The Kamloops NorthPaws were defeated by the Victoria HarbourCats in game two by a score of 10-3 on Wednesday night. Victoria scored runs in six of their eight trips to the plate. Despite scoring often, the HarbourCats never scored more than three runs in an inning. The NorthPaws bats finally got going but could only score three runs in the ninth inning to avoid the shutout.
A triple by Victoria in the first got the HarbourCats on the board. They made it 3-0 on a sacrifice groundout. They added one more in the second inning with back-to-back singles.
In the middle third of the game, they added three more runs. The lone run in the fourth came via the long ball, one of three solo home runs on the night. In the fifth, a homerun and an RBI single made it 7-0.
The final third of the game saw the HarbourCats score… You guessed it, three more runs. A solo homerun in the seventh and a two-run shot in the eighth made it a double-digit lead.
The NorthPaws finally got on the board in the ninth as catcher Matt MacDonald singled, left fielder Cade Palkowski and third baseman Braeden Scott both walked. Designated hitter Chris Tampoya singled, scoring MacDonald and Palkowski for his sixth and seventh RBIs. Second baseman Riley Kwak then hit a towering double off the left field wall, giving him his first RBI in his NorthPaws debut.
Unfortunately, the NorthPaws mini comeback stopped there. Before the ninth inning, Kamloops had just four hits, and it took them until the 6th to get a runner in scoring position.
“I think we were trying to hit the long ball tonight, the wind was blowing out and it was flying tonight, but that’s not our game, and when we started to hit more line drives, we had more success,” said Assistant Coach Trey Newman.
The NorthPaws will have to keep adapting and overcoming adversity as the season comes to a close, with new players already making an impact. The team needs to gel quickly down the stretch to have a chance at a playoff birth.
“We can’t let bad games stack together; we need to have a fresh mindset every day and be ready to win baseball games,” said Right Fielder Austin Coyle.
The NorthPaws will try to salvage the series on Thursday night in Victoria. The first pitch is set for 6:35; you can find the game on West Coast League TV or the HarbourCats YouTube channel.
Recent Comments