The Victoria HarbourCats Baseball Club and the Victoria Eagles Baseball Club, which plays in the B.C. Premier Baseball League, have come together to provide yet another high-quality baseball event for Victoria. The HarbourCats organization will support the BCPBL provincial championship on the August long weekend (July 30-Aug 2) at Sports Traders Diamond at RAP.
Eagles pitcher Ethan Skuija pitches in a game last season against the Victoria Mariners at Sports Traders Diamond at Royal Athletic Park. Skuija and the Eagles, along with help from the Victoria HarbourCats, will host the 2015 BCPBL Provincials at the facility in August (Photo: Christian J. Stewart)
The Victoria Eagles will be the host team for a tournament that features either four or five BCPBL teams (depending on the Eagles results), and as many as 13 games played at Vancouver Island’s top baseball facility.
“The HarbourCats are focused on building the game of baseball at all levels, and we are glad to use our expertise to make this the best BCPBL championship possible,” said HarbourCats General Manager Jim Swanson.
“This will be an exciting additional event for our park, and it’s great for Island baseball in general. We thank Eagles Baseball and the coaches and parents of the Premier Eagles for their contribution to local baseball, and look forward to seeing the Premier Eagles and the other qualifying teams on the field battling for the coveted BCPBL championship.”
The Eagles and cross-town rivals Victoria Mariners will play at Sports Traders Diamond at RAP on Thursday, June 4, a regular season game slated to start at 6:30pm. Tickets for that game are $5 and are available only through the HarbourCats.
Anthony Pluta, a former professional baseball player and Victoria Seals pitcher who played at Royal Athletic Park, is the Manager of the Victoria Eagles. The Victoria Mariners, Nanaimo Pirates and Parksville Royals are other Vancouver Island teams that will seek to qualify from the 12-team league.
The BCPBL showcases the highest-level of high school-aged baseball in BC, and the Eagles captured the BCPBL title in 2013. The goal of players in the BCPBL is to earn college baseball opportunities, and it’s a perfect mix with Victoria’s collegiate-level WCL team producing the tournament.
“This will be something local baseball fans will not want to miss, with a high level of baseball talent on the field and bragging rights on the line,” said Martin Winstanley, the Chairman of the Victoria Eagles Baseball Club.
“We’re tremendously pleased to work with the HarbourCats, and we know that playing at Sports Traders Diamond will elevate the BCPBL tournament to new levels of excitement.”
Tournament passes for the BCPBL championship will be: $40 for a family pass, $20 for an individual pass, $5 per individual game, and just $2 for students and seniors. All tickets will be available at the gate. The tournament will also be live-streamed/video as provided by Eclipse Pictures, a local company, for those who cannot attend in person.
More information can be found on the Victoria Eagles website at http://www.victoriaeagles.com
