Jan 29, 2017 | Trevor Russwurm | 612 views
Novice Girls HL Compete in Orangeville Tigers Sweetheart Tournament
The Mitchell Dodge Grand Caravan Meteors Novice Girls HL competed in the Orangeville Tigers Sweetheart Tournament on January 27-29th, compiling an overall record of 2-1-1 which unfortunately was not enough to advance past pool play and into the playoff round on Sunday.
The girls opened the tournament on Friday against Mississauga, starting things a little flat and suffering a 6-1 defeat. Maren Marshall scored the lone Meteors goal, assisted by Abigayle Van Bakel and Macie Russwurm.
After a good night's sleep, the locals rebounded in strong fashion, ending in a 6-6 tie against the Barrie Sting. Haileigh Templeman struck quickly for the opening two goals on the same shift, with two assists to Van Bakel and one to Selina Gethke. Kayla Visneskie jumped on a rebound early in the second period to give the Meteors a 3-1 lead, assisted by Van Bakel and Alayna McKay. Barrie would storm back with three quick goals to take the lead 4-3 after two periods. The line of Van Bakel, Templeman, and Gethke went to work early in the third, once again knocking in two goals on one shift, both by Van Bakel who would finish with five points. Templeman completed the hat trick from Russwurm with what looked like an insurance goal but Barrie would add two more goals to close out the game, including the heartbreaking tying marker with 43 seconds remaining, ultimately sealing the fate of missing the playoff round.
The next two games were must-wins to have a chance at a playoff berth with some help, and the girls came out flying on Saturday afternoon, knocking the Orangeville Orange around by a score of 11-3. Van Bakel scored four goals, Templeman once again contributed a hat trick, and McKay chipped in with a pair (although the fans suspected one was tipped by Tegan Mace to give HER a pair of goals, and thus her dad should fulfill his promise to her of getting the Meteors logo tattooed on himself). The teams combined for a high-flying 9 goals in the first period alone. Marshall would add two assists in a strong skating effort on the blue line and Visneskie would also score her second of the tournament.
The final game of the weekend was on Saturday evening against White Lightning (from parts unknown?), and the opponents traded goals on and off, with Mitchell leading 3-2 after the first period on goals by Templeman, McKay, and Marshall. The teams would trade single goals in the second period, before Mitchell pulled away in the third on McKay's second of the game followed by Mace. Templeman, Van Bakel, and Mace each had two assists, with Gethke chipping in a single helper.
Goaltender Ellie MacArthur played strong all weekend, in particular with several highlight reel saves in the final game on Saturday to help protect the two-goal lead. The defense of Russwurm, Marshall, Addy Wolfe, and Grace Bach consistently held the blue line to keep the pressure on in the offensive zone.
The regular season and tournament tour has now ended, on to the playoffs....great weekend girls!!!