March was once again one of the busiest sports months of the year in Estevan, as numerous sports seasons came to a close. But there was also lots of sports to read about in the community in April.
March:
Estevan’s Hunter Chipley had a sensational performance at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer, Alta. Chipley, 17, represented Saskatchewan in archery, and won a gold medal in the men's individual recurve event and a silver medal in the team recurve mixed division, alongside teammate Jay Gegner of Regina. Thanks to his performance, Chipley was selected to be Team Saskatchewan’s flag bearer for the closing ceremonies on March 2.
The Estevan Comprehensive School’s senior girls basketball team hosted the annual Victor Elias Memorial Shoot for a Cure basketball tournament March 1 and 2. The Elecs went 1-2 on the weekend. The tournament was about more than just basketball, as it was also a fundraiser for the fight against cancer. Proceeds were directed to William Sinclair, a former Estevan resident who now resides in Kensoee Lake, and has had multiple bouts with cancer since his first diagnosis in 2015.
The Estevan Bruins wrapped up their third straight division title on March 1, thanks to a 4-3 overtime victory over the Weyburn Red Wings, and a 6-2 victory by the Melville Millionaires over the Yorkton Terriers, who were chasing the Bruins.
The Estevan peewee Wolves made it to the final of the South East Minor Hockey League (SEMHL), but lost to the Radville Nats Red in a best-of-three series. Both games were decided by 7-6 scores.
The Yellow Grass Wheat Kings won the Big Six Hockey League’s title for the first time in franchise history. They defeated the Carnduff Red Devils 5-4 on March 21 in Yellow Grass to sweep the Red Devils in three straight games in the league final.
The Estevan Oilfield Technical Society’s (OTS) 60th annual open bonspiel resulted in plenty of action at the Power Dodge Curling Centre. Twenty-four teams entered the bonspiel on March 21 and 22. The Thirsty Bird Pumpjack Sales and Service rink won the A final, defeating Dart Services 6-3.
The Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) Elecs senior boys basketball team returned to the Hoopla provincial basketball tournament March 21 and 22 for the first time since 1994, and came away with one win in three games. Competing in the 5A boys division, Estevan finished sixth in the eight-team tournament. Estevan opened with a 75-59 loss to Saskatoon St. Joseph, recovered to beat Saskatoon’s Walter Murray Collegiate 74-55, and then lost 89-75 to Regina Luther.
The ECS Elecs cheerleaders remained the best in Saskatchewan, as they won the provincial championship March 22 in Regina in the scholastic intermediate division, which boasted 10 teams. ECS received an overall score of 42.17 out of 45. Estevan also had the best overall point total in their session.
The Estevan novice Canucks hockey team won the title in the Moose Mountain Minor Hockey League. Estevan captured the league with a 7-6 victory over the Carlyle Cougars March 25 in Carlyle to win the best-of-three final in three games.
The first Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) Game 7 in Estevan in 14 years delivered the excitement and drama expected, and it saw the Estevan Bruins defeat the Humboldt Broncos 3-2 in overtime on March 26. Tristyn DeRoose scored 4:54 into overtime to lift the Bruins to victory in front of a sold out crowd of 2,662 people. Estevan was down 3-1 in the series, and 2-0 late in Game 5, but rallied to win that one in double overtime, and also won Game 6 in Humboldt to force Game 7. With the win, the Bruins advanced to the league’s semifinal round for the third straight season.
A couple of Carnduff hockey teams made it to Saskatchewan Hockey Association provincial finals this year. The Carnduff Red Devils reached the Senior B final against the Wilkie Outlaws, but dropped the best-of-three final in two straight. Also, Carnduff reached the midget C final against Hague, but lost the two-game, total goal series 8-6.
Many of the top curlers from across the province were at the Power Dodge Curling Centre from March 28-31 for the provincial mixed curling championships. The mixed featured 24 teams from across the province. Shaun Meachum won the tournament, defeating Jeff Hartung’s rink 7-2 in the final. Hartung featured Robyn Silvernagle, who skipped Saskatchewan’s entry at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts national championship earlier this year, as well as Kara Thevenot, who played for Silvernagle at the Scotties. Another big draw was six local teams who entered the tournament.
The Estevan Sharks water polo program wrapped up their season in late March by travelling to Saskatoon for provincials, which wrapped up March 31. Six Estevan teams entered and four of them came home with medals, including two gold, one silver and one bronze. The under-12 girls team and the under-14 boys teams were the gold medallists.
