Vassar Deals, Bats Deliver Against Nanaimo

Quincy Vassar tossed seven shutout innings and the Wenatchee AppleSox scored double-digit runs for the eighth time this summer in a 12-1 win over the Nanaimo NightOwls on Friday night at Serauxmen Stadium.

Vassar (1-3) tossed six-or-more shutout innings in a start for the second time this summer and finished one off his single-game high with seven strikeouts in the victory.

Matt Halbach led the offense with 3 RBI as part of a 2-for-5 day at the plate. Aiva Arquette picked up his team-leading 20th RBI with a single in the midst of a five-run seventh inning and Joichiro Oyama extended his hitting streak to a season-best matching nine games with two hits and two runs driven in.

In addition to scoring seven runs in the seventh inning the AppleSox also put together an impressive three-run ninth inning that got started with a one-out solo home run by Adam Fahsel. Cole Miller drove in a run after two errors for his second hit of the night and fourth different time reaching base before Oyama plated the other run. Wenatchee cashed in on five NightOwls errors to pick up the victory.

The AppleSox have no won seven-of-their-11 series-opening games this summer and can take this series with a win on Saturday night. Reese Ligtenberg makes his second start of the summer for the 6:35 p.m. game.

Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast for a recap of the game, highlights, postgame interviews with Vassar and Fahsel and a pregame interview with Garrett Gores. Subscribe to the AppleSox Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

AppleSox Play First Ever Game Against Nanaimo

The Wenatchee AppleSox are looking to bounce back on Friday night after dropping their first series of the second half of the WCL season to the Kelowna Falcons. They travel west to Nanaimo, British Columbia to take on the NightOwls for the first time in franchise history. The three-game set over the weekend starts tonight at 6:35 p.m. as the Sox look to get back in the win column.

Despite back-to-back setbacks on Wednesday and Thursday night, the AppleSox have been able to put faith and trust in their pitchers as the staff did not allow more than four runs to score in any of their games against Kelowna this week. Garret Gores tossed 6.2 innings of shutout ball in the series finale last night, two days after Evan Canfield and Riley Sinclair combined for ten strikeouts and only one earned run in a 2-1 win against the Falcons. The AppleSox matched up against a strong pitching staff in a Falcon team that ranks fourth in the WCL with a 3.95 team ERA so they will look to find more success at the plate this weekend to supplement their lights-out pitching as of late. 

Tonight’s game against the NightOwls is the first time the AppleSox have matched up with them this season and is also the first time they will play the NightOwls in their history since the team’s foundation in 2020. The series this weekend will be the only time the two North Division foes will battle as Nanaimo will not make the trip across the border to take on the AppleSox in Wenatchee later in the year. The NightOwls have won five of their last ten games and are coming off a one-game series win over the Victoria HarbourCats in which they won 8-6. At the dish, the AppleSox will have to look out for Marcus Steen, an outfielder from Ladysmith, BC attending Napa Valley College. He is slashing .378/.462/.556 this season and is coming off a three-hit performance against Victoria. He has the power to spray the gaps as he leads the team with five triples, and he has the speed to take the extra bag as he is tied for second on the team with five steals.

With as good of an offense as the AppleSox have had this season, ranking third in the WCL in team batting average, they will run into a tough task tonight with Nanaimo’s starting pitcher. The NIghtOwls send Aiden Herrick from Olympia, Wash. to the mound tonight who has pitched in six games this season, starting four, and has an ERA of 1.00 in 27.0 innings pitched. The staff as a whole for Nanaimo has not been particularly effective this season however as their team ERA ranks third to last in the WCL.

After winning the first game of the second half, the AppleSox come into tonight having won only two of their last six games. They still managed to get traffic on the basepaths in their series against Kelowna but were just one big hit away a few times from turning the tides on their fate in those games. Joichiro Oyama has been stellar as of late as he extends his hitting streak to eight games and also stole three bags in the loss on Thursday night, bringing his season steals total to 22 which ranks first among all players in the WCL. Matt Halbach has also headlined the AppleSox bats recently as he has hit safely in eight of his last ten games, bringing his season batting average to .337 which ranks 11th in the WCL.

Quincy Vassar gets the starting nod for the AppleSox this evening as he looks to rekindle the success he had early in the season. The lefty from Brewster, Wash. will make his fifth start of the season and looks to earn his first winning decision of the summer while he attempts to keep the NightOwls’ bats at bay. Vassar on the road this year has a K/9 of 8.76 and will bring that against a Nanaimo team who is susceptible to the strikeout as they rank fifth in the WCL in strikeouts as a team.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Gores’ Dominant Effort Not Enough For AppleSox

Garrett Gores tossed 6.2 scoreless innings in relief but the Wenatchee AppleSox fell to the Kelowna Falcons, 4-2, on Thursday night at Elks Stadium.

Gores came on in relief with runners at second and third in the bottom of the first and the AppleSox trailing 4-0 and retired each of the next nine hitters in order before allowing his first baserunner. He struck out five, including two in the seventh when he stranded the bases loaded. 

