The Virden U13 Hodson team claimed the Rural A provincial title with a 4-0 win over Hamiota in the gold medal game. Goalie Lauren Thiessen earned the shutout. The team had competed against Hamiota all season long.
“We were confident we could do it if we played our game and all of our girls played to the top of their ability,” head coach Jamie Hodson said. “That’s what they did.
“Definite credit to Hamiota. They played us really hard.”
He praised the team for everyone playing their role and buying in. The squad started provincials with a 2-2 tie versus Hamiota. That meant it would need to win their other round robin games to earn a shot at gold.
“The girls knew what they had to do, and they were not backing down from accomplishing their goal of trying to win provincials,” Hodson said. “They just really came together and worked their (butts) off.”
The team downed Rock Lake, 13-1; beat Altona, 7-3; and got past Southwest, 8-1. That set up a rematch with Hamiota for gold.
The team included Meredith Masson, Harley Cook, Laney George, Demi Hodson, Hadley Robertson, Gracie Lawrence, Kinsley Robertson (AP), Willow Hodson (AP), Lauren Thiessen, Fergie Bertholet, Mckinnley Walton, and Nova Hack. Jamie Hodson is the head coach. Lindsey Hodson is the manager. Dallas George and Chad Hack served as full-time assistant coaches. The team was also helped out by Karla Robertson, Mark Robertson, and Monty Lawrence.
Virden U11 Brown
In the championship game, U11 Brown beat La Broquerie. 7-4, for the provincial title.
“Overall, as a coaching staff and parents, we are super proud and excited for this group of kids to set a goal at the start of the year to compete for a provincial title, and then achieve it through some lessons learned throughout the season, and a bunch of hard work,” head coach Lonnie Brown said.
During the tournament, U11 Brown won 11-3 against Gimli and 7-2 versus Neepawa. It tied Swan Valley, 2-2. Due to the tie-breaker rule, the Virden team narrowly edged Swan Valley for first in its pool, Brown said. In its next game, U11 Brown beat Flin Flon, 7-3, to advance to the finals.
“I was happy with how they stayed focused on the goal for the weekend,” Brown said. “Once the threat of bad weather started to circulate, the tournament organizers were forced to change the draw on the fly, which led to us playing three games Saturday. Not one player panicked or complained, they just went out and took care of business.”
Three Virden players were named to the tournament all-star team: Grady Hay (forward), Slone Brown (defence), and Kesler Brown (goaltender). However, it was a total team effort that allowed the squad to bring the gold medals to Virden.
“As a whole, our team played well and stuck to our game that we have been working on all season,” Coach Brown said. “Similar to other tournaments that we played this season, it seemed like every game we had different individuals step up and bring a little extra which helped give us an edge. The final was no different, we got a gutsy performance from all the kids and they played very unselfish hockey.”
The team included Kesler Brown, Brock Brown (AP), Mason Koop, Conner Elliott, Braxton Goulden, Austin Rowand, Carson Mooney, Jax Braybrook, Boeden Higginbotham, Bauer Challner, Slone Brown, Grady Hay, Braxton Murray, Asher White, and Dally Brown (AP). Lonnie Brown is the head coach and Kala Hay the manager. During the season, the assistant coaches were Brett Braybrook, Marc Berry, Joey Bielik, and David Bielik. The team’s practice helpers were Carter Brown and Carter White. The team appreciated Mike Higginbotham and David Challner helping out at provincials.
Elkhorn U13B
The Elkhorn U13 girls team captured a provincial title in their home rink in dramatic fashion. In the championship tilt, Grand Plains scored late to knot the contest at 1-1. Just over four minutes into overtime, Khloe Volk lit the lamp to lift the host squad to the title.
“There’s nothing like winning at home,” manager Steven Malcolm said. “We ended up with a great crowd, which got the girls fired up.”
The Elkhorn team opened the tournament with a 2-1 loss to Grand Plains. Malcolm said it “served as a good wake up call.” After the opening loss, Elkhorn beat Stonewall, 6-1; and Rat River, 7-1.
“Assistant coach Randy Bryant spoke to the girls about how the same situation happened to one of his other daughters a few years previous and that her team went on to win gold. The girls rallied behind that, got refocused and bounced back with a couple of the best games they played all year, which set up a rematch with Grand Plains in the gold medal game. It was a tight game from start to finish,” Malcolm said.
The team’s roster included Allyson Flannery, Natalie Couvier, Kaylee Malcolm, Adella Potter-Lukye, Kelsey Brown, Halle Gray, Hadley Bryant, Kennedy Kyle, Olivia Korosil,
Peyton Canart, Mya Jones, Samantha Corr, Shayna Martin, Khloe Volk, and Woyawaste West-Skywater. Kristin Canart was the head coach and Steven Malcolm the team manager. Randy Bryant and Matt Wilson served as assistant coaches.
Birtle Bruiskies
The Bruiskies were able to repeat as female U18 Rural A champs. They opened the event with a 3-0 shutout of Southwest, but then suffered a 3-1 setback to Grand Plains. They shut out Hamiota-Rivers, 5-0, before besting Mantiou, 5-3, to win the championship.
“First and foremost, we were successful this weekend because the girls wanted it,” head coach Aaron Ashcroft said. “Yes, it takes a lot of practice, hard work and dedication for a successful outcome, but when it comes down to provincials, specifically the semis and gold medal game, you need to dig deep, play with passion, you need desire and you need a mindset that gives you that edge to rise above your opponent, and that’s exactly what the girls brought to the rink this past weekend.
“We knew coming into the tournament, competition would be tough and games would be tight with little to no room for errors, but, along with their crazy superstitions, the girls brought a lot of Intensity and a lot of heart, and that’s what set them apart from their competition.”
Local players on the Bruiskies included Virden - Kenna Bryant, Misha Careme, Amelia Crawford; Elkhorn - Karlee Bird, Shaylee Frattinger, Payton Kyle, Avery Frattinger; Miniota- Baylie Bryant; and McAuley - Mya McAuley.
Other Provincials
In Dauphin last weekend, U11 Hayward competed at the U11 A1 provincials. The Birtle-Miniota squad played at the U15C provincials in Warren.
Hockey Manitoba kicked off its provincial tournaments on the weekend of Feb. 24-25. The female U11 Robertson team competed in Portage. The Elkhorn U15B squad was in Winnipeg.
Frattinger Helps Mariners
Elkhorn’s Brady Frattinger is a member of the Vancouver Island University men’s hockey team that won the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League championship last weekend. It was the first ever BCIHL championship for the Nanaimo school. VIU beat the University of Victoria, 6-2, to win gold. Frattinger, a forward, saw action in 11 games for the veteran-laden club. He is the son of Trever and Terri Frattinger.
