It will be a busy weekend on the softball diamond in Prince Albert as the fifth annual Shaye Amundson Memorial Tournament begins on Friday.
The tournament is named in memory of Shaye Amundson, an Aces softball player who passed away in a car accident at the age of 18 back in 2016.
Tournament coordinator Curtis Bradbury says sports in the tournament filled up quickly after registration opened earlier this year.
“We had a waitlist in every age division this year. We know it’s a really sought after tournament to come to because of the volunteers, the organization of the tournament is second to none, and we have world class facilities.”
Diamonds will be one wrinkle in the plans for the tournament this year. The Rotary Field is unavailable for use as it’s undergoing renovations in preparation for the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup, which is being hosted in Prince Albert in July.
As a result, the U17 age division will be playing games in Rosthern rather than the Max Power Ball Diamonds in Prince Albert.
“People that sign up believe that they’re going to have that opportunity to play on the Rotary field. It’s unfortunate we can’t play (there) this year, but in the same breath, the diamond improvements have been amazing.” Bradbury explained. “They’ve done some work to the dugouts and the field to make it world class. For us to sit out a year and have to go to Rosthern and it’s not a huge deal. It’s going to only benefit minor softball moving forward for years to come.”
With the funds raised from the tournament, the Prince Albert Minor Softball Association hands out scholarships in Shaye’s memory. Prior to her passing, Shaye Amundson had plans to attend the University of Lethbridge. Bradbury says the scholarships are a way to help athletes who are moving forward with their education.
“If you’re going to college over a post-secondary of any kind, you can apply for the Shaye Amundson Memorial Scholarship through our website, and then we utilize that extra proceeds made from the tournament to give scholarships to former Aces softball players, or softball players that have played in the tournament in the past, to help them through schooling.”
Throughout the years, the tournament has had the support of Amundson’s friends and family. Her younger sister Rhyan had played for the Aces in previous memorial tournaments.
“They’ve been nothing but supportive.” Bradbury explained. “Shaye’s friends and family that are still around attend to the diamonds and they support games. They volunteer when they can around the diamond. It’s been nothing but successful for the last five years. We’re looking forward to another successful year this year.”
“Shaye was one of those players that was talented, had a passion for the game and had a passion for the community. Any youth in Prince Albert would want to follow in Shaye’s footsteps. She was that type of kid, such a wonderful person who’s very missed. I think having a tournament in her honour, and people throughout the softball community in Saskatchewan, knew Shaye and her family. It’s an honour to continue to play under her name. I know they’ve done a diamond renovation in her name through Diamond 4 up at Prime Minister’s Park, where her banner hangs over the field, which is pretty nice for the youth who come to the diamond every day to be able to see that.”
sports@paherald.sk.ca
