Connect with us

Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Zack Downey Day 2: Golden Tide Remain Undefeated

Published

on

Tide play 2-0 Victoria Eagles Saturday morning to decide top seed in tournament

Story and Photos by Christian J. Stewart

September 10, 2021, Victoria, BC – After Day 2 of the Zack Downey Memorial Baseball Tournament at Layritz Park in Victoria, both the Victoria Eagles and the Victoria Golden Tide remain undefeated with perfect 2-0 records after winning their round robin games Friday.

The teams will now face each other Saturday morning at 9:30 am in a game that will decide the top seed for the tournament heading into Sunday’s semi-final games.

The Golden Tide’s Brandon Green had a triple, two singles, a walk, RBI and run scored to lead the Tide offence to their 8-1 win (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

The Eagles began the day with a tidy 5-1 win over the Parksville Royals, getting a jump early as a two-RBI triple from Jai Berezowski in the first inning gave them an early lead. They would add two more runs in the third and another in the fourth to put the game away.

Damian Cataldo led the way with a walk, base hit and two runs scored to pace the offence, while Oliver Mabee had an RBI and a run scored. Quin Valley and Noah Couch scored the other runs for the Eagles.

Nick Lee got the start for the Golden Tide against Saskatchewan (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

Jacob Thompson got the start for the Eagles and he was solid through four innings. Wyatt MacDonald also saw work in relief.

The Golden Tide kept their record clean with an 8-1 win over the visiting Saskatchewan Grizzlies High Performance team.

Brandon Green was the sparkplug for the Tide, with a pair of singles, a triple, walk, RBI and two runs scored. Chase Thomson also had a pair of hits, an RBI and run scored, while Andrew Baxter walked twice, reached on an error and scored.

Tide shortstop Brandon Green shadows a Saskatchewan baserunner (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

The Tide opened the scoring in the second, taking advantage of an error and then an RBI double from Jackson Cordle that the Grizzly outfielder lost in the sun. Cordle then scored on an RBI single from Green.

The Tide’s Colton O’Brien slides safely into second during the game against the Grizzlies (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

They would add two more in the third on RBI singles from Thomson and Colton O’Brien, and then put the game away with three more in the fourth and another in the fifth.

Chase Thomson (right) is congratulated by Brandon Green left) after scoring in the third inning Saturday (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

Nick Lee got the start on the hill for the Tide and after a shaky first inning, he re-grouped to strikeout three of the last four batters he faced in his two innings of work. Tristian Seitz and Brett Patterson also pitched two innings of relief each for the Tide.

Tide reliever Tristan Seitz delivers a pitch against Saskatchewan (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

In other games Friday, the Parksville Royals (1-1) handed the Mid-Island Pirates their second loss of the tournament, winning 2-0, while the Victoria Mariners 0-2) dropped a 4-3 decision to the Saskatchewan Grizzlies (1-1) in the final game of the day.

The Tide’s Chase Thomson had a pair of hits against Saskatchewan (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

On Saturday, the Eagles and Golden Tide game starts the day off at 9:30am. Saskatchewan then plays Parksville at 12 Noon and the Mariners will play the Mid-Island Pirates at 2:30 pm. Then at 5:00 pm, the 5th place finishing team will play the 6th place finishing game in the consolation game of the tournament.

Golden Tide reliever Brett Patterson delivers a pitch against Saskatchewan (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

On Sunday, 2nd place seed will play the 3rd place seed in the first semi-final at 10:00 am, while the 1st place seed will match up against the 4th place seed at 12:30 pm. The winners of those games will meet in the final scheduled for 3:00 pm.

The Tide’s Dexter Stoiber makes a nice catch of a sinking line drive late in Saturday’s game against Saskatchewan (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)

All photos from the Zack Downey Tournament by photographer Christian J. Stewart will eventually be posted following the tournament at https://christianjstewart.zenfolio.com/f925315517

Source

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Paws Bounce Cats in Game Three

Published

on

The HarbourCats were inches away from scoring in the third inning on a close play at the plate. (Photo by Christian J. Stewart)

Victoria, B.C. – The Victoria HarbourCats and Kamloops NorthPaws faced off in the decider of a three-game series on Sunday afternoon, with Kamloops battling their way to a 7-3 win.