The AppleSox scored twice in the fifth inning but stranded 11 men on the base paths. It marked the third straight game that the AppleSox left double-digit runners on the base paths. They scored five runs in the three games against the Falcons despite entering Thursday’s game with the third-most runs scored in the West Coast League.

Joichiro Oyama picked up a pair of hits and stole three bases. He leads the West Coast League with 22 stolen bases. Oyama and Corey Jarrell scored in the fifth when Jarrell struck out with two outs but reached first base on a passed ball. Jarrell advanced to to third on a single by Oyama, who moved to second on the throw to third. Michael Davinni draw a walk but a passed ball scored Jarrell and Oyama.

Now the AppleSox continue their road trip by facing the Nanaimo NightOwls on Friday night at 6:35 p.m. at Serauxmen Stadium. Brewster native Quincy Vassar will start on the bump for the AppleSox.

AppleSox Play Fifth Straight Rubber Match Tonight

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox face the Kelowna Falcons tonight in the series finale at 6:35 p.m. at Elks Stadium. 

This is the fifth straight series that the AppleSox have played where both teams have split the first two games of a three-game set. Wenatchee has won the first-game of the series in four-of-the-last-five series, including winning Tuesday’s series opener, 2-1. The second games have been more troublesome as the AppleSox have only won it once in the last five series. 

Troubles in the middle game of a series continued last night as the AppleSox fell to the Falcons, 4-1. Wenatchee scored first for the second straight night thanks to an RBI single by Joichiro Oyama in the third inning to extend his hitting streak to seven games. Kelowna tied it up in the fourth before scoring the game-winning run with two outs in the seventh and then adding two runs of insurance in the eighth. 

The AppleSox outhit the Falcons, 11-10, but stranded 13 men on the basepaths. The AppleSox offense had an explosive homestand last week, scoring 64 runs in six games. Wenatchee scored 12-or-more runs in three straight games Thursday-through-Sunday and no less than five runs in any of the six games but has combined to score three runs through the first two games of this six-game road trip. 

In addition to Oyama, Andrew Haight also extended his hitting streak with a base-hit last night. Haight singles in his first at-bat to stretch his streak to nine games. The AppleSox catcher has a hit in all but one-of-the-10 games that he has played in and is batting .352 over his streak. 

Gianluca Shinn starts for the AppleSox in his third start and fifth appearance of the summer. He pitched 2.1 innings on Sunday and allowed five runs on four hits and four walks. Two runs to score against him came across after he had left the game. Shinn is 1-0 with a 7.87 ERA in eight innings this year. 

Kelowna counters with right-hander Hiroyuki Yamada, who enters Thursday night with a 1-3 record and an 8.59 ERA over 14.2 innings in four games, all starts. Yamada last pitched on July 1 at Walla Walla and allowed four runs in two innings on four hits and two walks to suffer the loss. 

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Oyama Extends Streak But AppleSox Fall To Falcons

The Wenatchee AppleSox scored first but fell to the Kelowna Falcons, 4-1, on Wednesday night at Elks Stadium.

Joichiro Oyama extended his hitting streak to seven games with an RBI single in the third but Wenatchee could not overcome stranding 13 men on the basepaths. 

Despite scoring first for the second straight day Wenatchee gave up a tying run in the fourth before the go-ahead run scored in the seventh and then two more in the eighth.

Jack Moffitt gave the AppleSox a strong start by striking out five in 4.1 innings, both matching season-highs for him. He exited with one out in the fifth and Mason Philley (2-2) retired the next five hitters before giving up the lead in the seventh.

Michael Davinni recorded his third consecutive multi-hit game and helped get a rally started for the AppleSox in the ninth inning as he singled before Matt Halbach recorded his ninth multi-hit game of the summer with a double down the left-field line to put runners at second and third with one out. The AppleSox could not push across any runs and fell in the second game of the series. 

Wenatchee can win this series and the season series by taking Thursday’s game. Gianluca Shinn gets the ball for the AppleSox in his third start of the year. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m.

AppleSox Look To Win Season Series vs Kelowna

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox continue their six-game road trip with the second game of their series against the Kelowna Falcons tonight at 6:35 at Elks Stadium. 

Wenatchee took the first game of the series with a 2-1 victory last night. Matt Halbach hit a go-ahead solo home run to lead off the fifth inning and Evan Canfield tossed five shutout innings of relief after Riley Sinclair only allowed one run in the first four innings. 

Tuesday’s win marked the AppleSox’ fourth of the season against the Falcons after taking two-of-three games against them last week at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. A win tonight or tomorrow gives Wenatchee a season-series victory. Last night’s win was the AppleSox’ fourth consecutive at Elks Stadium dating back to a series sweep in 2019. 

The AppleSox struck first last night to pick up the series-opening win but also allowed a run in the first inning for the fourth consecutive game. Wenatchee has given up eight runs in the first inning in each of the last four games while scoring six runs in the that time. The AppleSox have split each of their last four games.

