College Coyotes, University of Calgary Dinos, Prairie Baseball Academy Dawgs and the Edmonton Collegiate Riverhawks.

The Tide’s 2023 season will begin with some pre-season exhibition games in March against the Blaze, as well as the Victoria Eagles and Mariners, all in the BC Premier Baseball League, as well as a doubleheader against the UBC Thunderbirds.

The Tide then begins Official CCBC league play on the road when they head to Kelowna for a four game set with the Okanagan College Coyotes the weekend of March 25th and 26th. A home and home series with the Fraser Valley Cascades take up the April 1-2 weekend and then the Tide hits the road for games in Lethbridge and Edmonton respectively, before returning home for a four-game set with Thompson Rivers April 28-30.

After that the Tide stay on the Island the remainder of the season, playing eight games against Vancouver Island and hosting Calgary the weekend of May 6-8. The full home schedule is listed below, as well as a graphic version attached to this article.

Golden Tide Head Coach Curtis Pelletier is confident in the squad he has assembled for 2023 (full roster to be announced in early March), one that includes 2023 HarbourCats signees Brady Wilson as the big arm on the mound, and catcher Lee Grey, who enjoyed a strong fall season in his first year with the Tide.

Admission to all Golden Tide home games is just $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for Camosun College or UVic students with their college ID. Admission includes both games of a doubleheader when played. Kids 12 and under are free. Tickets will be available at the gate, or at the HarbourCats office in advance, at 101-1814 Vancouver Street.

Booster Club memberships for the 2023 spring season, which include admission to all games, priority seating in Diamond Club or Campbell Club seating areas and other perks, are also available for $150.00. These can be purchased at the office, or by calling Christian at 778-265-0327.

2023 Golden Tide Home Games at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park

Sat March 11 – 1PM Langley – Doubleheader
Sun March 12 – 1PM Victoria Eagles or Mariners – Single Game
Sat March 18 – 1PM UBC – Doubleheader
Sun March 19 – 1PM Victoria Eagles or Mariners – Single Game
Sun April 2 – 1PM UFV – Doubleheader
Fri April 28 – 6PM TRU – Single Game
Sat April 29 – 1PM – TRU – Doubleheader
Sun April 30 – 11AM – TRU – Single Game
Tue May 2 – 4PM – VIU – Doubleheader
Sat May 6 – 6:00PM – CAL – Single Game
Sun May 7 – 10AM – CAL – Doubleheader
Mon May 8 – 12 Noon – CAL – Single Game
Thu May 11 – 4PM – VIU – Doubleheader

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Middle infield combo, power corner infielders added by HarbourCats

Published

1 week ago

March 24, 2025

Dugout Wire Service

Above: Infielder Jake Butler from George Mason University should be a key cog in the middle infield for the HarbourCats in 2025.

March 24, 2025

For Immediate Release

VICTORIA — It’s always a bonus to find a double-play combo from the same school, especially one as strong as George Mason University (GMU).

The Victoria HarbourCats are excited to add middle infielders Owen Clyne, who starts at short, and Jake Butler, his usual counterpart at second but also able to play third, from GMU — the school that provided star catcher Connor Dykstra, who signed in July with the Seattle Mariners.

“This group we are announcing today, we will be counting on them to lead key parts of our team this summer,” said HarbourCats GM Christian Stewart.

“Butler and Clyne are impressing everyone this spring, and JC Allen from UC San Diego is off to a strong start as well. Our offense just got even stronger with these four signings, and you know (head coach) Todd Haney will get the most out of them.”

Announced as signed today, by Coach Haney:

IF Owen Clyne, George Mason, L/R, 6-2/185, Wichita, KS
IF Jake Butler, George Mason, R/R, 5-11/185. Towson, MD
IF JC Allen, UC San Diego, R/R, 6-4/210, Irvine, CA
IF/OF Curtis McKay, Niagara, R/R, 6-3/205, Dorchester, ON

Clyne, batting .363, has 28 RBIs in 24 games so far this season, with three home runs, nine extra-base hits and more walks than strikeouts. Butler has 35 runs driven in and is batting .326 with a .457 on-base clip in 20 games.

UC SanDiego’s JC Allen is another player who should see plenty of playing time in the HarbourCats infield in 2025.

Allen is off to a huge start at the D1 level, after two years at Saddleback College, with six home runs and 24 RBIs in his first 22 games for UC SAN Diego. He hit 13 bombs in his second season at Saddleback. He can play either corner infield spot, or get his bat active in the DH role.

