Slo-Pitch count continues to climb

Posted on June 29, 2026 by Ryan Dahlman

The Shaunavon Slo-Pitch Tournament enjoyed another highly successful year, drawing a good turnout of teams and fans during two-days of terrific weather conditions June 19-20.

Known for its lively cabaret, home run derby, beer gardens, cash prizes, and late-night games, the event has earned strong community support throughout its nine-year history.

This year’s event attracted 10 teams and generated plenty of excitement.

The home run derby once again proved to be a major crowd-pleaser, although hitters battled gusting winds out of the south.

After a preliminary qualifier, the derby finalists were auctioned off for the final round. The Calcutta drew $10,600 in bids.

Organizers also introduced a ladies’ home run derby this year, which brought in additional bids that totaled about $2,000.

Dyson Stevenson won the men’s home-run derby with Buster Taypotat of Maple Creek finishing second. Kirk Amon was third. Lance Stevenson and Kelly Fuller were the Calcutta’s winning bidders.

Ainsley Olsen topped the ladies derby competition.

The Sliders Down team captured the tournament title.

This year’s tournament is expected to raise about $6,000, with all proceeds being reinvested into the Shaunavon ball diamonds and local baseball and softball programs.

Over its nine-year run, the tournament has poured nearly $100,000 back into local facilities at the sportsgrounds. This includes a major

$25,000 donation in 2024 to the newly constructed pavilion, a project also heavily supported by the Shaunavon Slammers and the Lori Pritchard Memorial Tournament.

Organizers are currently reviewing several potential projects for this year’s funds.

The event featured a more relaxed atmosphere this year following several years of fundraising pushes.

However, the organizing committee – consisting of Dyson Stevenson, Kaelyn Thomas, Cody Tetrault, and Tanner Tetrault – is already preparing for a big 10th-anniversary celebration in 2027, where they hope to attract a 16-team field (which would match their record number of entries).

“We weren’t expecting anything big this year, but things still exceeded my expectations,” admitted Dyson Stevenson, the driving force behind the event. “But next year, with the anniversary, we are hoping to host a really big event.”

Tournament action kicked off on Friday evening with round-robin play.

Games stretched late into the night thanks to portable lights set up around two diamonds.

The weekend’s social highlight was the Saturday night cabaret, which drew a crowd of roughly 180 people to enjoy music by the Osinski Bros.

The event’s continued success relies heavily on local corporate partnerships. Paul and Teresa Illerbrun of P & T Water Hauling, along with Helix Construction Ltd., serve as the primary tournament sponsors.

LTD is the event’s third major sponsor.

“We absolutely could not put this tournament on without their sponsorship,” Stevenson stated, while expressing his sincere gratitude to all the players, spectators, and donors who made the weekend a success.