It was somewhat of a rocky start in the early going for Shea Lake (West Texas A&M) on this rainy Sunday afternoon, hitting the first batter he faced and allowing a run in the opening inning to give Kamloops an early lead. Lake found his footing for a moment in the third inning with an efficient three-up three-down frame.

BOX SCORE

Victoria came close to evening the score in the bottom of the third with Bryan Bradshaw (UCSD) on second base. Rohne Klein (San Jose State) hit a line-drive single into centre field, but Bradshaw was cut down at the plate to end the inning. The NorthPaws responded by hammering a three-run homer in their next turn on offence, growing their lead to 4-0 in the fourth inning.

The top of the fifth required the services of Northern Kentucky reliever Daniel Tovar, who let up a pair of singles but held Kamloops scoreless in his first inning of work. The going got tougher in the sixth, when the NorthPaws led off the inning with a bomb to left field, and add on another solo shot before the end of the frame.

Shea Lake exited the mound after a four inning start, in which he allowed four runs on seven hits with five strikeouts. (Photo by Christian J. Stewart)

The HarbourCats’ first run came at long last in the bottom of the sixth by way of a sacrifice fly off the bat of Rohne Klein. The home team was able to keep the line moving in inning number six, netting another run when Jacob Silva (UTSA) scored from third on a wild pitch.

Tristin Thomas (West Texas A&M) took over from Tovar for the top of the seventh. Thomas worked quickly, putting a zero on the board and getting the Cats back on the offensive. The bottom of the eighth saw another blow dealt by the Victoria offence, as Declan Brown (Ottawa University) laced a single into centre field to drive in a run and chip away at the lead.

The Cats gave it their all but ultimately came up short, coughing up the series to the NorthPaws with a 7-3 loss.

WCL STANDINGS

With the weekend series complete, the HarbourCats will return to action for a three-game set against Port Angeles this week, starting on Tuesday night at 6:35 pm.

There are only four home games remaining in the 2026 regular season including a mid-week set against the Port Angeles Lefties this Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday! Then on August 3rd, we end the season with a bang! Our final fireworks show and Fan Appreciation Night! Don’t miss your chance to catch a game in 2026! Get your tickets now at http://Harbourcats.com/tickets.

ATTENTION VOUCHER HOLDERS: Just a reminder that all ticket vouchers must be exchanged for one of our remaining regular season games! They are not eligible for playoffs, nor can they be carried over to 2027.

Source

Continue Reading

Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – Cats Dominate NorthPaws 14-4

Published

on

David Krahn made some noise in his first start since returning from injury, hitting 2/3 with 3 RBI and a home run. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats bounced back after Friday night’s loss and thumped the visiting Kamloops NorthPaws 14-4 on Saturday night.

It’s impossible to predict the future in baseball, but tonight’s first inning was a pretty good sign of how this ballgame would go. Bryan Bradshaw (UCSD) drove a liner over the shortstop to lead it off for the Cats, getting a runner on base for one of the most dangerous bats in the WCL, the unstoppable David Krahn. The UBC infielder watched a couple of pitches out of the zone before teeing off on a no-doubter to Pembroke Street for his second bomb in his last two at-bats. Krahn’s ninth homer of the year not only gave an early lead to the HarbourCats, but also tied the franchise record for home runs in a season! Cameron Chee-Aloy (Illinois) drove in another on a sacrifice fly, and suddenly the home team had a three-run advantage after the first inning.

BOX SCORE

The NorthPaws barked back in the top of the second with back-to-back doubles to drive in their first run of the game. Determined to maintain the upper hand, starting pitcher Erik Rico (Fresno State) sliced through his next challengers to earn a pair of strikeouts and end the inning. There would be no such nonsense in the third, as Rico recovered from a couple of walks to set down three NorthPaws in a row.

It was only a matter of time before the Cats were back on the prowl. Krahn came up in a big spot with the bases loaded and lined a ball hard into left-centre field to widen the lead for the HarbourCats. Logan Shepherd (Mercer) followed up with a bases-clearing double to really break the game open and make it 7-1.

Rico backed up the bats with five innings of shut-down pitching. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Erik Rico’s night came to an end after five excellent innings of one-run ball, over which he allowed just two hits and racked up a tidy nine strikeouts – just a regular Saturday night for this all-star arm.

