Prior to the start of the season, head coach Rob Law forecast his 2017 team to be the best version of the Kelowna Sun Devils yet.
On opening weekend of the B.C. 18U AAA season, the Sun Devils lived up to the billing with three wins in four games at Edith Gay Park.
On Saturday, Kelowna opened up with a 12-5 win over Cloverdale. Starter Gavin Barrett didn’t allow an earned run in five innings to pick up his second opening-day victory in two years, while Kensington Rennerberg threw the last two innings and struck out two.
The Devils ripped the game opened with nine runs in the fifth inning. Rookie Dreyton Nelmes went 2-for-2 with a pair of walks and two stolen bases. Jaimes Guidon went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases for the Sun Devils, while Noah Ringness-Law and Noah Foufoulas each had a pair of RBIs.
In Game 2 Saturday, Tyson Lamb allowed just a run in seven innings of work in a 5-1 Kelowna win over Cloverdale.
Kurtis Wall’s RBI double in the fourth inning helped secure the win and a sweep of the doubleheader.
On Sunday, the Devils made it three straight with a 6-2 win over the North Shore Padres. Jordan Laidlaw took to the hill for the Sun Devils and yielded just one run in 4 1/3 innings work, while Nelmes went 2 2/3 to pick up the win.
Noah Ringness-Law led the offense with two hits, four stolen bases and and RBI. Jackson Sowerbyhad two hits, Kurtis Wall added an RBI single and two steals, and Nathan Ringness-Law added a RBI double with a stolen base.
In the series finale, the visiting Padres halted the Devils’ three-game win streak with a 5-3 win.
Nathan Ringness-Law had a two-hitter going into the fifth inning where three costly errors and a couple of walks were the difference. Kensie Renneberg came in to hold the Padres at bay going 2 1/3 for the Sun Devils.
Offensively, Noah Ringness-Law went 2-for-3 with four stolen bases and a run scored.
The Sun Devils are back on home soil this weekend for a pair of doubleheaders at Edith Gay Park. On Saturday, Kelowna will play host to the Victoria Eagles on Saturday, followed by a twin bill Sunday against South Fraser.