Tuesday’s victory also tied for the lowest combined scoring game of the season along with the AppleSox’ 2-1 loss to the Edmonton Riverhawks on June 24. When both teams combine to score five-runs-or-less the AppleSox are 2-3. Kelowna has not given up a combined three runs over its last three games and is 2-1 after sweeping a doubleheader on Sunday against Walla Walla.

Jack Moffitt gets the ball tonight in his team-leading sixth start of the summer. He is looking to bounce back after allowing three runs on four hits in the first inning on Saturday against Bend. The redshirt sophomore at Gonzaga did not face the Falcons last week and is 1-1 with a 6.31 ERA in 15.2 innings this summer.

Brock Keller starts for Kelowna in his third start of the summer. His last appearance came last Thursday against the AppleSox when he allowed five runs in four innings and suffered the loss against Wenatchee. Keller tossed scoreless frames in the first and third innings but endured long innings in the second and fourth innings. Wenatchee sent eight men to the plate and scored three runs in the second before adding two in the fourth while seven hitters came to hit.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Halbach, Canfield Lead Sox Past Falcons

Matt Halbach hit a go-ahead solo home run in the fifth inning and Evan Canfield tossed five shutout innings of relief to lead the AppleSox past the Kelowna Falcons, 2-1, on Tuesday night at Elks Stadium.

Canfield punched out a season-high seven, including five in a row at one point, to record his first save of the summer. He now has a 1.25 ERA over 14.1 innings in his first four appearances on the mound. 

Canfield twice pitched in dangerous situations with the lead. He allowed consecutive hits to open up the bottom of the fifth in his first inning of relief but struck out the side to get out of the threat. In the ninth he surrendered a leadoff walk and a sacrifice bunt moved the tying run to scoring position but he induced back-to-back pop outs to end the game.

Riley Sinclair (1-0) allowed one run in four innings to earn his first victory of the season. 

Michael Davinni picked up a pair of hits including an RBI single in the first inning to put Wenatchee on the board first. The Falcons answered back with a run on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the frame but Halbach’s first home run of the year to lead off the fifth gave Wenatchee the lead for good.

The AppleSox can win their fourth series in the last five if they can win Wednesday’s 6:35 p.m. against the Falcons. Jack Moffitt will toe the rubber for Wenatchee in his team-leading sixth start of the summer.

Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast to hear a recap of the game, highlights, a postgame interview with head coach Mitch Darlington and a pregame interview with Lee Souza.

AppleSox Open Second Half At Kelowna

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox begin the second half of their season on Tuesday night at 6:35 p.m. against the Kelowna Falcons at Elks Stadium.

It’s the second straight week that the AppleSox will play the Falcons after taking two-of-three against them this past week at home. Wenatchee won 9-4 last Tuesday, lost 11-7 and then won 14-3 to capture their third consecutive series victory. That streak came to an end over the weekend as the AppleSox lost two-of-three games against the Elks despite a huge 14-3 series-opening win on Friday.

This is the first game of the AppleSox’ second six-game road trip north of the border this season. Wenatchee previously visited the Victoria HarbourCats June 21-23 before then traveling to take on the Edmonton Riverhawks June 24-26. The AppleSox won both series and are 6-3 against Canadian teams this season.

That success against non-U.S. teams will need to continue in the second half as 12 of the AppleSox’ final 27 games are against Canadian opponents and all of those games are in divisional play. The Bellingham Bells won the North Division in the first half and have thus already clinched a playoff spot. The AppleSox are and can take a playoff spot by either winning the second half or having the third or fourth-best overall record in the division. The only way that they can clinch home-field advantage in the Divisional Series is by winning the second half.

The AppleSox send Riley Sinclair to the mound for his third start of the summer. He faced the Flacons a week ago and he allowed two runs on two walks, two hits and five strikeouts in four innings. Sinclair allowed three runs in two innings in his first start on June 21 and is appearing in his fourth game overall tonight.

Kelowna has not announced a probable pitcher.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Stuka Wins WCL Player Of The Week

AppleSox first baseman Luc Stuka has been named the West Coast League Player of the Week for June 27-July 3 after hitting .458 with two doubles, a home run and 7 RBI.

Stuka has been on a roll since a 3-for-4 night on June 21. That marked the first of 12 consecutive starts that he would make at first base and he hit .404 in that span with a nine-game hitting streak from June 23-July 2. Stuka recorded five different multi-hit games over that hitting streak.

July 2 marked the one-year anniversary of him hitting for the first cycle in AppleSox history and Stuka followed it up with quite the encore by going five-for-six with 5 RBI against the Bend Elks to record the AppleSox’ first five-hit game since Aug. 2, 2015.

Stuka played his final game of the summer on Sunday and did not collect any hits to extend his hitting streak to double digits but walked twice. He will take time off from baseball before getting prepared for school to begin in mid-August.