Members of the Estevan Taekwon-do Club were in Toronto March 30 for a meet hosted by master Vito Palella, who is the president of the Global TaeKwon-Do Federation Canada. Just over 200 competitors were in attendance. Athletes competed in patterns and sparring competitions, and Estevan athletes brought home many medals.
April:
The Redvers Rockets midget hockey team capped a near-perfect season by winning both the league and provincial titles. The Rockets won the provincial title by defeating Edam 12-3 in the two-game, total-goal provincial midget D final. They also won the Moose Mountain Minor Hockey League’s midget division by defeating the Arcola-Lampman Combines in the best-of-three league final.
The Estevan Comprehensive School Elecs badminton team had a good showing at their home tournament April 6. The Elecs won gold in several different categories: Ruth Pecson in girls singles, Bethany Montebon and Kishi Rioferio in girls doubles, and Tayce Miller and Maya Daoust in mixed doubles.
The Estevan Extreme Thunder 13-and-under volleyball team came home with the gold medal in Tier 2 from the provincial tournament in Warman and Saskatoon on April 6 and 7. Estevan went 5-3 during the tournament, and defeated the Wascana Silver 2-0 in the final game.
The junior Bruins season came to an end April 7 in a 3-2 loss to the Melfort Mustangs at Affinity Place. The Bruins led 2-0 at one point in the final game, but Melfort rallied to tie, and then Justin Ball scored the winning goal late in the third. Melfort won the first two games of the series, and the Estevan won two to tie the series, but Melfort rallied to win the last two.
The Estevan Mermaids synchronized swim club competed at the 2019 Sadie Caulder Knight Provincial Stream Championships in Saskatoon April 6 and 7. Twenty-three local swimmers competed at the meet. Rebecca Duncan was tied for second in 13-15 solo, Sierra Mantei was third in nine and 10 solo, and the 10-and-under limited competitive team was third. Their annual water show was the following weekend.
The Tisdale Trojans won the Telus Cup Western Regionals tournament April 7, with contributions from three southeast players. The Trojans defeated the Thunder Bay Kings 6-5 in the regional championship game. Lampman’s Dawson Schaff scored twice, including the game-winning goal less than two minutes into the extra frame. Fellow Lampman product Bryson Garton was a goalie on the team, while Liam Rutten of Alameda was a forward.
The Bruins held their awards night April 10. Turner Ripplinger was named the team’s most valuable player and the most aggressive player. He was also the Viterra Division’s nominee for the MVP award. Jake Heerspink was named the top defenceman, and was also the division’s nominee for that award. The club also announced that the Bill Shinske Ethics Award would be renamed the Mark Cross Ethics Award. Cross, who won the award in 2010 and 2011, was an assistant coach for the Humboldt Broncos when he died in the Broncos bus tragedy in April 2018.
The community of Redvers celebrated its hockey history and those who have gone on to succeed at higher levels during the Redvers Recreation Sportsman Dinner and Auction April 13. The event had two guest speakers: sexual abuse survivor and former NHL player Sheldon Kennedy, and Redvers native Dean Kennedy, who played more than 700 games in the NHL The town also recognized 39 players who went on to play junior, post-secondary or professional hockey.
Forty recreation hockey teams were in Estevan for the Estevan Strippers Molson’s Spring Bust Tournament from April 10-14. The tournament featured action in 10 different divisions, with games in Estevan and Bienfait. Fundraising cabarets were also held during the tournament, raising thousands of dollars for non-profit organizations.
Challenger Baseball was brought to Estevan in the spring. It’s an opportunity to people with disabilities to play baseball. Local kids spent the season learning the fundamentals of the game and playing, often with parents on the field.
The Estevan Gymnastics Club, which has nearly 250 children from ages two to 17, announced in April it would be moving from the Doug Third Hall on the northwest edge of Woodlawn Regional Park, to a property that it purchased in the 1200-block of Seventh Street. It gave them more space for their equipment, and a permanent area so they don’t have to move their equipment from the floor to accommodate events.
Three retired NHL tough guys shared stories from their professional hockey careers during the Bruins annual Sportsman’s Dinner April 25 at the Power Dodge Curling Centre. Nearly 250 people turned out to listen to former Estevan and Carlyle resident Jim McKenzie, along with Stu Grimson and Reid Simpson, reflect on their time in hockey. They entertained the crowd as they discussed the people they fought, some of the fights they had with each other, the coaches they played for and some of their favourite stories from road trips.
