The Parksville Royals split both their doubleheaders at home over the weekend.
The highlight of the Royals outings was their game against the league-leading North Shore Twins. Both matches were high hitting games that featured also some good defensive displays.
In the first game on Saturday, the Royals gave up five runs in the first three innings and scored only one to trail 5-1. But in the bottom of the third, the Royals went hot at the plate, racking up five runs in a row to grab a slim 6-5 lead. The Royals added two more runs in the next two innings to make it 8-5 and allowed only one more run to take the first game 8-6.
Starting pitcher Brayden Baker was credited with the win gaving up four hits and five runs. Thomas Green went 3-for-3 at bat and had four RBIs to lead the Royals’ offense. Kieran Bowles, Cam McNeil, and Dylan Kirby each had an RBI.
The second game was a topsy turvy affair with both teams scoring a total of 29 runs. Unfortunately, the Royals ended up in the bottom of an 18-11 scoreline.
The Royals blew a golden opportunity to double up on the tough Twins. They squandered a 9-7 lead when they gave up 11 runs in the last two innings.
McNeil and Spencer Walton, each went 2-for-4 at bat and had two and three RBIs respectively.
The next day, the Royals took on the Coquitlam Reds. In the first game, starter Finn Martin struggled on the mound and lasted only two innings after he yielded four runs. He was relieved by Jacob Volkers Jr., who started well but faltered in the fourth when he gave up four runs. The Royals staged a comeback late but were not able to close the gap, dropping the first game 8-6.
In the second game, the Royals bats came alive, scoring five runs in the fourth inning to grab an 8-2 lead. But the Royals went cold after that while the Reds heated up, managing to tie it up 8-8 in the seventh inning. The Royals won the game in the bottom of the ninth. Nolan Baker opened with a single. Spencer Walton made it to first base when he was hit by a pitch, pushing Baker to scoring position in second base. Nicholas Yu struck a single and brought Baker home for the winning run.
The Royals remained in fourth place in the league with 24 wins and 14 losses.
This Canada Day weekend, the Royals will be hosting the second ranked team in the league the Victoria Mariners on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Then on Sunday, they take on the Whalley Chiefs, who are on fifth place in the standings. They play at 10 a.m. and at 12:30 p.m.