The incoming junior at Cal State Northridge ends the summer with a .351 batting average in 15 games. Including non-leagues games Stuka has played in 58 games for the AppleSox in the last two summers. He joins Joichiro Oyama (June 6-12) as the second AppleSox player to win the West Coast League Player of the Week honor this summer.

The AppleSox are off on Monday but return to action Tuesday against the Kelowna Falcons for the first game of a six-game road trip. Their next game is July 12 against the Dub Sea Fish Sticks for the first of a two-game non-league series. It’s a $2 Off Tuesday with all tickets, hot dogs, burgers and Coors Draft beers all $2 off. Purchase tickets now at saferseating.com.

AppleSox Drop Series Finale To Elks

Michael Davinni went 3-for-4 and scored twice but the Wenatchee AppleSox fell to the Bend Elks, 9-5, on Sunday afternoon at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Davinni recorded his seventh multi-hit game and third three-hit effort of the summer but the AppleSox lost a series for the first time in two weeks.

Davinni’s first hit of the game was the second of three consecutive doubles to open the inning. He plated Andrew Haight after his leadoff double and Grant Sherrod drove in Davinni before a sacrifice bunt advanced Sherrod to third and he scored on a sacrifice fly by Matt Halbach to tie the game up, 3-3.

However, the AppleSox did not score again until the bottom of the ninth when Davinni hit a one-out double and scored on an RBI triple by Joichiro Oyama, who then came home after a Halbach single. In between the third and ninth innings the Elks scored six runs to pick up the series victory.

Sunday marked the first time since Thursday that the AppleSox did not score double-digit runs. Wenatchee split the homestand by winning two-of-three games against the Kelowna Falcons before dropping two-of-three against the Bend Elks. The AppleSox end the first half with a 12-15 record and in third place in the North Division at the time of the conclusion of Sunday’s game.

Wenatchee opens the second half of the season on Tuesday when it travels to Kelowna for a three-game road series before then traveling to Nanaimo for three games against the NightOwls.

Stuka's Five Hits Not Enough vs Elks

The Wenatchee AppleSox and Bend Elks combined to score 29 runs Friday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium but it was the visiting team who picked up the 17-12 win in front of 1,588 fans.

Luc Stuka led the way for the AppleSox with a 5-for-6 performance for the first 5-hit effort by the AppleSox this summer and their first since Nick Nyquist collected five against the Victoria HarbourCats on Aug. 2, 2015. He singled in the first, second, fourth and fifth innings before doubling in eighth. The incoming junior at Cal State Northridge also drove in five runs in the losing cause. He extended his hitting streak to 10 games with his huge night.

The AppleSox lost despite outhitting the Elks and Bend committing eight errors. Wenatchee led 4-3 after one inning but never did again after allowing five runs in the top of the second.

The true turning point of the game came with the AppleSox batting with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third trailing 8-5. Enzo Apodaca popped out to third after three straight hitters had reached with two outs and the Elks went on to score five runs over the next two innings before Wenatchee struck again but they never got as close to the three-run deficit again.

The AppleSox look to take the series on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. against the Elks. Gianluca Shinn gets the ball for his second start of the summer in the AppleSox’ fourth consecutive rubber match. Tickets can be purchased at saferseating.com.

AppleSox Look For Fourth Straight Series Victory On Fireworks Night

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox continue the holiday weekend by facing the Bend Elks at 7:05 p.m. on Fireworks Night presented by Numerica Credit Union.

The AppleSox are rolling offensively and looking to add to it tonight in the penultimate game of the first half. Wenatchee has scored 64 runs in the last six games for an average of just over 10.5-runs per game and has won five-of-the-last-six games. They have hit nine in the last seven games after going nine straight games without a home run. This recent surge represents 69-percent of the AppleSox’ season total of 13.

The long ball was a huge part of last night’s victory as the AppleSox smacked three home runs in a 14-3 win over the Elks. Luc Stuka led off the second inning with his first of the season while Brandham Ponce and CJ Horn each hit their third of the year in a seven-run sixth inning. The AppleSox also scored four runs in the fifth inning and have now scored four-or-more runs in an inning 17 times this season including four times in the last four games.

Wenatchee cannot capture a first-half playoff spot because the Bellingham Bells have already clinched it. If the season ended today, then the AppleSox would make the playoffs as the third seed and face the Kamloops NorthPaws in the North Division Series. Wenatchee sits 1.5 games back of Kamloops for second place and having home-field advantage in the first round.

Jack Moffitt makes his team-leading fifth start of the summer tonight. The right-hander from Gonzaga is coming off his first victory of the season when he allowed two runs in 4.1 innings last Saturday against the Edmonton Riverhawks. Moffitt struck out two, walked two and allowed six hits in the win.

This is the second time that he will face Bend this season. Moffitt fired four scoreless innings against the Elks at Vince Genna Stadium on June 5 but picked up a no decision. He struck out five, walked five and allowed three hits while also stranding the bases loaded twice. Moffitt is 1-1 this summer with a 4.90 ERA. In 14.2 innings he has struck out 13, walked 13 and allowed 16 hits.

