By Cody Schmidt

The Edmonton Riverhawks are hungry for their first win of the year, after being denied by the Bellingham Bells so far this season. Both games have hinged on a single inning that allowed the Bells to wrest control and take the lead. We’ll be looking to see the Hawks chain some hits and avoid the sweep in today’s afternoon bout.

Taking the mound for the Riverhawks today is returning face KJ Ward, the current Riverhawks leader in innings pitched and games started!

Backing up Ward is a lineup full of already familiar Riverhawks faces:

1- #6 Brett Ott CF

2- #36 Jacob Poturnak 3B

3- #2 Jack Wheatley SS

4- #10 Jonny McGill DH

5- #28 Mark Ossanna C

6- #43 Heath Hachowski RF

7- #14 Tommy Takayoshi 1B

8- #11 Ren Yokoyama 2B

9- #15 Daniel Calabrese LF

P- #45 KJ Ward

In last night’s match Poturnak hit a late-game automatic double and eventually came around to score off McGill’s RBI groundout. The team will need raise the heat at the plate today, as batters have so far amounted to only a pair of runs this year despite a few solid chances. Combining for 12 stranded runners in this series, the Riverhawks have set up opportunities but have been unable to capitalize.

Going into today’s action, the Riverhawks have the lowest amount of runs in the WCL, yet the team’s hitting stats are right in the middle of the pack. The Hawks need to extend some rallies today and plate some runs before tomorrow’s off day and a midweek series against the 1-1 Ridgefield Raptors.

This afternoon’s game starts at 2:05PM MST and can be caught on WCL Live. Follow all the action online via our @RiverhawksGames play-by-play Twitter account.

Ready for the Riverhawks to come home? Tickets are now available for all home games in the 2023 season, including the Tuesday June 13 home opener. Grab yours today!