The Black Bears are in the midst of 13 straight games, which continues with one game at Ridgefield against the Raptors and three games at Walker Stadium against the Portland Pickles.
Cowlitz was swept over the weekend by the Corvallis Knights at Goss Stadium. They have lost five in a row and are currently 7-17 on the season. The first half of the regular season will come to a close after game two of three against Portland, marking the Bears’ 27th game of the year.
Game one was a dominant Corvallis win against the Bears. A three-run 5th inning and a seven-run 6th inning led the Knights to a 12-3 win, including a homer each from Ian Fernandez and Xavier Rios.
Game two was a lot closer. After the Black Bears went up 5-1, the Knights came back in the later innings to tie the game at five apiece. Liam Barrett and JT Hardy led the scoring for the Bears, but Brock Ketelsen’s three-run home run shifted the momentum for Corvallis. The Knights would end up winning on a walk-off single by Maddox Riske in the 11th inning, taking the series.
Game three was another rout by Corvallis. They scored at least two runs in four straight innings, Maddox Riske and Thomas Ferroggiaro driving in three each as the Knights won game three 13-3.
Gavin Poffenroth is leading the charge offensively for the Bears with a .354 AVG with 23 hits and 12 walks. Finnegan Stewart has a hit in his last five games, having driven in six runs in that time. Liam Barrett is off to a good start, hitting .308 in his first six games with a HR and three walks. Ryan Falke has a 1.84 ERA in 14.2 IP, while both Dylan Henson and Matt Sherwood lead the pitching staff in IP while both having an ERA under 4.20.
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Both Portland and Ridgefield are coming off a series against each other, with Portland winning two of three. They have won every series at home this season.
The Raptors gave the Pickles their second home loss of the season in game one, but the Pickles won game two after a walk-off by Luis Castillo. Game three was a blowout of the Raptors by Portland as they scored ten runs in the last three innings to win 16-4 and take the series.
Ridgefield’s offense is led by Noah Karliner, who leads the team in runs (25), hits (36), doubles (7), HR (9) and RBI (28). Jackson Waller has a .372 AVG with 29 hits and 13 RBI. Landon Hood leads the Raptors in IP (23.2), strikeouts (28) and wins (3). Ryan McClaskey and Michael Hoefgen both have at least 16 IP and an ERA below 3.50, while Declan Francis has a 1.80 ERA in 10 IP.
The Pickles have the best record in the WCL at 21-4, the offense being led by Josh Schleichardt and Kyle McDaniel, both having 38 hits, tied for first in the WCL. Schleichardt also leads the league in HR (14) and RBI (44), while McDaniel leads the league in walks with 25. The pitching staff is led by six guys with at least 14 IP and an ERA of under 2.30 (Moser, Smith, Corkrean, Edwards, Roundy, Intagliata).
After these four games, the Black Bears will have their first weekend series since the first series of the season, as they will play the Springfield Drifters for the second time in 2025. Cowlitz won two of three against the Drifters on June 20-22 at the Hamlin Sports Complex.
The second game of the Columbia River Cup series is tonight at the RORC at 6:35 p.m. The Black Bears-Pickles series begins on Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. at Walker Stadium. Game two on Saturday will be at 7:05 and Thursday’s finale will begin at 7:15 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.