A local cowboy is making a name for himself on the CCA (Canadian Cowboy’s Association) rodeo circuit this year by placing first as the high point cowboy in the association for the year, while also securing himself a second-place finish in calf roping and an honourable mention in steer wrestling at the year-end finals.

Davidson’s Scott Sigfusson was awarded the high point award during the Western Canadian Agribition held at the Brandt Centre in Regina from Nov. 20 to 24. He also qualified for the steer wrestling and tie-down roping finals at the Agribition, due to his great showing in the semi-professional rodeo season held during the summer months.

Sigfusson said he won two performances and finished in second once during the five trials of calf roping at Agribition finishing in second place overall to winner Shawn Williamson, a Canadian Finals Rodeo professional.

“I didn’t do real great in steer wrestling,” said Sigfusson. “I sprained my foot three weeks prior to (the finals) and it was pretty painful to get down off a horse and try and stop a steer in the dirt. I placed fifth twice.”

Agribition is the toughest challenge on the rodeo circuit for cowboys as it brings together the best competition from sea to sea to sea in Canada as well as qualifiers in the various competitions from cowboys in the United States.

Sigfussion said how someone finishes in the regular rodeo season doesn’t matter at Agribition as long as you’re in the top 11 at the end of your year to qualify in your desired competitions.

“Anybody has a chance to win the championship,” he said, noting this is the second time he has qualified for the calf roping finals and the third time he has qualified for steer wrestling. “She’s for all the marbles there.”

To read more please see the Dec. 3 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team is preparing to host the 2013 CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) Potash Corp. Cup this March and they have a couple local players on the club hoping to hoist the trophy in their own backyards.

Forwards Kenton Dulle, from Craik, and Jordan Peddle, Elbow, have joined the third-ranked team in the country after four-year stints in the Western Hockey League, which have provided them each with scholarship money to put towards tuition and books.

Dulle, a 24-year-old arts and science major, said this is his first year on the Huskies after playing three years of CIS hockey with the St. Thomas Tommies in Fredericton, New Brunswick. He said the lure of playing closer to home and the chance of playing for a top team in the CIS is what brought him back.

“With them hosting nationals for the next two years, I decided to give the coach a call and things just went from there,” said Dulle, who graduated from Craik School. “I ended up coming back and had to sit out a year of hockey, but now I’m playing my first year here.

“I think the whole atmosphere here, as this year we host nationals, so everything and everyday is exciting. You come to the rink and everyone is excited. I’m just happy that we had a good start, so guys are happy and everybody is getting along, which is the best thing for a winning team.”

The Huskies are currently 9-3-0 after 12 regular season games, which is quite an achievement considering only three of those games have been on home ice, the Rutherford Rink on campus. The team is preparing for a long home stand now, playing eight of their next 10 games in Saskatoon.

Dulle, who has two goals and an assist in the first 12 games, said the big part of his game is his skating, which he perfected during a four-year trip through the WHL with the Vancouver Giants, Saskatoon Blades and finally the Kamloops Blazers.

“I usually play wing, but the coach has had me playing centre this year, so it’s something completely different for me,” he said. “I don’t mind it and I’m getting used to it. I’m getting more comfortable. I think the biggest part of my game is just my speed and skills just kind of come from there.

“I also play of the power play right now, but I’m not much of a penalty killer.”

Peddle, 21, started his first year in arts and sciences this past September after winning the WHL championship with the Edmonton Oil Kings last year. The Loreburn School grad played three years with the Swift Current Broncos before that.

“After playing my junior hockey, they recruited me and asked if I wanted to play,” said Peddle. “I heard that they were hosting the championship this year, so I decided that this was as good a place to play as any.”

To read more please see the November 26 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

The Hanley Sabers senior boys football team braved the cold and snow, but couldn’t handle a tough Ituna/Kelliher Trojans team losing 67-24 in the 1A 6-man provincial football championship held at the Jungle in Hanley Nov. 10.

Mark Anderson, head coach of the Sabers, said the Trojans played a “very physical” game on the frozen field at Hanley utilizing their strong running game to jump out to a commanding lead early in the match. He said Ituna/Kelliher made a “lot of long runs” in the first half, thanks in part to many missed tackles by the Sabers defence, which contributed to the 42-0 Trojans lead at the half.

“They are a power running team, so in those kind of (weather) conditions you can go,” said Anderson. “We’re a skill-based team with throwing and it’s a little tougher for receivers to catch the ball and handle balls with skill in those conditions. That’s not an excuse by any means, but cold weather does suit a running game better.”

Anderson said despite the lopsided score heading into the second half his boys didn’t give up and came out strong, but another comeback win in the playoffs for the Sabers just wasn’t meant to be. The Sabers came back in the semi-finals against the Raymore Rebels to earn a 40-26 win to advance to the championship.

The coach said with high school guys playing in their first final turning a game around against such a solid and experienced team is a pretty difficult thing to do.

“It’s interesting in games where they play LCBI and they only beat them by 10 and we beat LCBI substantially worse than that, but it has to do with the day, the field conditions and all that sort of stuff,” he said. “They went to the provincial final last year (losing against Raymore) too and were pretty used to the pressure. I think that got to some of our guys.”

To read more please see the Nov. 19 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

For the second time in four years the Hanley Sabers and Ituna/Kelliher Trojans are lining up against each other Nov. 10 at the Jungle in Hanley for the Saskatchewan high school senior boys 6-man football championship, but with one little difference.

In 2009, it was just Kelliher and the program has since become a co-op team, but Hanley is still hoping for the same results. A win against Ituna/Kelliher would give Hanley their first championship since ’09 when they defeated the Trojans in the last game they played against each other.

Mark Anderson, head coach of the Sabers, said he has been scouting the Trojans throughout the year, obtaining game film on them during the season and playoffs in case this match-up did come about. He also went to a game of theirs earlier this year and knows they are a “very solid team,” so it should be a tough final.

“They were in the provincial final last year against Raymore, so they’re another veteran team,” said Anderson. “We have to watch their run. They are a very strong running team and just a well-balanced athletic team. For us, it’s going to be a matter of playing mistake free football and taking advantage of our chances on offence when we get them. They play a good defence, so when we get a chance we have to make sure we secure the ball and put it in the end zone.”

To read more please see the November 12 print edition of The Davidson Leader.