The Nanaimo NightOwls won't take flight this summer for the first time at Serauxmen stadium. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

batter down

Nanaimo NightOwls cancel 2021 season

Apr 14, 2021 | 10:59 AM

NANAIMO — Elite college level baseball won’t debut at Nanaimo’s Serauxmen stadium this summer as originally planned.

NightOwls managing partner and GM Jim Swanson told NanaimoNewsNOW the four remaining Canadian teams hoping to play in the West Coast League in 2021 all decided it was best to cancel the campaign.

Swanson said it didn’t make sense to have a season due to increased COVID-19 cases in western Canada in recent weeks. He emphasized the NightOwls and Victoria HarbourCats WCL franchises will be back in 2022.

“We didn’t commit do this on a one year basis, we’re committed forever and Nanaimo is going to have a team to celebrate for the long-term.”

Swanson said it was important to provide clear messaging to the league’s players, staff, fans and sponsors as soon as possible of the decision to shut down.

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“Part of this decision is certainly to allow our players coming out of their college seasons to find other opportunities in the summer to develop. They’re disappointed to not be coming to Nanaimo because they were really looking forward to it.”

Swanson said NightOwls season tickets will roll over to 2022.

He said the 10 U.S. Based WCL teams in Washington and Oregon states will play a modified schedule with reduced fan capacity.

Nanaimo was announced as a WCL expansion franchise just prior to the pandemic gripping the province with plans to begin play in June of 2021.

The team’s nickname was selected last summer following 120 different public submissions.

The 15 team WCL is a 54-game wooden bat summer league for collegiate players currently enrolled in North American post-secondary programs.

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