Victoria, B.C. – In an electrifying back-and-forth competition, Team HarbourCats, a trio of Logan Shepherd, Michael Rodda, and the great Kevin Pillar, claimed a resounding victory in tonight’s home run derby.

Game one of the round robin got things started with a bang! The first matchup featured Team North taking on Team HarbourCats, and the action began right off the bat with Kevin Pillar making a spectacular catch to rob a home run. Superman doing Superman things.

Team North took an early lead, with Sam Kane (Walla Walla), Zach Wadas (Ridgefield), and Martin Serrano (Marion) clubbing the ball with passion. The home team stormed back in their second turn at the plate, however! Michael Rodda kicked things off and, after an absolute surge of homers, tagged in Logan Shepherd with 40 seconds remaining to finish the round. Shepherd and Rodda combined for a huge round to storm back and take a 35-33 lead.

Serrano began the top of the third, switching out halfway for Wadas. The two sluggers put together a strong inning and pushed Team South’s score to 52 points, no doubt a tough challenge for Team HarbourCats to overcome. Shepherd and Rodda gave it their all, but in the end came up just short with a 56-49 loss in game one.

Superman sends one deep to left. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Team HarbourCats took the field once again in game two, this time to face a North Division trio of Noah Cassie (Bellingham), Kade Crawford (Kamloops), and Ethan Reynolds (Nanaimo) – a band of sluggers about as fearsome as can be found in the WCL. The score was tied at 15 each after a first round that featured a tag-team effort from Kevin Pillar and Logan Shepherd.

Crawford and Reynolds squared off against a duo of Michael Rodda and Pillar in the second inning, resulting in the score remaining close at 29-26 in favour of the Cats. Team North’s final push in the top of the third gave them a 45-33 lead, meaning team HarbourCats needed just 13 points to walk it off. Logan Shepherd took that responsibility head on. The Mercer University slugger stepped up and hammered a steady stream of homers, walking off game two and giving the Cats a 1-1 record in the round robin.

The third and final round robin game was decided by a significantly wider margin. The powerhouse trio that is Team South combined raw power with quick defence, jumping out to a 48-38 lead after the first two innings.

Pillar’s mix of powerful offence and sturdy defence was a serious asset for Team HarbourCats. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Inning number three is where this third game really opened up, with Zach Wadas and Sam Kane combining for 24 points. If Team North wanted to salvage this game, they would need to make up a lot of ground. 31 points of ground to be exact.

Noah Cassie stepped in and made it respectable, but Team North suffered their second defeat of the round robin with a final score of 79-56, leaving Team South and Team HarbourCats to face off in the finals.

Before the finals began, a special surprise took the field! Nanaimo NightOwls head coach Cody Andreychuk duked it out in a head-to head derby with Cats assistant skipper Carson Myers. Andreychuk was lucky enough to catch the fearsome Coach Myers on a bad day, taking the Coaches’ Challenge 9-0.

The finals were next up, and it proved to be a legendary matchup indeed. Kevin Pillar kicked it off for Team HarbourCats and had clearly saved his best for the big moment. An early hot streak activation and a hefty handful of homers gave the Cats a solid lead out of the gate.

From then on, Team HarbourCats and Team South battled back in forth in a titanic tug-of-war. Walla Walla’s Sam Kane did his worst with a typhoon of long balls in the South Division’s turn at the dish, followed by a monstrous counterattack from second-year Cat Logan Shepherd to retake the lead.

Cats slugger Logan Shepherd delivered the winning blow. (Photo by JPM Photography)

Team South tried valiantly to make up the ground they needed, but in the end the clock ran out and victory for the home team was sealed. Logan Shepherd, Michael Rodda, and Kevin Pillar would be crowned Home Run Derby champions.

Don’t miss the 2026 West Coast League All-Star Game tomorrow night at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic park! Get your tickets at http://harbourcats.com/tickets to secure your seats!