Cole Wilkinson faces the AppleSox for the second time this summer and fifth time in his career. The lefty from Linn-Benton has pitched against Wenatchee in each of the last three West Coast League seasons and has a 4.38 ERA over 12.1 innings in four games against the Sox. His best appearance versus Wenatchee came on Aug. 11, 2019, when he tossed six shutout innings to pick up the victory for the Corvallis Knights in the regular-season finale.

Wilkinson started for the Elks on Opening Night, June 3, but allowed eight runs (six earned) on seven hits, three walks and two strikeouts in 3.1 innings. He is 2-0 with a 4.57 ERA in four games (all starts) this summer. In 19.2 innings Wilkinson has struck out 14, walked five, and allowed 17 hits. He allowed three runs in six innings last Saturday to earn the victory in Bend’s 10-8 win over Cowlitz.

Premium seating is nearly sold out for tonight’s game but general admission tickets remain available for purchase. Fans are encouraged to beat the long lines at the gate by purchasing their tickets in advance at saferseating.com and by arriving at the park as early as possible. Gates open at 6 p.m.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

AppleSox Smack Three Homers To Beat Elks

Luc Stuka, Brandham Ponce and CJ Horn all went deep and the Wenatchee AppleSox defeated the Bend Elks, 14-3, on Friday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. 

Wenatchee scored four times in the fifth and seven times in the sixth to pick up their seventh win in their last nine games. 

For the second straight day the AppleSox set their new single-game high for hits with 18. Their three home runs were also a single-game high for 2022. 

Stuka extended his hitting streak eight games with a leadoff home run to open the second. That made it 2-1, AppleSox, and they never trailed from that point on. Ponce and Horn each hit their third home runs of the season in the sixth and drove in four runs apiece. 

Chase Matheny (3-0) allowed two runs (one earned) in five innings to pick up the win in his second start of the summer. Davis Spencer struck out two in the sixth in his AppleSox debut and Hunter Gibson struck out five in the the final three innings to pick up his first save of the summer.

Halbach and Horn finished a home run and triple shy of hitting for the cycle, respectively. Five different hitters recorded multi-hit games and the AppleSox scored double-digit runs for sixth time this season. Wenatchee is 5-1 when scoring 10-or-more runs.

The AppleSox look to win their fourth consecutive series on Saturday night in front of a packed house for Fireworks Night sponsored by Numerica Credit Union. Gates open at 6 p.m. and tickets can be purchased at saferseating.com.

Listen to the latest edition of the Wenatchee AppleSox Podcast below to hear a recap of the game, highlights and interview with Horn, Matheny, head coach Mitch Darlington and Xander Orejudos. Subscribe to the AppleSox Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

AppleSox Host Elks on Fourth of July Weekend

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox continue their six-game homestand by welcoming the Bend Elks to Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium tonight for a 6:35 p.m. game.

The AppleSox are coming off a 13-0 win over the Kelowna Falcons to give them their sixth win in the last nine games and their third consecutive series victory. Grant Sherrod hit a home run and scored all four times that he reached base and Wenatchee recorded its second shutout victory of the summer.

This is the first time that the AppleSox have faced the Elks since losing all three games a month ago to begin the season at Vince Genna Stadium. The AppleSox were twice walked off after holding leads late in both instances.

Offense was the theme of that season-opening series. Bend outscored Wenatchee 37-27 in the series and have kept scoring ever since then. The Elks leads the West Coast League with 248 hits, are tied for first with 178 runs and are second with a .285 batting average. Elijah Jackson is leading the way for the Elks and is sixth in the WCL with a .373 batting average. He picked up the walkoff hit against the AppleSox in the season-opener and was 4-for-10 at the plate against the AppleSox.

Chase Matheny makes his second start of the summer tonight for the AppleSox. He was brilliant two Thursday in his debut out of the rotation, only allowing one run in six innings of work to pick up the win in the AppleSox’ rubber-match victory over the Victoria HarbourCats. He is 2-0 this summer with a 4.50 ERA and 11 strikeouts over 12 innings in three appearances.

In a unique twist Matheny will face the team he played for in the West Coast League last summer. The right-hander from South Carolina Upstate did not pitch for the Elks a year ago but hit .304 in 35 games to post the third-best batting average on the team.

The Elks will send Reid Madariaga to the bump for his fourth start of the summer. The right-hander pitched twice against the AppleSox in the first two games of the season, both times in relief. He picked up the win in relief in the season-opener by giving up one run in the top of the ninth inning before the Elks rallied to score four times in the bottom of the ninth. Madariaga allowed three runs on five hits in two innings of relief in Game 2 to pick up a no decision. Since then he has only allowed three runs in 17.2 innings over his next five outings. The right-hander from Pierce College is 2-0 with a 3.04 ERA and 23 strikeouts over 20.2 innings over seven games.

