AppleSox Face Bellingham In North Division Championship Game
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The Wenatchee AppleSox continue their postseason run by traveling to face the Bellingham Bells in the North Division Championship Game on Saturday at 6:35 p.m. at Joe Martin Field.
Wenatchee is two wins away from capturing its sixth West Coast League Championship and seventh league championship, but now must win consecutive do-or-die road games. The winner of the North Division Championship Game will face the winner of tonight’s South Division Championship Game, a matchup between the Corvallis Knights and the Ridgefield Raptors, in the West Coast League Championship Game.
The AppleSox advanced to the North Division Championship Game by sweeping the Kamloops NorthPaws in the North Division Semifinals. Wenatchee won Game 1 on Tuesday, 12-1, at Norbrock Stadium before returning home and winning, 17-2m on Wednesday at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium.
Wenatchee led the WCL in runs scored and finished in second in batting average in the regular season and carried that momentum into the postseason. The AppleSox hit .415 and scored 29 runs in the two victories over Kamloops. Wenatchee scored 13 more runs than the next two closest teams did in the first round (Corvallis and Ridgefield both scored 16 runs apiece) and allowed the fewest runs in the Semifinals.
Seven-of-nine AppleSox hitters who appeared in both games are batting .444 or better. Joichiro Oyama and Xander Orejudos both hit .500 and scored six runs apiece while batting first and second, respectively, in the batting order both nights.
Now the AppleSox face the Bells, who swept the regular-season series between the two teams with a win in all six games June 14-19. The AppleSox’ bats were shut out only twice this season and both instances came in a three-day span against the Bells, June 14 and 16.
Bellingham advanced to the North Division Championship Game by sweeping their semifinal series against Victoria. The Bells scored three runs in the sixth in Game 1 on Tuesday to break a 2-2 tie and then scored three more times in the eighth inning to pick up a series-opening 8-2 victory. Bellingham swept Victoria with a three-run bottom of the eighth inning on Wednesday to come back from a 2-1 deficit.
Malcom Moore has led the way for the Bells at the plate this postseason. The incoming freshman at Stanford is a perfect 8-for-8 in two postseason games after hitting .400 in 13 games in the regular season. Moore has recorded eight multi-hit games in the 15 that he has played in, including four games with three-or-more hits. He went 5-for-5 on Wednesday with 2 RBI in the series-clinching victory.
The 2022 North Division Championship Game can be listened to live on kcsyfm.com on your computer or smart phone. If you live in Washington you can listen on your radio on any of the following stations:
· Wenatchee: 93.9 FM
· East Wenatchee/Rock Island: 98.1 FM
· Lake Chelan Valley: 95.3 FM
· Brewster/Pateros: 101.3 FM
· Okanogan Valley: 101.9 FM
· Omak/Tonasket/Oroville: 97.7 FM
· Methow Valley: 106.3 FM
Coverage of the game begins at 6:10 p.m. with the Horan Estates Winery Pregame Show. Stick around after the game to hear the postgame show with player and coach interviews if the AppleSox win.
Listen to the latest edition of the AppleSox Podcast to learn more about the AppleSox’ opponent, the Bellingham Bells. AppleSox broadcaster Joel Norman catches up with Bells broadcaster Ryan Carlson. Subscribe to the AppleSox Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts by searching ‘AppleSox.’
