The Nanaimo NightOwls are a Canadian collegiate summer baseball team located in Nanaimo, British Columbia. The Night Owls are members of the West Coast League and began play in 2022; they play their home games at Serauxmen Stadium.
History The Nanaimo NightOwls were announced to the public on 15 July, 2020 with the ball club's name paying homage to the Nanaimo Owls baseball team of the 1920s, whilst the 'night' in the name refers to the work that the City of Nanaimo's undertook to install floodlights at Serauxmen Stadium. On the same day, the team's mascot was also announced; Ney-te (pronounced 'Nate') the NightOwl was named in honour of former mayor of Nanaimo Frank Ney. A month later, it was announced that former Georgia State Head Coach Greg Frady would serve as the team's inaugural Coach. One month after his appointment, Frady announced his first signings for the club; a quartet of players affiliated with Illinois State, three of whom had Canadian passports. This group was made up of infielders Aidan Huggins and Nick Gile, outfielder Dayton Peters and right-handed pitcher Chase Florendine.
Name The Nanaimo NightOwls are unusual among sports teams in that they have two names; the Nanaimo NightOwls and the Nanaimo Bars. Named after the dessert of the same name, Nanaimo Bars had been the most requested name by the fans when asked to name the team. Games that are played during the day will see the club go by the Bars moniker, whilst evening games will be played under the guise of the NightOwls. To this end, the team partnered with supermarket chain Save-On-Foods in order to stock away game concessions stands with Nanaimo bars.
2024 On July 9th, Adison Mattix, Nevan Noonan, Riley Paulino, and Wylie Waters were selected to represent the NightOwls in the 2024 All Star Game in Bellingham.
The NightOwls finished fifth in the north division with a 26-28 record for the second year in a row. Infielder Wylie Waters (University of South Carolina Upstate) finished the season with 9 home runs and 44 runs batted in while pitcher Adison Mattix (Everett Community College) would finish with 48 strikeouts. 35,920 fans attended the NightOwls home games for an average of 1,437 fans per game.
With the Riverhawks clinching a wildcard berth, the NightOwls along with the Lefties and Drifters are the only three teams remaining in the league to never qualify for the playoffs.
2025 On July 8th, Jacob Hayes (Azusa Pacific) and Talan Zenk (Everett Community College) were selected to represent the NightOwls at the All Star Game in Bellingham.https://westcoastleague.com/2025-wcl-all-stars-announced/
The NightOwls regressed from their 26-28 record from the previous season. The team went 23-31 and finished sixth in the North Division.https://baseball.pointstreak.com/standings.html?leagueid=145&seasonid=34070 Hayes finished third in the league with ten home runs.https://baseball.pointstreak.com/leaders.html?leagueid=145&seasonid=34070 27,308 total fans attended the NightOwls' twenty-seven home games for an average of 1,011 fans per game.https://baseball.pointstreak.com/attendance.html?leagueid=145&seasonid=34070
The NightOwls were eliminated from playoff contention for the fourth straight year. The NightOwls are one of three teams in the league to have never clinch a postseason berth and one of four teams in the league to never clinch a winning record.
2026 The NightOwls improved on their 23-31 record from the previous season. The team posted a 30-24 record and finished third in the North Division. Outfielder Ethan Reynolds lead the league with fifty-three runs batted in and also finished with a .350 batting average; good enough for fifth in the league. Infielder Beau Musser was second overall with twenty-six stolen bases. Pitcher Jaxon McDonald lead the league in saves with eight.https://wclstats.com/sports/bsb/2026/leaders
The NightOwls qualified for the postseason for the first time in franchise history as a wildcard. Nanaimo faced off against the Bellingham Bells in the North Division Series and won their first ever playoff game 3-2 in game one. The NightOwls would lose the following two games however to end their season.
Results by Season League Champions Division Champions Playoff Team SeasonLeagueDivisionFinishWinsLossesWin%GBPostseasonManager 2021 Season cancelled (COVID-19 pandemic)2022WCLNorth6th2232.40711.5Did Not QualifyGreg Frady2023WCLNorth5th2628.48112.5Did Not QualifyGreg Frady2024WCLNorth5th2628.4818.5Did Not QualifyGreg Frady2025WCLNorth6th2331.42611Did Not QualifyCody Andreychuk2026WCLNorth4th3024.55510Lost Division Series 1-2 (Bellingham)Cody Andreychuk
Playoff Appearances 2026 Wildcard Berth
References
External links Nanaimo NightOwls