After a thrilling weekend of baseball in eight different West Coast League markets, the field of eight has been whittled to four, with North and South championship games scheduled for Tuesday night in Portland, Oregon; and Edmonton, Alberta. Both cities are hosting division title games for the first time, and both stadiums figure to be packed with fans.

Saturday night, the defending champion Portland Pickles finished their two-game sweep of the first-year Marion Berries with a convincing 12-0 in Portland’s Walker Stadium. The victory was keyed by a seven-run first inning, highlighted by Luis Castillo’s bases-loaded home run.

But the other three series all went the distance, with decisive games Sunday.

In Edmonton, the Riverhawks survived a furious rally by the Victoria HarbourCats, who entered the ninth inning trailing 8-2, but rallied for five runs and still had two runners on base when reliever Brandon Craven finally got that last elusive out to seal the ‘Hawks’ first berth in North Division championship game.

Tuesday night they’ll host the Bellingham Bells after a tremendously hard-fought series between the Bells and Wenatchee AppleSox, both perennial title contenders. Friday in Wenatchee, the Bells hung on for a 7-6 win. Saturday in Bellingham, the AppleSox mounted a late-innings comeback and ultimately topped the Bells in 13 innings, 7-6 again. And Sunday night, the teams once more went to extra innings – following more eighth- and ninth-inning drama – before Rominic Quiban’s two-out single up the middle plated the decisive run when Blake Balsz executed a perfect slide to just evade the catcher’s tag and seal the Bells’ 4-3 win.

Meanwhile, the South Division’s title game will be a rematch of last year’s, except this time the Pickles, who set a league record with 43 regular-season wins, will host the Corvallis Knights. Sunday night, the Knights advanced with a 10-0 over the Bend Elks. The series opened in Bend, with the Elks winning 7-5. But the Knights dominated Saturday night, and Sunday night Corvallis’s Van Froling fired six shutout innings to pace the Knights to their ninth straight trip to the South championship round.

For Tuesday night game times and probable starters, please keep an eye on the WCL scoreboard page, and you can watch all the action on WCL Live, via the internet and your iOS or Android app.

About the West Coast League
The West Coast League is western North America’s premier summer collegiate baseball league. With teams ranging throughout Washington, Oregon, British Columbia and Alberta, the WCL offers top collegiate players the chance to compete at a high level, develop their skills, and showcase their talents in front of thousands of fans, MLB scouts, and national media. The WCL’s 20th Anniversary Season will conclude with the WCL Championship Game August 14.