Let's play ball!
After more than a year of planning and preparation, Weyburn is ready to host the Canadian Senior A Men's Baseball Championship that begins Thursday morning at Tom Laing Park and continues through Sunday.
Tournament committee chairman Don Kraft said local organizers of the event are proud and excited to see the fruits of their labors finally coming to pass.
"Yes, we certainly are," Kraft said Tuesday as volunteers and personnel put the finishing touches on the diamond.
"It's been a lot of work by a lot of people it's going to be an excellent tournament."
Six teams from across Canada will be joined by the host team, the Weyburn Sr. Beavers, as they battle for the national title that was won by the Beavers in Saskatoon in 1996. The competition consists of the St. Albert Tigers (Alberta), the Saskatoon Nationals (Saskatchewan), the Windsor Stars (Ontario), the Teulon Cardinals (Manitoba), Team New Brunswick and the Dartmouth Moosehead Dry (Nova Scotia).
The opening ceremonies are scheduled to take place at the diamond at 7 p.m. on Thursday and will include greetings from Souris-Moose Mountain MP Roy Bailey, Weyburn Mayor Don Schlosser and Don Kraft. The tournament will, at that time, be officially dedicated to Weyburn baseball icon Ray Belanger who died last year and played a key role in initiating Weyburn's bid to host the event.
The ceremonial opening pitch will be thrown by Belanger's wife Louise and caught by their son Neil.
Weyburn's bid to host the championship was accepted in July 1997 and organizers have since completed a number of upgrades to the park, including the addition of washroom facilities and an expansion to the press box to accommodate TV cameras. Additional bleachers have also temporarily expanded the park's capacity to approximately 1,000 seats.
Souvenirs will be available at the gate along with $10 day passes and $25 tournament passes. A tournament office will also be on-site.
In addition, there will be a social tonight beginning at 6 p.m. at the Weyburn Curling Rink to kick off the event and introduce the teams and players. A beef-on-a-bun supper will be served at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are $7.50 per person.
The Weyburn Beavers will take to the field against the Teulon Cardinals at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday for their first game, and will play again at 11 a.m. on Friday against Team New Brunswick, and at 8 p.m. on Friday against the Tigers, and finally, at 2 p.m. on Saturday against the Stars.
Semifinals and medal games are scheduled to take place on Sunday with Monday being the rain-out day.
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THURSDAY, AUG. 20 9 a.m. New Brunswick vs. Alberta 12 noon Nova Scotia vs. Manitoba 3 p.m. Saskatchewan vs. Ontario 7 p.m. OPENING CEREMONIES 7:30 p.m. Manitoba vs. Weyburn |
FRIDAY, AUG. 21 8 a.m. Ontario vs. Nova Scotia 11 a.m. Weyburn vs. N.B. 2 p.m. Novia Scotia vs. Saskatchewan 5 p.m. Ontario vs. Manitoba 8 p.m. Alberta vs. Weyburn |
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SATURDAY, AUG. 22 8 a.m. N.B. vs. Saskatchewan 11 a.m. Alberta vs. Manitoba 2 p.m. Ontario vs. Weyburn 5 p.m. Nova Scotia vs. N.B. 8 p.m. Saskatchewan vs. Alberta |
SUNDAY, AUG. 23 8 a.m. 2nd place vs. 3rd place 11 a.m. 1st place vs. 4th place 2 p.m. Bronze Medal game 6 p.m. Gold Medal game |
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