The weekend opener is being sponsored by the Comfort Suites Wenatchee Gateway. Tickets are available at saferseating.com and gates open at 5:30 p.m.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

AppleSox Win Third Consecutive Series

Aiva Arquette and Cole Miller both collected three-hit efforts while Luc Stuka and Andrew Haight both extended their hitting streaks to seven games as the AppleSox picked up a 13-0 win over the Kelowna Falcons on Thursday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The win marked Wenatchee’s second shutout victory of the season and their third consecutive series victory. The AppleSox have have taken two-of-three games from the Victoria HarbourCats, Edmonton Riverhawks and Kelowna Falcons in the last week-and-a-half to give them wins in six-of-their-last-nine games.

Evan Canfield (2-0) tossed 2.2 scoreless innings of relief to pick up the win in his first home appearance of the summer. He struck out four consecutive hitters for four-of-his-last-five outs. Ryan Mullan started and did not allow any runs in 4.1 innings while stranding seven men in the first three innings. Connor Wilson tossed a scoreless ninth inning.

The AppleSox collected a season-high 17 hits on Thursday night and never trailed after a three-run second inning in which Matt Halbach drove in two with a bases-loaded single before Arquette plated his first run of the night with a single.

All of the runs in the first inning scored with two outs and was only kept possible by two crucial at-bats. Joichiro Oyama preceded Halbach with a walk to load up the bases after Grant Sherrod picked up a two-out single to prolong the inning. Sherrod reached base four times Thursday and scored all four times, including hitting a solo home run to lead off the fourth inning. Xander Orejudos plated the AppleSox’ other run in the fourth with a two-out RBI single for his first of two hits.

The AppleSox scored in each of their final three innings at the plate. They got singular runs in the sixth and seventh innings thanks to a Kelowna error each inning before scoring six times in the eighth. Miller, Oyama and Arquette all delivered RBI singles in the frame as 10 hitters came to the plate.

Wenatchee faces a tough test this weekend as the Bend Elks come to Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium to wrap up the season series. The AppleSox were swept to open the season June 3-5 at Vince Genna Stadium but twice blew saves in the series. The Elks sit one game back of the Corvallis Knights for first place in the South Division and, like the AppleSox, wrap up the first half of the season this weekend. Purchase tickets at saferseating.com.

Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast below to hear a recap of the game, highlights and postgame interview with Sherrod and Canfield as well as the pregame interview with Ezra Samperi. Subscribe to the AppleSox Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts to check out previous episodes.

AppleSox Take On Kelowna In Third Straight Rubber Match

GAME NOTES

The Wenatchee AppleSox hit the midpoint of their six-game homestand tonight as they face the Kelowna Falcons at 6:35 p.m. at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox took the first game of this series on Tuesday night with a 9-4 victory but lost last night, 11-7. While a six-run sixth inning proved the difference in the series opener it was surrendering six runs in the sixth inning on Wednesday that evened up the mid-week series.

Offense has not been an issue for the AppleSox lately despite last night’s loss. They rallied to score all seven of their runs in the final three innings to mark the fourth consecutive game that they have scored at least seven runs. The AppleSox are outscoring opponents, 37-20, in that span.

Luc Stuka has been a big contributor to the AppleSox’ recent surge. He reached base three times and score twice last night to extend a pair of different streaks. His first-of-two hits, a fourth-inning double, extended his hitting streak to six games and his eighth-inning walked extended his consecutive-game walk streak to five. Stuka has started at first base in each of the last eight games and is hitting .366 (11-for-30) with all three of his multi-hit efforts in that span.

Tonight is the AppleSox’ last of 15 consecutive games against North Division foes. They stared 0-6 after dropping each game against Bellingham but have bounced back to go 5-3 since then and have a chance to win their third consecutive series if they can take tonight’s game.

Only four games remain in the first half and the AppleSox have been eliminated from winning the first half title but sit a half game out of a playoff spot. Wenatchee entered last night’s game in sole possession of fourth place for the last playoff spot but dropped down to six in a tight eight-team North Division. Bellingham sits four games ahead of Kamloops and has already clinched the first-half North Division playoff berth.

Ryan Mullan toes the rubber for his fourth start of the summer. He is coming off a brilliant effort last Friday in which he tossed the first complete game by an AppleSox pitcher in nearly four years. The incoming freshman at Loyola Marymount allowed two runs in the second inning but also retired each of the final 17 hitters that he faced in order.

Kelowna sends Brock Keller to the bump for his third appearance of the year and second start of the summer. He is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA over five innings and has struck out six, walked three and allowed five hits. He tossed two scoreless innings relief in his last time out on June 17 against the Kamloops NorthPaws, striking out three of the eight hitters that he faced.

Tonight’s game is Armed Forces Night. All active or retired military members receive free admission by showing their military ID at the gate for the 6:35 p.m. game. Tickets are available at saferseating.com and gates open at 5:30 p.m.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

Stuka Extends Hitting Streak But Sox Fall To Falcons

Luc Stuka picked up a pair of hits but the Wenatchee AppleSox fell to the Kelowna Falcons, 11-7, on Wednesday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Stuka recorded his third multi-hit game of the summer and extended his hitting streak to six games but the AppleSox could not overcome allowing six runs in the top of the first inning.

