Apr 08, 2018 | Trevor Russwurm | 1133 views
Novice Girls Ousted in Quarter-Finals at Provincials
The Dodge Caravan Kids Meteor Novice Girls competed in the OWHA Provincial Novice 'C' Championships on April 6-8 in Toronto, going undefeated in round robin pool play but dropped a 4-0 decision to the eventual bronze medal winning Goulbourn Rockets. The Rockets were strong defensively, clogging up the middle and preventing many scoring chances. The WOGHL playoff champion St. Thomas Panthers defeated the Sarnia Lady Sting to win the gold medal.
The locals opened the tournament on Friday with an early morning 8am matchup with the Clarence Rockland Lightning. The high-octane offense went to work right away, notching a 7-0 victory. Abigayle Van Bakel led in scoring with a hat trick and two assists, and single goals were scored by Zoey Michel, Ava Harmer, Macie Russwurm, and Maren Marshall. Ellie MacArthur earned the shutout in net.
In game two later that afternoon, the Meteors squared off with the North Bay Ice Boltz, with Van Bakel's unassisted goal the only tally of the opening period. North Bay would tie it early in the second, but Mitchell would score three unanswered goals and not look back on route to a 5-2 victory. Van Bakel would finish with another hat trick and one assist, and Alayna McKay and Kayla Visneskie would also score. Harmer added two assists in the effort, and MacArthur was solid once again between the pipes.
Game three's opponent was the TCDMHA Rebels, the only opponent thus far with any familiarity, having been beaten by the Meteors twice earlier in the season in tournaments. This result was not much different, as the game would end in a 5-0 win for Mitchell with Selina Gethke earning the shutout in net. After a scoreless first period, Harmer and Van Bakel scored unassisted goals to build a 2-0 lead after two periods of play. Van Bakel would add her second of the game early in the final frame, and Russwurm scored a pair of insurance markers late in the game to seal the victory. Camryn Medhurst chipped in with one assist.
During their very successful season, the Novice Girls compiled a record of 43-12-3 and showed tremendous improvement and skill development over the course of the season. Many thanks from our parents to head coach Greg Van Bakel, and his bench staff of trainer Kristi Michel and assistant coaches Emily Stephan and Kiana Lauze. Job well done, team!!