Baseball diamonds in Moose Jaw will be a busy place this weekend, with the 11-and-under AA Tier 2B and 15-and-under AA Tier 3 provincial tournaments currently underway.
And the good news is all three local teams are off to solid starts in their respective events.
The Moose Jaw Canucks Grey got things started with the first game of the day at the Bell Park baseball fields this afternoon, rolling to an 11-1 victory over the Saskatoon Cardinal Destroyers in 11U AA action.
They continue their round robin action at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday against the Regina White Sox before closing out their preliminary round against the Saskatoon Timber A’s at 3:30 p.m. Both those contests are at Gamble Diamond.
Things went even better for the Canucks Black in their opener against the Saskatoon Blue Jay Thunder later in the afternoon.
Moose Jaw built a 5-1 lead through three innings and tacked on another three in the fourth before blowing things open with six in the fifth to invoke the mercy rule. Everet Dunlop and Evan Audette each scored three runs in the win.
The Canucks Black face the Weyburn Beavers at 8 a.m.Saturday and the Saskatoon Royal Mavericks at 1 p.m. to finish their round robin. Those games will both take place at Baba Diamond.
The semifinals are 12 p.m. at Baba and Gamble Diamonds on Sunday, with the gold medal game at 3 pm.
The Moose Jaw Canucks Grey found themselves with a bit of a fight on their hands but still came away victorious in their first 15U AA Tier III provincial game.
A four-run first inning set the tone against the Sask Five Giants, and the Canucks would hang on late for a 10-8 win at Blackwell Diamond, which recently saw extensive renovations come to a completion.
Moose Jaw had built a 10-1 edge through five innings when the Giants staged a bit of a comeback, scoring three runs in the sixth and four in the seventh to get back within a pair, but would get no closer.
Kyren Ernest reached base four times for Moose Jaw and scored a run, while Jesse Lesperance and Ryan Duncan each crossed the plate twice.
The Canucks do battle with Esterhazy at 12 p.m. Saturday and Gull Lake at 6 p.m. in their remaining round robin games, with all their action at Blackwell.
The semifinal is at 9 a.m. on Sunday morning, the gold medal game is slated for 4 p.m., with both those games also at Blackwell.
