The Black Bears continue their second half with a weekend road trip to Bend to play the Elks. This will be the first of two road trips to Bend this season and the first three of nine matchups between these two teams.
Cowlitz is in the middle of a three-game series against the Ridgefield Raptors. Both teams split the two games on Tuesday, both games ending 5-1.
Game one was the continuation of the June 30 suspended game, so it started in the bottom of the 5th inning with the Bears already up 4-0 after a top of the third inning two weeks ago that had Gavin Poffenroth hit a two-RBI double and Finn Stewart driving in two of his own later in the frame. Poffenroth would also drive in the fifth run, a single that brought in Liam Barrett. Taylor Takata would bring in Angelo Aleman in the eighth, but it wasn’t enough and the Bears took game one.
The difference in game two was only one swing, and it came off the bat of Ridgefield all-star Andrew Estrella. Ridgefield took an early lead in the third from a Jovan Camacho double that brought in Evan Jaquez. With the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth, Andrew Estrella would hit an opposite-field grand slam to the right field corner, making it 5-0 Raptors. An error by Ridgefield in the ninth would bring in newcomer Indy Anderson, but that was all the offense Cowlitz could muster.
With game four of the Columbia River Cup being tonight, the Bears still have a 2-1 lead in the series. A win could give them a commanding 3-1 lead heading to the final three games at David Story Field, with a loss tying the series at 2-2.
Matt Priest went 4-10 in both games on Tuesday. He now has 28 hits this season, leading the team in HR (3) with 5 doubles and 13 RBI. Bryson Leach threw four scoreless innings in the game back on June 30 before it was suspended and also threw three more scoreless innings in game two on Tuesday, lowering his ERA to 3.79 in 21.1 IP.
Don’t miss out on any of our exclusive promotions! Join the Black Bears on July 22 for the final $3 Tuesday of the year. Take advantage of $3 general admission tickets, hot dogs, nachos, domestic canned beer, and bottled soda. July 23 is Flyaways Night, with more details to come. July 24 is both our Dash for Cash and Post-Game Drone Show. All kids 12 and under get to go on the field to pick up their share of $1,000 cash! Stick around after the game for our first-ever drone show presented by Pacific Tech Construction and Western Fabrication.
Bend is currently 20-17 this season. They are playing a couple of non-league games during the All-Star Break against the NW Star Nighthawks.
They won game one 13-5 in 8 innings by run-rule after an inside-the-park home run by Will Taylor capping off a five-run eighth inning. Taylor is one of the main content creators for The Baseball Bat Bros, who make a lot of their videos at Vince Genna Stadium. Game two is tonight between the Elks and the Nighthawks before the weekend series.
Bend had four All-Stars selected this season, but only three participated in the game in Bellingham. Easton Amundson and Makoa Sniffen are the two on the offensive side selected, with Amundson not participating in the game. Amundson is hitting .270 with 9 doubles, 6 HR and 16 RBI. Sniffen has a .310 AVG with 8 doubles, 3 HR, 28 RBI and is 12/12 on stolen bases. John-Paul Sauer and Erik Puodziunas were the two pitchers selected. Sauer has a 3.02 ERA in 38.2 IP, striking out 26 and having two starts going 7 IP (June 8 and July 12). Puodziunas has a 3.31 ERA in 38 IP with 24 strikeouts compared to only 11 walks. He also has two starts going 7 IP (June 14 and July 11).
After this series, Cowlitz plays the Raptors again, but this time at home in the final three games of the Columbia River Cup series. The Elks make the long trek to Walla Walla to take on the Sweets in a three-game series. Both the Bears and Elks meet again in Longview next weekend.
The Black Bears-Elks series begins on Friday at 6:35 p.m. at Vince Genna Stadium. Game two is Saturday also at 6:35 p.m., with game three being Sunday at 5:05 p.m. For more information about upcoming games, stats, or tickets, follow us on social media: X (Twitter) (@CowlitzBBears), Facebook, and Instagram (@cowlitzblackbears). To watch, listen live, or view the 2025 promotional schedule, go to our website, cowlitzblackbears.com.