After a slow start to 2018, the Okanagan Athletics have turned the corner on the B.C. Premier Baseball League season.
The A’s winning streak is now at eight games, following a four-game sweep of the hometown Victoria Eagles.
The A’s, who won just five of their first 16 games, are now 13-11 and have moved to within 5 1/2 games of first place in the PBL.
In the series opener on Saturday, Cole Van Every (2-2) tossed a three-hitter in a 4-1 Okanagan win. Kade Kozak paced the offense going 2-for-3 with an RBI.
In Game 2, Jaden Parsons (.394) had three hits and an RBI, Marcus Strother homered and had three RBIs, while Van Every also drove in three runs as the A’s downed the Eagles 15-5. Carter Morris tossed a six-hitter and didn’t yield an earned run for his second win of the spring.
On Sunday, the tightest game of the weekend saw the Athletics edge Victoria 3-2. Colton Schaper-Kotter delivered a single in the top of the seventh, bringing home Strother with the winning run. Keaton Mandryk spun a complete game, five-hitter for his second win.
In the series finale, Schaper-Kotter had three hits to lead the Athletics to an 11-4 victory. Luigi Russo and Van Every each drove in a a pair of runs. Jackson Borne went 4 1/3 innings on the hill to push his record to 3-0.
This weekend, the A’s will head to Whalley for a four-games series against the Chiefs (5-18).
Meanwhile, A’s outfielder Luigi has committed to Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, OH for next season.
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