WCL Final Preview
- Updated: August 14, 2018
The Kelowna Falcons search for their first West Coast League title as they open the best-of-three Championship Series against the South Division Champion Corvallis Knights on Tuesday night at Elks Stadium.
2018 Season Series
Wednesday, June 6th @ Elks Stadium (17-6 Corvallis) (BOXSCORE)
Tuesday, July 24th @ Goss Stadium (8-5 Corvallis) (BOXSCORE)
Wednesday, July 25th @ Goss Stadium (2-1 Corvallis) (BOXSCORE)
Thursday, July 26th @ Goss Stadium (6-4 Corvallis) (BOXSCORE)
Saturday, July 28th @ Elks Stadium (6-1 Corvallis) (BOXSCORE)
Sunday, July 29th @ Elks Stadium (9-5 Corvallis) (BOXSCORE)
2018 WCL Championship Series
Game #1: Tuesday, August 14th @ Elks Stadium (6:35 PM)
Game #2: Thursday, August 16th @ Goss Stadium (6:30 PM)
*Game #3: Friday, August 17th @ Goss Stadium (6:30 PM)
*-If necessary
North Division Championship
The Falcons come into the West Coast League Final as the North Division Champions, defeating the Bellingham Bells 2-1 in the best-of-three series. Kelowna opened up the series with a 4-2 win at Elks Stadium before the series shifted to Bellingham for the weekend. The Bells used a 12-inning 4-3 victory to even the series before a decisive Game #3 took place on Sunday. Kelowna scored seven runs in the first two innings and proved to be enough as the Falcons earned a 7-6 win and were crowned North Division Champions.
South Division Championship
The Knights have been to the Championship series before, playing in the last three South Division Championships and are back-to-back West Coast League Champions. Corvallis got to the WCL Final this season with a two-game sweep of the Portland Pickles to become South Division Champs in a pair of tight contests. Zak Taylor walked off a Game #1 victory for the Knights at home in 10 innings before Chad Stevens two-run double helped the Knights to a 4-1 victory in Game #2 of the series in the 11th inning.
Players To Watch
Kelowna:
INF Dan Pruitt (6’5”, 245 lbs/Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA)
The reigning West Coast League Player of the Week has been about as hot as can be over the last week for the Falcons. Pruitt finished off the regular season on a good note, belting three home runs in his last three games before sending out two more bombs in Kelowna’s three-game series win against the Bells. The freshman from Seminole State College is tied with teammate Taylor Wright for the playoff lead in home runs while holding the lead in RBI’s with 4.
INF Taylor Wright (6’3”, 195 lbs/Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)
The second-year Falcon came into this postseason 0-for-8 in the playoffs after last year’s two-game series against the Victoria HarbourCats but has changed that around, in a big way, this summer. The University of Maryland junior blasted home runs in each of the first two games of the series and has collected 3 RBI’s in the playoffs thus far, sitting one behind Pruitt for the WCL lead.
P Kellan Richards (6’1”, 215 lbs/Olathe, Kansas, USA)
After a strong regular season with an ERA of just 2.75, it’s no surprise that Richards had himself an incredible North Division Championship. The junior from Missouri Western State came on for 2.2 innings in Game #2, giving up no hits with one strikeout before working in two innings in the winner-take-all Game #3 and allowed just one hit with a walk and a strikeout.
Corvallis:
OF Chandler Anderson (6’3”, 205 lbs/Park City, Utah, USA)
There wasn’t much in the way of offence in the South Division Final between the Knights and Pickles but Anderson was able to come through with a big hit that pushed the game into extra innings in Game #2. The University of Utah senior’s RBI double in the 5th inning was Corvallis’ only hit until the 11th inning where the Knights scored three runs on their way to the victory. Anderson has hit to the tune of a 3-for-9 stretch in the playoffs with an RBI and a run scored.
P Landen Bourassa (6’4”, 185 lbs/Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada)
In a series dominated by pitching, the South Division All-Star Bourassa kept Pickles hitters off balance all night during Game #2 in Portland. The senior from the University of San Francisco was outstanding in the game, going eight innings while allowing just one run on four hits with no walks and eight strikeouts. Bourassa finished the regular season with a 5-1 record while holding an ERA of 1.95.
P Louis Crow (6’3”, 190 lbs/Buena Park, California, USA)
One of the many returners to this year’s version of the Knights, Crow didn’t have a season in which he wanted but was excellent in the South Division Final against Portland. Finishing the regular season with a 6.00 ERA, the junior from the University of San Diego has turned in a very good performance in the two-game series, pitching in each of the games and earned the save in Game #2 while going an inning allowing no hits with a walk and striking out the side.
The Falcons and Knights begin their best-of-three WCL Final on Tuesday night with a 6:35 PM start time at Elks Stadium in Kelowna. Tickets can be purchased on the Falcons website or at the door ahead of the opening pitch of the game before the series shifts to Oregon as Games #2 and possibly #3 will be held in Corvallis.
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