By Joel van der Veen

SASKATOON — Two local minor softball teams competed in city playoffs in Saskatoon last weekend, facing tough challengers and coping with game cancellations on account of rain.

In addition to the local teams, several players from Davidson and district competed with other teams, including the Conquest Coyotes, who won gold in the Bantam B division, and the Twin City Angels, who took silver in the Bantam A division.

The Saskatoon Minor Softball League held its championship from Friday, June 19 to Sunday, June 21, but Saturday’s games were cancelled due to rain.

This complicated matters for the Davidson peewee girls team, who played in the B division and defeated the Twin City Angels 13-12 on Friday night.

Saturday’s games were cancelled, said coach Kendall Wightman, and “Sunday morning, they had scaled it down to a single knockout format.”

The team faced the Electric Lasers that morning; that game began as a tight match, with neither team scoring in the first two innings, but ended with a 10-3 loss for Davidson.

“They held them off for the first couple of innings,” said Wightman. “They battled hard, but they couldn’t quite hold out long enough.”

That single loss was the end of the line for the team; they finished third in their division, but with only 11 players they won’t be competing in provincials.

Wightman said he was pleased with the progress made this season. He said the girls learned lots and played well as a team.

The Davidson squirt girls team also competed in Saskatoon over the weekend. Like the peewees, they only played two games due to rain.

Coach Richelle Palmer reported that the team lost one game and won one game, both against Hustlers teams.

Conquest Coyotes

Emily Read of Davidson and Jenna Sincennes of Kenaston were part of the roster on the Conquest Coyotes bantam girls team, which took gold in the Bantam B playoffs.

Their schedule was also affected by the rain, which forced officials to move from a double knockout format to a single knockout format.

On Sunday the team played the Raiders black team, defeating the fourth-place team 7-5.

Later that day they played the Lasers. Both teams were held scoreless for the first two innings, after which they played several tight innings with the lead going back and forth.

The Coyotes were down by one run at the bottom of the sixth. Both teams failed to score in the sixth; Conquest then scored two runs in the seventh inning to take the lead and the victory at 6-5.

Read’s mother, Leanne, described the match as “a very exciting and tense game.”

The Conquest team also includes players from Delisle, Dinsmore, Outlook and Beechy.

Twin City Angels

The Twin City Angels, part of the Warman Minor Softball Association, took silver in the Bantam A playoffs in Saskatoon.

The team also featured some local talent — namely, Miranda Farrell of Davidson and Ann Ulmer of Kenaston.

By Joel van der Veen

LOREBURN — Close to 300 students from around the area competed in the east sectional high school track and field meet at Loreburn Central School this past week.

Sunny skies abounded as the school welcomed students from Davidson, Loreburn, Kenaston, Outlook, Elrose, Beechy, Lucky Lake and Outlook’s Lutheran Collegiate Bible Institute (LCBI) on Wednesday.

Teacher Lloyd Tulp, the event’s key organizer, said the event was a success thanks to the efforts of students, coaches, teachers and community volunteers who kept things running smoothly.

Tulp, who served as coach for Loreburn, said he was pleased with the athletes’ performances, saying, “All my athletes gave their very best, and that’s all I could ask for.”

He said they had heard compliments on the condition of the school’s track; staff members had worked to resurface it after it was subject to vandalism on Sunday night. Tulp said drivers “tore up the inside track.”

The meet kicked off around 10 a.m. with students meeting in the Loreburn gym, but the day’s events gradually fell behind schedule. The track events finished at 3:30 p.m., 45 minutes late, while field events continued till around 4 p.m.

“When you have that many athletes, usually it goes that way,” said Tulp, noting that lots of students competed in multiple events, and adding that organizers may consider starting 15 or 20 minutes earlier next time around.

One student from Outlook High School sprained his ankle during the afternoon, and Tulp said other students had the usual soreness associated with such events.

“Other than that, we have been injury-free,” he said. “Dehydration hasn’t been too bad, we’ve been trying to get everybody to drink lots of water.”

Tulp expressed particular appreciation to staff from Outlook, including Cindy Tulp, Shannon Stephenson and Eli Dingle, and to Sun West School Division athletic commissioner Miles Bennett, who served in the starter’s position all day.

He also expressed his gratitude to the teachers, EAs and students from Loreburn, including Shea Boyle, who volunteered as a timer alongside the track throughout the day.

Many students from Davidson, Loreburn and Kenaston made an impressive showing; all but two of Davidson’s athletes are eligible to compete in the district track meet in Outlook on May 29 and 30.

For the full story, including results from all top winners and local competitors, please pick up a copy of the May 25 edition of The Davidson Leader.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — A community minor football team based in Davidson, also featuring players from Loreburn, Kenaston and Imperial, began its second season last week.

Coach Blair Frederickson said the aim of the team is to provide local players with lots of experience on the field, in the hopes that it will pay off when they hit the field with Davidson School’s junior football team this fall.

“There’s no substitute for game experience,” he said. “The kids are excited to go play against guys from the city.”

The Davidson Huskies play in Saskatoon Minor Football’s six-a-side league, competing at the Saskatoon Minor Football Field at Gordon Howe Park against teams from Saskatoon, Hanley, Hague, Outlook, Clavet and Martensville.

The team consists of 19 players in grades 7 and 8. This is their second year playing in the city league; they will play every Thursday for eight weeks and end their season with a jamboree at the end of June.

Coaching the team along with Frederickson are Garrett Bailey, who teaches at Davidson School, and Kenaston teachers John Jamieson and Evan Pasternak.

The team practises twice a week at Davidson School but is operated as a community team, explained Frederickson, who also teaches in Davidson and plans to retire at the end of the year.

Last year, the team won its first three games before being moved into a different skill bracket, after which they finished the season with a 2-2 record.

“It gave the kids an extra eight weeks of football,” said Frederickson, adding that the added experience was beneficial and helped make a big improvement with the junior team last fall. “They’re able to see more potential here with getting themselves on the field more.”

He also said the added field time would eventually pay off with the senior team, which struggled last year and failed to acheive a single win. Another factor that season was the lack of Grade 12 players, as Davidson’s senior class for 2014-15 consists entirely of girls.

Senior players Andrew Read and Morgan Manz are assisting the coaches with the community team. They, along with Kieran Boehm and Addison Ouellette, made up the group of four local players that attended a skill and ID camp at Outlook High School on May 2, organized by Football Saskatchewan, with coaches and reps from the Saskatoon Hilltops and university teams in attendance.

Football has grown rapidly in Davidson after beginning from a clean slate in 2011. Last year, Davidson School’s junior team attracted 15 players from here and Kenaston, while the senior team attracted about 20 players.

Frederickson said the teams would have their annual training camp in mid-August, although organizers are looking at holding a spring camp in early June.

“I’m trying to turn this town into a football town,” Frederickson said with a smile. “I’m hoping that these young guys . . . will step in and keep the program going here.”

Playing with the Huskies from Davidson this year are Blake Allan, Jacob Heinrich, Clay Murfitt, Derek Schmiedge, Joshua Warkentin, Riley Berry, Gabriel Charette, Nathan Chomyshen, Keegan Shaw and Addison Wightman.

The team also includes Jackson Firby, Brennon Haffner, Cole Sanderson, Trystan Stacowich and Carson George, all from Kenaston; Weston Davidson, Travis Griffin and Carter Lemcke, all from Loreburn; and McGuire Scheidt, the sole player from Imperial.