The HarbourCats kept their foot on the gas in the fifth inning with another three-run frame. Bryan Bradshaw smacked a single to drive in two, and a Logan Shepherd singe brought David Krahn home. Entering the back half of the ballgame, Victoria now held a commanding 10-1 lead.

Davis Lee (Calgary) assumed control of the mound in the sixth inning and worked quickly, torching through the Kamloops lineup with a three-strikeout frame. The next inning was handed off to the capable hands of Houston Tomlinson (Arkansas State), who tossed a clean inning to keep the HarbourCats well out in front.

The Cats found themselves in a bases loaded jam in the top of the ninth, but the lead held strong and Victoria walked away with a 14-4 blowout victory in game two.

WCL STANDINGS

Kamloops and Victoria will face off one more time at 1:05 pm on Sunday with the series up for grabs!

There are only five home games remaining in the 2026 regular season including our final weekend homestand of the year against Kamloops this weekend and then a mid-week set against the Port Angeles Lefties next Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday! Then on August 3rd, we end the season with a bang! Our final fireworks show and Fan Appreciation Night! Don’t miss your chance to catch a game in 2026! Get your tickets now at http://Harbourcats.com/tickets.

ATTENTION VOUCHER HOLDERS: Just a reminder that all ticket vouchers must be exchanged for one of our remaining regular season games! They are not eligible for playoffs, nor can they be carried over to 2027.

Source

Continue Reading

Summer Collegiate

Victoria HarbourCats – HarbourCats Drop Series Opener to NorthPaws

Published

on

Victoria, B.C. – The HarbourCats ran out of time to complete their comeback in a Friday night matchup against the Kamloops NorthPaws, falling 9-5 to the visitors.

BOX SCORE

Contrary to how things have been going lately for the HarbourCats, it took until the fifth inning for either team to make their mark on the scoreboard. In what was otherwise an airtight start through the first four frames by Quincey Brown (UCSD), a single and two walks loaded the bases for Kamloops in the fifth. Brown plunked a batter to bring in the first run, and a single after that cleared the bases to put the NorthPaws out in front with a four-run lead.

The Cats struck back in the home half of the inning, sparked by a leadoff walk from Riley Kwak (Bossier Parish). A couple of groundouts moved Kwak over to third and Logan Shepherd (Mercer) came up with a two-out base hit to score Victoria’s first run of the game and cut into the Kamloops lead.

Cats starter Quincey Brown saw five innings of work in which he gave up four runs on three hits with four strikeouts. (Photo by Christian J. Stewart)

Taylor Franklin (George Fox) stepped in as Brown’s replacement on the rubber, coming in for the top of the sixth and allowing an RBI double to restore a four-run lead for the NorthPaws. Franklin was back for the seventh and got to two outs before an error at first base allowed two more runs for Kamloops. The NorthPaws followed that up with the first homer of the night, a two-run bomb to left-centre that widened the lead to 9-1.

Victoria mounted the beginnings of a comeback in the bottom of the seventh, loading the bases with nobody out for Home Run Derby champion Logan Shepherd. Shepherd popped a ball up that miraculously dropped just fair in a sea of NorthPaws to drive in a run, and Dillon Lopez (St. Mary’s) notched a sacrifice fly soon after.

Hawaii Pacific reliever Flynn Warren took the mound in the top of the eighth and worked quickly en route to a clean inning. The bottom of the eighth brought the return of David Krahn (UBC), who wasted no time rattling off a solo moonshot to deep left to chip away at the deficit.

Victoria loaded the bases again in the bottom of the ninth, but ran out of chances before any real damage could be done. In the end, the comeback fell short and the NorthPaws come out on top in game one by a score of 9-5.

WCL STANDINGS

The HarbourCats and NorthPaws will continue to duke it out throughout the weekend, hitting the field again for game two on Saturday night.

There are only six home games remaining in the 2026 regular season including our final weekend homestand of the year against Kamloops this weekend and then a mid-week set against the Port Angeles Lefties next Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday! Then on August 3rd, we end the season with a bang! Our final fireworks show and Fan Appreciation Night! Don’t miss your chance to catch a game in 2026! Get your tickets now at http://Harbourcats.com/tickets.

ATTENTION VOUCHER HOLDERS: Just a reminder that all ticket vouchers must be exchanged for one of our remaining regular season games! They are not eligible for playoffs, nor can they be carried over to 2027.

Source

Continue Reading

Trending