McKay, from Ontario, can play corner infield or outfield, is batting .303 with four home runs and an RBI per game (22 total) over 18 starts at Niagara.

The HarbourCats open their 2025 home schedule on Friday, June 6, with the Port Angeles Lefties visiting Wilson’s Group Stadium at RAP. Season Tickets, 10 and 32-Game Flex Passes and Single Game Tickets are now on sale for all 33 home games and three “Showcase” events through the HarbourCats new and one-and-only ticketing partner SHOWPASS at harbourcats.com/tickets.

Tickets can also be purchased in person at the HarbourCats office at 101-1814 Vancouver Street or by calling 778-265-0327.

ATTENTION 2024 SEASON TICKET HOLDERS – FINAL NOTICE! If you have not already done so, please renew your seats for 2025 so that they can be locked into the new ticketing system. Season Tickets will be sent to all members electronically this season on April 1, 2025, perhaps sooner. Any seats not renewed by MONDAY, March 31 will be released and placed back into the system. Contact Christian at the office at 778-265-0327 to renew.

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Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – KidSport celebrating notable anniversary with HarbourCats in 2025

Published

2 weeks ago

March 18, 2025

Dugout Wire Service

March 18, 2025

For immediate release

VICTORIA, B.C. — Count ’em, 25 years of helping youth enjoy sports.

KidSport Greater Victoria is teaming up with the Victoria HarbourCats to celebrate an amazing 25 years of assisting kids in the pursuit of both participation and excellence in local sports, with planned events this summer at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park.

And, not the least of which is the June 19 KidSport Greater Victoria School Spirit Game, a Thursday matchup starting at 11am featuring the HarbourCats and island rival Nanaimo NightOwls, with many schools all but emptying to take in the action and helping celebrate this tremendous achievement for KidSport Greater Victoria.

“We can’t think of a better community organization to have involved with this, the KidSport School Spirit game,” said Jim Swanson, Managing Partner of the HarbourCats.

“This will be a season-long theme of celebration, of reminding our fans of the great work they do and have done for so long in Victoria. Each and every game, people will have an opportunity to show their support for KidSport Greater Victoria, including a few special events outside this School Spirit Game.”

This will be the second Thursday game in a row in the HarbourCats home schedule in 2025 which will be dedicated to kids — on June 12, the Mayfair Optometric School Spirit Game will take place, also an 11am start featuring the HarbourCats and NightOwls. KidSport Greater Victoria and Mayfair Optometric Clinic are aligned with community values and supporting youth, making this an ideal match to welcome a combined total of more than 5,000 school kids to the park.

“We are so grateful for the past and ongoing support the HarbourCats have offered KidSport, and very excited about the various ways our organizations will work together this year,” said Jill Shaw, Executive Director of KidSport Greater Victoria. “Demand for our support is at an all-time high. We are seeing more families than ever coming to us in need of help so their children can access organized sport. The HarbourCats June 19th School Spirit Game is a great opportunity both to raise awareness about the work we do, and to offer local kids great access to another fun and rewarding local sport experience – we are very happy to be involved!”

KidSport Greater Victoria will also be front and centre on Harvey’s Birthday Game on July 11 at Wilson’s Group Stadium, and will be involved in other special games that are still to be announced.

Supporting KidSport will be a constant theme of the HarbourCats in this 2025 West Coast League season. The HarbourCats encourage all who can to contribute to this great cause, which you can action by clicking this link (https://www.kidsportvictoria25.ca/).

KidSport Greater Victoria has seen tremendous growth over the last 25 years, with demand for their support increasing very steeply starting in 2023 in particular. KidSport Greater Victoria exists to help ensure all kids have opportunity to play; annually they cover the registration fees for well over 1400 local kids living in financial need, enabling them to take part in seasons of sport of their choice – including baseball! As the largest KidSport chapter in the province, we know that on just about every sports team in the region, there are children playing who are able to take part thanks to KidSport and the supporters and donors who make their work possible.

To order tickets as a school group for the June 19 KidSport Greater Victoria School Spirit Game, or the June 12 Mayfair Optometric Clinic School Spirit Game, contact GM Christian Stewart, chris@harbourcats.com — some seats are left, but not many!

For fans looking for tickets for these exciting games, and any other HarbourCats game in 2025, visit the HarbourCats ticketing site HERE.

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