NANAIMO, B.C. — With one home game to go, the Nanaimo NightOwls are determined to find a way to defend home turf one last time.
The NightOwls, who battled for a WCL playoff berth until Monday night, fell 9-2 to the visiting Edmonton Riverhawks at historic Serauxen Stadium, giving up six runs over the last two innings to the Riverhawks.
Edmonton bats came to play, outhitting the NightOwls 14-6 in front of 1,560 enthusiastic fans at Serauxmen Stadium.
Cassidy Watt and Ryder Florence had doubles for Nanaimo.
Jake Fleury struck out seven in six innings for the NightOwls, with no walks and five hits allowed, along with three runs, two earned. Richtter Castillo struck out three and allowed just one hit in his inning of work, and Grant Jakobson and Ryan Inouye came out of the bullpen to finish pitching duties.
The NightOwls have one game remaining in the 2024 season, their third in the West Coast League, and sit at 25-28. The team will finish ninth overall in the WCL, with eight teams making the playoffs.
That last game will be Wednesday, August 7, a 6:35pm start at Serauxmen Stadium — last chance for fans to use flex vouchers or Save On Foods general admission vouchers, and a last chance to say thank you and good bye to a great group of players and coaches, who have represented Nanaimo very well this summer, proudly wearing NANAIMO across their chests in NightOwls colours.
Serauxmen Stadium will have playoff baseball, however, as a decision by the City of Victoria to prevent the Victoria HarbourCats from hosting their home playoff games at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park so the City and BC Lions could host a CFL game at RAP in late August.
The HarbourCats will call the Harbour City home for at least one game, on Saturday, August 10, against the Wenatchee AppleSox, the first game of a best-of-three series. The HarbourCats will finish one spot ahead of the NightOwls in the standings, currently sitting at 28-25 overall.
