ESTEVAN — The Estevan Brewers came within one win of winning their second straight Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League/Baseball Saskatchewan U18 AA Tier 1 provincial championship.
The Brewers lost 5-2 to the Weyburn Beavers in the provincial final tournament July 27 at Estevan's Lynn Prime Park. The Beavers advanced to the Western Canada Baseball Championship in St. Albert, Alta., from Aug. 15-17.
Estevan went 3-2 overall during the weekend. The Brewers opened with a 7-6 loss to the Prince Albert Royals July 25, but responded the following day with a 15-5 romp over the Moose Jaw Canucks and a 9-4 victory over Weyburn to finish first in their pool on a tie-breaker with a 2-1 mark, and advance automatically to the semifinal.
Weyburn, meanwhile, had to go through the tie-breaker against the Royals, a game Weyburn won 15-14.
A thunderstorm early July 27 forced a shift in schedule, as only one diamond was available at Lynn Prime instead of two. The second semifinal between Weyburn and the Regina White Sox was delayed, as was the final.
Estevan defeated the Saskatoon Phillies 10-3 in the first semifinal game. The Brewers scored five in the fourth inning and two in the sixth to break open a 2-2 game.
Weyburn, meanwhile, blew out the White Sox 17-3 in five innings.
In the final, Estevan led 1-0 after the first inning and 2-1 after two, but Weyburn scored three times in the third and once in the fourth to take the three-run lead, and then limited the Brewers' offence.
Estevan won the provincial and the Western Canada baseball titles last year. The Brewers had the best record in the league during the regular season at 20-5.
Eight teams were entered the provincial tournament.
