Riverhawks Squeak Out Opening Game Victory Over Bells

2026-08-03

Hawks hold chances at playoffs with win

By Larry Read

BELLINGHAM, WA—The Edmonton Riverhawks are doing everything they can to secure one of the two available spots left in the West Coast League North Division playoff hunt. The Riverhawks opened up their final regular season series in Bellingham by beating the Bells 5-4 on Monday night (Aug 3).

It’s the fourth straight victory for the Hawks over the Bells this season. #4 Aden Munoz walked and eventually scored on a wild pitch in the top of the ninth inning to secure Edmonton’s 28th victory of the season. The Riverhawks improved to 28-24.

The Bells saw their eight-game winning streak snapped in this one. The WCL North second seed falls to 34-18.

The Riverhawks scored a run in the third, added three in the fourth to go along with their winning run in the ninth. Edmonton had five runs on 10 hits and committed one error.

Bellingham tallied once in the fourth, two in the fifth along with one run in the sixth inning. The Bells had four runs on nine hits.

Offensively, The Riverhawks were led by #13 Jaxon Fox. Fox was three for five with two runs batted in. #23 Justin Heffler was two for five with a run batted in. #58 Omar Gonzalez went two for five with a run scored. #32 Jason Green was two for four. Munoz was zero for two with two runs scored.

Bellingham’s #21 Bo Shindle was two for five. #19 Matt Churchill went one for four with a run scored and two runs batted in. The two runs came on a homer in the bottom of the fourth inning. #8 Noah Cassie, # 1 Rominic Quiban, #10 Dillon Moss and #13 Bryce Johnson were all one for four.

Edmonton utilized four pitchers in the contest. #8 Spencer Mueller, the third one picked up his first win of the year. He went two innings, walking one and striking out one. #59 Christian Garcia came on in the ninth inning to collect his third save. He gave up a hit and struck out two.

#28 Jameson Connelly was the fourth Bells pitcher. His record evens at 1 and 1 taking the loss for giving up a run in four innings of work where he gave up two hits, walked two and struck out four.

When it comes to the playoff hunt in the WCL North. Other Monday (Aug 3) contests had Nanaimo coming back to beat Kelowna at home 8-7. Wenatchee beat Victoria 5-2. Kelowna beat Port Angeles 10-2.

Wenatchee (39-13) and Bellingham (34-18) have sewn up the top two playoff positions. Nanaimo (29-23) is currently sitting in third spot with the Riverhawks and Kelowna in fourth with records of 28-24.

In the second half standings only, Wenatchee is 20-5, Bellingham 15-10, Nanaimo is 14-11 with Edmonton sitting in the fourth position with a 14-12 record with two days left in the regular campaign.

The Bells and Riverhawks will play again both tomorrow (Tues Aug 4) and Wednesday (Aug 5) to close out the regular season. Opening pitch both nights is 7:35 PM MDT. You can watch the game on WCLTV: https://wcleague.watch.pixellot.tv/.

Home Playoff Tickets:

Riverhawks season’s ticket holders are reminded of the possibility of the team hosting playoff games August 7-9th. All 2026 season’s ticket holders (suites and grandstand) will receive complimentary ticket access to their seats for any potential home games. Access will be provided on a game-by-game basis as playoff games are confirmed. Season ticket holders will receive a complimentary ticket officer to claim their seats within a specified window, while season suite holders will have their tickets directly loaded into their accounts. The Riverhawks ticketing team can be reached by emailing tickets@gohawks.ca.