Red Deer Riggers win bronze at 2026 Men’s National Championships

Aug 26, 2026 | 2:49 PM

The Red Deer Riggers have returned home from the 2026 Men’s National Championships with some hardware.

On Monday, they defeated the Windsor Stars 11-10 in the bronze medal game in New Brunswick to win their second national bronze title. They last captured bronze at the 2017 tournament.

Down 10-7 following the top half of the sixth inning, the Riggers scored four unanswered runs to take the lead heading into the final inning, where pitcher Kai Poffenroth closed it out.

Kyle Belich knocked out a single home run to begin the comeback, followed by another run scored later in the inning. Tyler McWillie then singled to knock in two more runs to give the Riggers the lead.

Red Deer finished round-robin play in first place in Pool B with a 3-1 record after wins over British Columbia, Ontario, and Saskatchewan. They fell to New Brunswick in their second game of the tournament.

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That earned them a bye past the quarterfinals and into the semifinals, where they lost 10-4 to New Brunswick.

The Riggers earned their way to the tournament after winning the 2025 Sunburst League championship last August over the Edmonton Cubs.

This season, the Riggers fell just short of the Sunburst League playoffs near the end of July with a 10-8 record.

Even though the Riggers won’t play in the national tournament next year, they are set to host nationals in 2029 at Great Chief Park.

The following player and coaches were on the Riggers’ bronze medal team: Jaret Chatwood, Derrick Chapman, Jay Kirkham, Adam Turgeon, Griffen Ryden, Caleb Lumbard, Nolan Handley, Josh Edwards, Chris Menard, Dom Skjonsberg, Reece Hemmerling, Cleary Simpson, Heath Hachkowski, Tyler McWillie, Kyle Belich, Alex Bishop, Jared Arnold, Sawyer Marshall, Kai Poffenroth, DJ Depiero, Alex Lemieux, Matthew Murray, and Austin Moore.

by Ian Gustafson

Red Deer Riggers win bronze at 2026 Men’s National Championships

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