“Knight” Game
- Updated: June 5, 2018
The Kelowna Falcons look to get back in the win column with a rare single game against the South Division’s Corvallis Knights on Wednesday night at Elks Stadium.
2018 Season Series
Wednesday, June 6th @ Elks Stadium (6:35 PM)
Tuesday, July 24th @ Goss Stadium (6:30 PM)
Wednesday, July 25th @ Goss Stadium (6:30 PM)
Thursday, July 26th @ Goss Stadium (6:30 PM)
Saturday, July 28th @ Elks Stadium (6:35 PM)
Sunday, July 29th @ Elks Stadium (6:05 PM)
2017 Season Wrap
The Falcons come into the 2018 season after making the playoffs for the second time in three seasons in 2017 where Kelowna finished atop of the North Division during the first half of the season with a 17-10 record before wrapping up the year with a 28-26 record and were one of four teams to qualify for the postseason. The Falcons met with the Victoria HarbourCats before bowing out of the playoffs in two games to their Canadian foes.
The Knights are coming off of a historic 2017 campaign which saw them crowned as West Coast League Champions. Corvallis finished the season with the best record in the league at 34-20 after the 54-game regular season before taking on the Yakima Valley Pippins in the South Division Final. Corvallis lost the first game of the three-game series but won the last two before facing Victoria in the WCL Final. They again would drop the first game in that series but rattled off two wins in a row for the WCL Championship.
2017 Season Series
The two teams played each other in just one series last year with the Falcons collecting a pair of victories in a three-game series in Corvallis in early July. Kelowna earned a 4-1 victory in the opening game of the series before the Knights came back with an 8-4 win. The Falcons earned the series win with a 14-7 win in the rubber match. The last trip the Knights made to Elks Stadium was from June 21st-23rd in 2016.
A Series Ago
The Falcons are coming into this one-game matchup against the Knights after a three-game series with the Bellingham Bells was forced to a two-game set with Sunday’s finale being rained out. Kelowna kicked off the season with a riveting 5-4 extra innings win but fell in the second game of the weekend by an 8-2 score on Saturday. Rain caused the cancellation of Sunday’s rubber match, which will be scheduled at a later date.
Corvallis has yet to play a game in the West Coast League this season as Wednesday’s contest will be their first WCL action of the summer. The Knights have played three non-league games, however, with the first being a 5-4 loss to the Portland Sea Dogs on May 30th before a weekend series against the Humboldt Crabs saw Corvallis fall in two of the three games.
Returnees
Kelowna:
P Cal Hehnke (Junior, University of Nebraska-Omaha)
INF Taylor Wright (Freshman, University of Maryland)
INF Matt Voelzke (Sophomore, George Fox University)
OF Lucas Soper (Junior, University of British Columbia)
OF Davis Todosichuk (Junior, Okanagan College)
OF Trent Tinglestad (Sophomore, Everett Community College)
Corvallis:
P Darren Nelson (Sophomore, Cal Poly Pomona)
P Louis Crow (Junior, University of San Diego)
P Kolby Somers (Sophomore, University of Oregon)
P Trevor Wells (Junior, Linn Benton CC)
P Carson Cunningham (Senior, Linfield College)
P Jacob Fricke (Senior, Western Oregon University)
P Miles Glazier (Junior, University of California Irvine)
P Connor Redmond (Junior, Cal Poly Pomona)
C Zak Taylor (Senior, Oregon State University)
INF Chad Stevens (Sophomore, University of Portland)
OF Elliot Willy (Sophomore, Oregon State University)
Players To Watch
Kelowna:
INF Matt Voelzke (6’3”, 180 lbs/Lake Oswego, Oregon, USA)
The second-year Falcon collected a pair of hits in the two-game series to open the season against the Bells but it wasn’t just the bat that heated him up to start the year. The George Fox University sophomore had his patience to thank for his strong play over the two games to open the season as Voelzke collected five walks in his first eleven at-bats of the season, including a four-walk game in the opening contest of the season against the Bells for a .636 on-base percentage after two games.
OF Cody Crowder (6’2”, 185 lbs/Shepard, Texas, USA)
The newcomer to Kelowna emerged as one of the hottest hitters after the opening two games of the season against Bellingham as he delivered four hits in his first nine at-bats. Crowder compiled three hits in the opening game of the season followed by a single and a walk in the Falcons 8-2 loss on Saturday. The Centenary School outfielder sits third on the team with a .444 AVG and is tied for the most hits with four.
P Isaac Olson (6’1”, 195 lbs/Stanwood, Washington, USA)
After a terrific start from second-year starter Cal Hehnke on Friday night, it was the finishing act that helped the Falcons to a 5-4 victory in 11 innings to open the season and that was thanks, in large part, to the performance from Olson on the mound. The George Fox University sophomore came on in relief for 3 innings from the 8th on to the 11th and surrendered just three hits and one run while striking out a batter and walking one to earn the victory.
Corvallis:
OF Chandler Anderson (6’3”, 200 lbs/Park City, Utah, USA)
The Utah Utes sophomore played two games against Humboldt over the weekend and was one of the top producing players for the Knights. Anderson went 4/9 over the two games with a double and a triple while scoring a pair of runs. The Park City, Utah native played in 44 games with the Utes this fall, hitting a home run and collecting 21 RBI’s with a .243 AVG along with 11 doubles and a pair of triples.
INF Chad Stevens (6’4”, 190 lbs/Sherwood, Oregon, USA)
The Knights have a strong returning class from the Championship team of a year ago and one of them is the University of Portland’s Chad Stevens. The Pilots sophomore batted with a .251 AVG and 18 RBI’s along with 6 doubles, 2 triples and 11 walks. The Seattle Mariners 40th round selection in the 2017 MLB Draft played in 40 game with Corvallis a season ago with a .261 AVG along with 14 RBI’s and 13 walks. Stevens also knocked in 8 doubles and a triple and scored 16 runs in 115 plate appearances.
P Trevor Wells (6’0”, 185 lbs/West Linn, Oregon, USA)
A staggering eight pitchers return from last season and one that will be relied upon from the bullpen is Trevor Wells. The Linn-Benton Community College junior finished the collegiate season with a 1.89 ERA in 14 games. Wells struck out 19 while walking 16 batters in 19 innings of work plus 9 saves. In his time with the Knights last summer, Wells went 2-1 with a 3.75 ERA in 12 innings pitched with 6 strikeouts.
The Falcons and Knights are set for first pitch at 6:35 PM on Wednesday night with gates opening at 5:30 PM. It is Vital Waters Night with the first 200 fans receiving a free bottle of Vital Waters. Kelowna heads out on the road for the first time this season as they make the trek to Longview, Washington to battle the Cowlitz Black Bears beginning on Friday night. All 54 Falcons game can be caught live HERE with play-by-play broadcaster Trevor Miller.
Related Posts
Sponsors