Joichiro Oyama hit his first home run of the season with a leadoff shot to open up the bottom of the ninth.

The AppleSox did not get on the board until putting up a three-spot in the seventh inning. Five straight hitters reached based and Adam Fahsel picked up an RBI single to plate the first run before plating another run with an RBI groundout in the next inning. They scored all seven of their runs in the final three innings.

Wenatchee will play its third consecutive rubber match in the winner-take-the-series game on Thursday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. It’s Armed Forces Night and all active or retired military members receive free admission by showing their military ID at the gate for the 6:35 p.m. game.

Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast below to get a recap of the game as well as Joel Norman’s pregame interview with Aiva Arquette. Subscribe to the Wenatchee AppleSox Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

AppleSox Face Falcons On Educator's Night

GAME NOTES

Game 2 of the AppleSox’ six-game homestand is tonight as Wenatchee faces the Kelowna Falcons at 6:35 p.m. at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox are coming of a series-opening 9-4 win last night. Aiva Arquette led the way by finishing a home run away from hitting for the cycle and driving in four. Wenatchee exploded for six runs in the bottom of the sixth to pick up its third consecutive victory and fifth in the last seven games.

The six-run frame was three runs shy of becoming the AppleSox’ highest-scoring inning this season. Regardless, it is the 13th time this summer that the AppleSox have scored four-or-more runs in a single inning. The AppleSox are 8-2 in games in which they have scored four-or-more runs in at least one inning.

Brandham Ponce homered to plate the third run of the big sixth inning and it not only marked his second of the season but the fourth homer by an AppleSox hitter in the last four games. The AppleSox played nine consecutive games without launching a ball over the fence and went 2-7 in that time but have now won three of the last four while hitting a home run in each game.

The recent offensive surge has come at a good time for the AppleSox. Their offensive has had hot and cold stretches to begin the 2022 season. Wenatchee opened the season by scoring 80 runs over their first nine games for an average of 8.8 runs per games and went 5-4 to open the summer. In the ensuing six games the AppleSox only scored 10 runs and lost every game. They have responded by scoring 50 runs in the last seven games for an average of 7.1 runs per game and winning five games.

Quincy Vassar makes his fourth start of the summer tonight and fifth appearance overall. He will pitch at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium for the first time since June 7 when he tossed six shutout inning and struck out eight Port Angeles Lefties. Vassar has pitched at least five innings all three starts this summer and has limited opponents to four runs or less each time. He allowed four runs (all earned) and struck out three in 5.1 innings last Wednesday against the Victoria HarbourCats at Royal Athletic Park.

Kelowna will counter with Derek Bearisto, who is making his second start of the season. The Centralia native allowed three runs (two earned) and struck out four in five innings against the Kamloops NorthPaws on June 17, a 6-5 Kamloops win.

Tonight’s game is Educator’s Night and all teachers who show a valid school ID at the gate receive free admission. It’s also a WINatchee Wednesday meaning that all fans in attendance are eligible to win prizes from local Wenatchee businesses from the third-through-sixth innings. Tickets are available at saferseating.com and gates open at 5:30 p.m.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.

AppleSox Open Homestand With Win vs Kelowna

The Wenatchee AppleSox scored six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to pick up a 9-4 victory over the Kelowna Falcons on Tuesday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

Aiva Arquette went 3-for-4 with 4 RBI for his sixth multi-hit game of the summer. Two of his hits came in big six inning as he doubled and scored to open the inning and then drove in the last two runs of the frame with an RBI single. Arquette plated his second run in the third inning on an RBI groundout and he brought in Wenatchee’s first run with an RBI triple in the first inning to tie the game up before scoring two batters later on a single by Luc Stuka.

Two-out runs were the name of the game for the AppleSox on Tuesday as seven-of-their-nine runs scored with one out remaining in the inning. Stuka’s knock in the first inning extended his hit streak to five games and gave the AppleSox the lead for good.

Riley Sinclair took a big step forward in his second start of the summer. He pitched into the fifth inning and only allowed two runs while striking out five. Jake Putnam (1-0) came on in relief in the fifth with two on and no outs and allowed a sacrifice fly to cut Kelowna’s deficit to one run but then induced an inning-ending double play before tossing an 1-2-3 sixth inning.

Wenatchee looked like it would take its 3-2 lead into the seventh-inning until Arquette scored when CJ Horn hit a groundball to second that was thrown away into the first-base dugout. Horn went to second and scored after a couple of wild pitches before Brandham Ponce launched a solo home run over the right-center field fence for his second long ball of the season.

Xander Orejudos continued the long inning by walking and stealing second and then scored on a Grant Sherrod RBI single to make it 6-2, AppleSox. Joichiro Oyama and Matt Halbach drew back-to-back walks to load up the bases and then Arquette drove in his final two runs of the night.

