Junior Royals split double-header with Whalley  

The Save-On-Foods Parksville Junior Royals hosted the Whalley Chiefs this past Saturday at Inouye-Wallace field and managed a split in their double-header.  The home team got off to a difficult start in game 1 as pitcher Ellis Vugteveen, recently returned from injury, showed some rust going only 2 innings and allowing 5 earned runs.  Trevor Carter, once again in the role of fireman, came in and threw 5 innings of 2-run ball to keep the Royals in the game.  The Parksville bats were contributing up and down the line-up as the boys in purple battled to stay with the Chiefs.   Shortstop Cameron Bell went 2 for 3 with a run scored and right-fielder Kevin Mulrooney crushed a double in the 6th and had an RBI.  It wasn’t quite enough and the Royals lost to Whalley by a score of 9-6.

Staff ace Ethan Dean got the nod in game 2 and dominated Whalley, striking out 7 and walking none over 6 innings of work.  Dean allowed just 2 runs, 1 of them earned, and brought his ERA down to 3.26.  Nathan Underhill came on to pitch a clean 7th in relief.   At the dish, the Royals brought plenty of offense to support the pitching staff.  Austin Walper and Cody Jackson led the hit parade with a double and 2 RBI each.  Owen Crouse went 1 for 2 with 2 runs scored and brought his team-leading average up to .343.

“In game 2, we were in a tight ball game, behind 2-1.” said head coach Connor Russell. “It was nice to see our guys battle together and find a way to come out on top.  We scored 7 runs in the bottom of the 6th and it was a pleasure to watch and be a part of it.  Moving forward out goal is to take this attitude and compete level into all of our remaining games.  We are more than capable of doing this!”

This weekend

The Premier Royals were rained out on the mainland last weekend and return home to the friendly confines of Springwood Park for games on Saturday and Sunday.   The 3rd place North Shore Twins visit on Saturday, games start at 1 pm and 3:30 pm.  On Sunday the Royals host the North Delta Blue Jays and games start at 11 am and 1:30 pm.  Concession opens 30 minutes before game time.

The Junior Royals will be in Tacoma this weekend for the GSL Invitational.  The Juniors won this tournament in 2017 and hope to again bring home some hardware.

The Bantam Royals are also home on Saturday as they play at Springwood Park against the 2nd place Langley Blaze.  Games start at 1 pm and 3:30 pm.