The Wenatchee AppleSox swept their first-round playoff series against the Kamloops NorthPaws with a 17-2 victory on Wednesday night at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.

The AppleSox won the first two games in the best-of-three North Division Semifinals and now advance to face the Bellingham Bells this weekend in a do-or-die North Division Championship Game on Saturday at Joe Martin Field.

The AppleSox dazzled in what turned out to be their final home game of the 2022 season. Wenatchee matched a 2022 single-game high by blasting three home runs and finished one hit away from their single-game hight for runs and hits this summer.

Brandham Ponce played in his first game for the AppleSox since July 20 and delivered with a huge night, finishing a triple away from hitting for the cycle. Ponce went 4-for-5 with three runs, 2 RBI and a walk. He homered to lead off the third inning and nearly hit his second in as many innings in his next at-bat but settled for an RBI double off the left-center field fence.

CJ Horn and Xander Orejudos also hit home runs in the offensive onslaught with their two blasts coming in a seven-run sixth inning. It was the first time since July 1 against Bend that Wenatchee homered three times in the same game.

Every AppleSox hitter recorded at least one hit and seven recorded multi-hit efforts. Joichrio Oyama reached base four times, collected three hits and scored three runs. Nino Vultaggio went 4-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored and Cole Cramer drove in four runs with a three-hit night.

Even with all of the offense the AppleSox still got a superb effort on the mound for the second straight night from a pitcher from Brewster. Quincy Vassar struck out eight in seven innings and only allowed a pair of runs in his first appearance since July 24 at Walla Walla.

Vassar and the AppleSox got off on the wrong foot when a triple and a throwing error scored a run in the top of the first but Vassar would go on to retire 11 consecutive hitters from midway through the first inning until the end of the fourth. Wenatchee took an 8-1 lead before Kamloops broke that stretch of dominance from Vassar.

The AppleSox won seven-of-eight games against the NorthPaws this summer, outscoring them 90-40. Wenatchee also won 15-of-17 games against expansion teams in 2022.

Now the AppleSox will face the Bellingham Bells in the North Division Championship Game this Saturday at Joe Martin Field. The Bells swept the Victoria HarbourCats in their North Division Semifinals Series with an 8-2 in Victoria on Tuesday and a 4-2 win at Bellingham on Wednesday. Wenatchee dropped six games in six straight days against the Bells, June 14-19, in the regular season.

The winner of Saturday’s North Division Championship Game will face either Yakima Valley, Corvallis or Ridgefield in the West Coast League Championship Game. Ridgefield swept Portland while Corvallis forced a deciding Game 3 with a 5-3 win on Wednesday. The WCL Championship Game will be held at the ballpark of the team with the best overall record in the regular season. Wenatchee (27-27) had the worst overall record of all five remaining teams.