Drew Rutter has never been to Alberta, but he sure sees the ball well in that province’s capital.
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The San Diego State outfielder was 3-4 with two doubles and three runs scored to key a 4-3 victory for the Nanaimo NightOwls over the Edmonton Riverhawks on Friday evening.
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The game was the first of a three-game series at ReMax Field in Edmonton. The NightOwls, now 5-2, will play afternoon games (noon starts, BC time) on Saturday and Sunday.
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Taiwanese second baseman and lead-off hitter Hsu (Shaq) He-Chieh had two RBIs, a single in the fifth and a sacrifice fly in the ninth to score Rutter.
Aidan Russell, also from San Diego State, started on the mound and went five strong, yielding four hits and two earned runs. Landon Welter of Everett CC made his NightOwls debut and went 2.1 innings with Venezuelan lefty Richtter Castillo finishing off with 1.2 innings, including a 1-2-3 ninth.
Fans can watch the road games by registering through the WCL viewing site. Home games are available there and through NightOwls.TV
The next home game for the NightOwls is Wednesday, June 12 when the Victoria HarbourCats arrive, and on that roster are Manny Jr and Lucas Ramirez, sons of MLB legend Manny Ramirez, who will be with the HarbourCats team to follow his sons all season. The Redmond Dudes then show up for a weekend series June 14-15-16.