The AppleSox have now won five-of-their-last-seven games and can win their third consecutive series with a win on Wednesday or Thursday. Wednesday’s game is Educators Night and all teachers who show a valid school ID receive free admission. It’s also a WINatchee Wednesday meaning that all fans in attendance are eligible to win prizes from local Wenatchee businesses from the third-through-sixth innings. Tickets are available at saferseating.com and first pitch is at 6:35 p.m.

Listen to the latest edition of the Wenatchee AppleSox Podcast below to hear a recap of the game, highlights and postgame interviews with Ponce, Mason Philley, head coach Mitch Darlington and Adam Fahsel. Subscribe to the AppleSox Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts to receive the latest episodes as they are posted.

AppleSox Begin Six-Game Homestand Tonight vs Kelowna

Following a six-game road trip north of the border, the Wenatchee AppleSox make the trek home from Edmonton to kick off an almost week-long homestand beginning with a 6:35 p.m. game tonight against the visiting Kelowna Falcons.

The AppleSox come into the week riding the momentum of two consecutive series wins coming against the Victoria HarbourCats and the Edmonton Riverhawks. Their wins came on the heels of strong nights at the plate as they scored at least eight runs in each of their four wins over the last week. However, the pitching staff played a large part in their success over the weekend as they held off the Riverhawks by allowing only seven total runs in three games at Edmonton. A much needed off-day on Monday gives the AppleSox a bit of rest before tonight’s first pitch after their first ever trip to Edmonton.

Kelowna will travel to the states for only the second time this year and they will be the AppleSox’ third consecutive matchup with a team from our neighbor to the north. They have won two of their last seven games, but their bats came alive on Sunday as they put up 12 runs in a win against the Nanaimo NightOwls to improve to a 7-9 record on the season. This gives them a slight edge over the AppleSox in the standings with the AppleSox a half-game behind the NightOwls going into Tuesday.

The Sox will have to be careful with Kelowna’s leadoff hitter, Jacob Steels, an outfielder from Santa Maria, Cali. who leads the team in doubles, tied for the team lead in runs scored, and is hitting at a .353 clip this year in 13 games. The Falcons also have some power in the middle of their lineup with CJ Richmond, an outfielder from Indianapolis, Ind. who is slashing .283/.411/.522 and leads the team with three homeruns and 11 RBI in 14 games played.

Multiple AppleSox batters found their groove this week and look to stay hot going into the homestand. Matt Halbach and Andrew Haight have been impressive in their short time with the AppleSox so far and continued to show that in the last few games. Halbach tallied four multi-hit games in Canada and brings his season batting average to .395 with a three-for-five performance on Sunday afternoon in the 9-3 AppleSox win over the Riverhawks. Haight has been an excellent backstop and has hit safely in six straight games, going 8-for-22 on the road trip while launching two balls over the fence in back-to-back games against Edmonton.

Adam Fahsel has also been swinging a hot bat as he recorded five hits in the series at Edmonton with a double and a home run. The AppleSox added a pitcher in Evan Canfield who has yet to make his debut at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium. The Bothell, Wash. native tossed 5.2 innings since joining the team and has struck out five batters while only walking one to the tune of a 3.17 ERA.

The AppleSox have won four straight against the Falcons dating back to July 4th, 2019 with a 16-8 win at home where 14 runs were scored by the Sox in the seventh and eighth innings to secure the victory. They did not play the Falcons in 2021, making today’s game the first time the two teams have played in almost three years with their last matchup coming on July 18th, 2019 in Kelowna where the AppleSox came away with an 11-8 win.

Offensive firepower has been the strength of the AppleSox as they come into play Tuesday with the West Coast League’s fourth-highest team batting average. The bats will need to stay hot with Kelowna touting one of the best pitching staffs in the league with a 3.91 team ERA, which ranks fourth best in the WCL.

The starting pitcher tonight for the AppleSox is Riley Sinclair. Originally from Camas, Wash., Sinclair has spent two years at Seattle University in which he has amassed 20 total appearances and will be entering his junior year there this fall. He has made two appearances with one start this summer and is looking for a bounce-back performance after allowing three runs in two innings last week at Victoria.

Come out and cheer on the AppleSox and your community heroes as we honor first responders tonight at the ballpark. Current and former first responders can show valid ID cards for free entry into the ballpark.

It’s also a $2 Off Tuesday with $2 off general admission and premium tickets, $2 off hot dogs, burgers, and Coors Light draft pours! Tonight is also a Taco Tuesday where you can get three tacos for $7. While you're at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium, stop by the souvenir stand for the chance to grab your own souvenir fillable AppleSox beer bat for a special discounted price of $5 and take an additional 20-percent off select merchandise items tonight only.

Tickets are still available to be purchased for today’s game and fans can do so by heading to saferseating.com or by purchasing their tickets in-person at the gate.

Tonight’s game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:

·      Wenatchee: 93.9 FM

·      East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM

·      Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM

·      Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM

·      Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM

·      Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM

·      Methow Valley: 106.3 FM

Coverage of today’s game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews.