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Sports

Red Sox practise all-around game as playoffs approach

The Davidson Red Sox peewee girls softball team are moving on to playoff competition this weekend with a goal of putting everything they’ve learned about playing both sides of the game this year into action on the field.

“We’ve come a long way,” said Red Sox coach Jason Shaw, who is being helped on the sidelines this year by Kendal Wightman. “In league we’ve won seven (and) lost seven, so we’re a middle of the pack team. At this age it’s about teaching the girls how to play ball. We’ve given them a chance to play different positions and learn a little bit about how to play the game.”

Shaw said the 15 girls who play for the Red Sox have beat every team in the league except two this year, including the Conquest Coyotes who they hosted last Tuesday. He said they have as good a shot as anybody else at winning the Saskatoon peewee B league playoffs this Saturday and securing a berth in provincials the following weekend.

The 2014 Red Sox includes Brianna Jess, Sarah Allan, Breanna Shaw, Gracie Allan, Hannah Gust, Kaitlyn Glubis, Teryn Bristow, Sydney Smith, Nevada Wightman, Tori Rendall, Elena Nykiforuk, Jocelyn Millham, Chaselyn Dean, Annika Ouellette and Lauren Bueckert. The 14-and-under team have been putting in as many practices as possible starting indoors at the Davidson Communiplex in April before trying to schedule them around the many games they play in Saskatoon and three tournaments they participate in during the short spring season.

The 12-7 loss against Conquest last Tuesday was Davidson’s third game at home this season to go along with a doubleheader they played earlier in the year against a Saskatoon club. The coach said the Coyotes game showed the emphasis each team places on good pitching to get wins.

“It was a good game,” said Shaw, noting the Red Sox will play a playoff tune-up game this Thursday in Loreburn. “We could have scored a couple more runs. We were up 5-2 in the first two innings. They had a strong pitcher come in to pitch the third to the sixth inning and we made a couple errors, but it was a good game. There were a few hits (on) both sides and a few good plays made.”

To read more please see the June 16 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

featured

Changes could be in store for liquor sales

Changes could be coming to Saskatchewan in how future liquor sales are handled.

Arm River-Watrous MLA Greg Brkich said converting small Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) stores from public to private hands is not the most pressing issue among his constituents, but he would be listening this summer to the people he represents about what they think the government’s role in the business of selling liquor should be. He said the four rural SLGA liquor stores in Langenburg, Ituna, Ponteix and Kerrobert that have recently been marked for closure due to their high operating costs are examples of stores in small towns that could be better served by private vendors.

Brkich said many of his constituents such as in Kenaston, Hanley and Dundurn are already served by private vendors and only a few of the towns in Arm River-Watrous such as Davidson have a SLGA store. He said it needs to be known if people want the government to stay in the business of owning and maintaining these buildings after the next election or whether they should just be involved in the “rules and regulations” side and let the private vendors do the rest.

“A small town (private) franchise, we’re still getting the tax off the liquor and we don’t have the expenses,” said Brkich. “It costs money to operate that store. It costs money for the employees, it costs money for heat, it costs money for maintenance (and) all of (this has) to be factored in when you’re looking at whether a store actually shows profit.”

Cam Broten, leader of the Opposition in the Saskatchewan Legislature, also began by stating the privatization of SLGA stores is not top of mind among the Saskatchewan people, but what they have been hearing about is the things concerning SLGA that irritate the public. He said these issues could be addressed through “common sense modernization” initiatives such as public stores providing better hours and a better selection of product.

“Those steps government could take right away to make the SLGA stores better,” said Broten. “In doing that, what it would guarantee is that the hundreds of millions of dollars that the province receives through SLGA would stay there. That is really important because those hundreds of millions of dollars support health care, support education (and) support roads and that’s a really important aspect that the Sask. Party is not talking about.”

The Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union (SGEU) recently distributed a petition among Davidson businesses entitled “Keep small town Saskatchewan strong: Stop the closure of public liquor stores in rural communities.” The petition states the closure of SLGA stores results in a loss of jobs and quality public service along with the other advantages these stores provide to a community.

To read more please see the June 9 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Sports

Norrish brothers make jump to Tigers

Chase and Brady Norrish are heading east this fall for a new hockey challenge after accomplishing all that they possibly could on the ice this spring.

The Norrish brothers, identical twins from Strongfield who both manned the blue-line for the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s (SJHL) champion Yorkton Terriers the past three seasons, have decided to attend the Rochester Institute of Technology. While there the 21-year-old defencemen will suit up for the NCAA Division 1 RIT Tigers.

“It’s fast hockey and there is a lot of great hockey players down there who will probably be playing pro some time in the future,” said Chase, a left-shooting offensive defenceman who won the 2014 SJHL Defenceman of the Year award after putting up 45 points in 56 regular season games. “I know we’ve got to pick up our game that much more.”

Chase, who will be studying Environmental Science, said they learned what RIT could offer them at a post-secondary showcase at the start of the 2013-14 season. He said one of their coaches in Yorkton had also played for the staff at RIT at one time, which made the decision to go to the school that much easier.

“It was (also) a place for me and Brady to go together,” he said. “That was a big part. (It’s) only one place to travel for the family and we took a visit down there and it seems like a very exceptional school. Everything was right and it’s what we’ve been working for, so it was really a no-brainer to take the offer.”

Brady, who shoots right and regularly plays alongside his brother in games, said the three years they spent with Yorkton was “exciting” and they really want to thank everyone with the organization for the great experience, but they’re also ready to move on to the next opportunity. He said they know a little bit about Tigers hockey such as it’s fast and the players are more mature, so they’re spending the summer preparing for the challenge.

“You can get nothing but better down there, so hopefully it’s exciting and (we’ll) get degrees out of it as well,” said Brady, who is going to be studying business.

The brothers are moving on from the Terriers after the SJHL club won everything this past season. Yorkton first captured their second straight SJHL Canalta Cup with a 4-0 series sweep over the Melville Millionaires last April before taking the 2014 Western Canada Cup in Dauphin, Manitoba, May 3 with a 5-4 win over the host Kings. That win propelled them to the 2014 RBC Cup National Junior A Championship tournament May 10 to 18 at Vernon, B.C.

The RBC Cup brings together the top Junior A clubs in the country. To win the championship the Terriers had to overcome two straight losses to the Toronto Lakeshore Patriots and Vernon Vipers at the beginning of the round-robin with later wins over the Carleton Place Canadians and Dauphin Kings for a spot in the semi-finals against the Vipers.

To read more please see the June 9 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Davidson

Link Union brings Americana music to Davidson Town Hall

A multi-instrumental Americana music group is taking the stage at Davidson Town Hall this month in a bid to lighten up the lives of all those in need of an enjoyable evening of music.

Link Union is playing a pass-the-hat admission show at Town Hall June 17, which is the second stop in the Christian family group’s 13-stop summer tour of Saskatchewan. The seven-member band is touring on behalf of their new album Influence, which combines original material with Americana covers of such classics as Elvis Presley’s Jailhouse Rock and Johnny Preston’s Running Bear.

Rachel Link, 26, lead singer as well as mandolin, penny whistle and cello player, said everyone who attends the show can expect a “whole lot of fun” courtesy of the family who play over 16 instruments during their set. She said the group’s musical style pulls from many different avenues including Celtic, bluegrass, gospel, folk and classic country and rock to form a fresh style all of their own.

“It’s definitely music that makes you feel like dancing and so if people want to they are welcome to,” said Rachel. “It lends itself to clogging and two-step and square dance or old-time dancing.”

Rachel’s brother Kyle, who plays fiddle and sings, along with his wife Ashley on the bass and fiddle also play during the show. Their brothers Ben, a banjo and guitar player, Aaron, who plays lead guitar, and John, a 14-year-old drummer, join the three on stage along with their mom Becky, who provides lead and harmony vocals.

As part of their “Great Awakening Tour” Link Union is stopping by various venues in the province such as the Lake Park Baptist Church in Birch Hills, the Pineridge Fellowship Chapel in Hudson Bay and the Oungre Memorial Regional Park for a Canada Day concert. Rachel said their sets inside and outside of churches differ, meaning there would be less of a focus on spiritual music in places like Davidson Town Hall.

“We like to give people a great evening of entertainment just so they can get away and relax for the evening and have a good time and be encouraged and lifted up and laugh and enjoy themselves,” she said.

To read more please see the June 9 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Davidson

Loreburn Central School students put their “Leader in Me” skills on display

Students at Loreburn Central School put their leadership skills on display last Tuesday before a large crowd of family and friends who packed the gymnasium to take part in the school’s first annual Leadership Day.

The celebration allowed the community to view first hand the success the kids have gained over the past two years in “The Leader in Me” process implemented at Loreburn Central School. This process allows students to practise “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” that leads to a culture of leadership in the kids.

“It’s given the kids a lot of empowerment and voice, so they know they can come to any staff member and say ‘I think we need to do this in the school or we need to have this,'” said Jill Long, principal of Loreburn Central School. “We basically turn around and ask them how that will look and we offer the facilitating to that program, but it’s the kids that are the ones who do the work for that.”

Grade 7 student and Leadership Day co-emcee Abby Adams, 12, said Leadership Day allowed the kids to showcase how they are changing their school and their own lives for the better through the “The Leader in Me” process. She said at the school it has brought about a closer relationship between the elementary and high school students giving them a chance to work together to build a better school.

“I am a busy person with dance and music and sports, so I really think that the course has helped me to become a better person with time management and getting everything done,” Abby said. “That’s important before I go on to other things.”

Abby’s classmate Abigail Graham, 13, shared the stage as co-emcee during the morning presentation in the gym that featured a discussion on the seven habits by a number of elementary and high school students as well as different class presentations including a couple fun musical numbers. Following the main presentation the onlookers were able to tour different classrooms at the school to find out how the kids are implementing leadership principles in their daily work.

Abigail said the main thing the process has helped her is being able to get along better with her younger brothers Brennan and Dillan. She said all the kids at school have been working for the past four or five months on preparing for Leadership Day and she’s very happy on how well everything turned out.

“Staff and students both put in an equal amount of work to make it the best it can be,” said Abigail. The day “helps develop leadership skills, so like in the workplace when you’re older you can get along with people and you can help others improve.”

Abby said she was “actually quite surprised” with the amount of work the younger kids put into the show and how well everything came off during the day. She said the hope now is to make Leadership Day an annual event at Loreburn Central School, so the students can continue to show the advantages they are gaining from the process.

“I really feel like this school is growing as a better school with the leadership that is going out and the roles that people are taking,” she said.

Long said the presentation was the accumulation of two years of work with “The Leader in Me” process and she is very happy with all the talking and planning by the kids over the past few months especially that led to Leadership Day.

“They were so nervous talking, but they did an awesome job,” she said. “It really showcased that they can be leaders in tons of different areas.”

Davidson, featured

Wicked storm blasts through Davidson

Residents of Davidson woke up to a scene of devastation last Thursday morning after a fierce hail, rain and wind storm tore through the town the previous night.

Leaves, pine cones and branches both big and small littered the streets and sidewalks throughout town May 29 after around two inches of rain fell late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. A savage wind accompanied the rain during the storm that followed a display of constant lightning that lit up the night sky while grape-sized hailstones fell to the ground blanketing the town in white.

“When we lived on the farm we had a lot of hail, but I’ve never heard anything like that,” said Holly LePoudre, about the thunderous noise the falling hail and wind made in people’s homes. She said the storm blasted branches and leaves off a few trees near her property on Washington Avenue and the ice also punched a few holes into the roof of her car port.

Lyle Wightman, who lives across the street from LePoudre, surveyed a yard filled with broken LED lights mixed with debris and mounds of hail yet to melt the morning after the storm. Before the hail found its resting place on the ground it shattered a few of his home’s windows and pot-marked the siding on his western wall.

“I’m going to phone the insurance and see what they’re going to say,” said Wightman. “If they say it’s up to me then I’ll have to start working at her. At the moment I’m trying to get the ice away from (the wall) because it’s running into the basement.”

Davidson’s Herman Crescent seemed a focal point of the storm as it preyed on vehicles parked on the street and the homes the car’s owners resided in.

Sharon Church said her GMC Terrain suffered cracked taillights and numerous “dints” on the hood and roof. She said the motor home parked at the back of her driveway also experienced damage from the falling hail and a “little bit” of flooding inside.

The Lang family’s newly sowed garden outside their home fell victim to the hail as well. Francisco Lang said he and his wife spent the previous evening planting flowers at the front of their Herman Crescent house that were now nothing more than damaged crop.

To read more please see the June 2 print edition of The Davidson Leader.