Kickers open with shut outs

 

For the second consecutive year, the Seaway Spartans junior and senior girls volleyball teams have topped the SD&G ‘A’ school volleyball circuit.

The very powerful Seaway Senior girls kicked it off Friday afternoon when they defeated Char-Lan in three straight sets, 25-0, 25-12 and 25-9 for the SD&G championship.

Then as the senior Spartans, did their celebrating, the junior Spartans went to work for their SD&G championship against Glengarry District High School.

The junior Spartans had a little more difficulty against the Gaels in claiming their win. 

They got it rolling by winning the first set 25-17, but then the Gaels charged back in the second for a 25-20 win.

Seaway eked out a close 25-21 victory in the third set, and put it away in the fourth with a 25-18 win.

Both of the Seaway teams went into their respective finals as the defending 2011 SD&G champs.

This year’s seniors were coached by Lilace MacIntyre, who moved from her position as junior coach last year with four of her graduating junior players.

This year’s Senior Spartans were undefeated in 27 sets (nine games) played during the regular season. They competed in three tournaments, won one and finished third in the other two.

As they head towards EOSSAA, which will be hosted this Thursday by Seaway, the very experienced Spartans are expecting some very tough opposition from last year’s OFSSAA champs from Embrun.

Last year’s senior Spartans competed at EOSSAA but fell short of bringing home silverware. Their experience, along with the experience of the four rookies who last year were EOSSAA A school junior champions should make them very competitive.

“I am expecting some really tough competition for the girls this Thursday,” said McIntyre who was extremely pleased with the team’s regular season results.

As for the junior Spartans, who too finished in first place in this year’s regular season, their coach Lyndsay Waddell said, “I am really proud of them today. They’ve worked really hard.”

Although they won first place in the regular season, it was by a slim, one set ahead of Glengarry.

That made Friday’s game the ‘big showdown’ of the year and it was close all the way through.

The Junior Spartans have seven first year players, five from grade nine and two grade 10s.”

As for what she expects at the Junior EOSSAA championships this Thursday in Brockville, Waddell says “we should be competitive. They work really hard and they are a great bunch of girls. We are a pretty resilient team when we need to be.”

[…]

 

The Morrisburg Junior B Lions continued their downward skid in St. Lawrence Division Junior Hockey action this past weekend with another three losses which brings their losing streak to seven games. Their last win was on home ice on September 30, when they dropped the Alexandria Glens, 6-0.

This past week, the Lions kicked it off Wednesday night in Brockville with a 6-4 loss to the Tikis. Then on Friday night, on home ice, they lost 5-1 to the Athens Aeros and that was followed by an 8-7 loss to the Winchester Hawks in Morrisburg, on Sunday afternoon.

“We have had hard luck scoring goals,” says Lions team manager Kevin Casselman. “The chances have been there, we have just not been finishing our offensive chances.”

Casselman also explained that the Lions have been running with a short bench due to mid term university exams. This happens every year at this time and this year affects three Lions players.

With basically the same schedule in place from one year to the next, it would appear time the Lions asked to have the schedule examined.

The team annually runs into this three game week (with the midweek game in Brockville) when players are unable to play due to their exams.

Although the Lions have lost their last seven games, Casselman says management does not feel it is due to lack of effort. “Some short lapses with attention to detail have resulted in scoring opportunities for our opposition,” he explains. “For the most part these lapses are not from the efforts being given. We must also consider that we are still a young club, and we will continue to work on all aspects in practice.”

“Yesterday’s game was an offensive game for sure,” he says of the 8-7 loss to the Winchester Hawks on Sunday. “It was one of those games where you wanted to have last possession.”

The Hawks took a 3-1 first period lead in the game, but the Lions battled back to win the second period 3-2 .

By 15:33 of the second they had the game tied 4-4 but the Hawks got one more back to carry a 5-4 advantage into the third.

The two played even in the third, each potting three goals, which gave the Hawks the 8-7 win.

Michele Lefebvre had a big three goal effort for the Lions, while Chris Rutley, Sylvester Bzdyl, Curtis Pilon and Grant Cooper added singles.

Mathew White struck three times for the Hawks, Kevin Vinyard scored a pair and singles were added by Kyle Richardson, Brandon Belding and Jamie Olivier.

Mikael Dion was in net for the Lions for 56:34. With just over three minutes left in the game an altercation between Dion and the Hawks, Brandon Belding resulted  in five minute fighting majors and match penalties to both. The two will serve three game suspensions.

According to Casselman, “Mikael took offence to what he felt was interference through his crease. Earlier in the game the altercation between Dillon Lapier, was also a result of this.”

On a positive note, Casselman pointed out that when the Lions got down Sunday, “the players did not quit. They bought back for each other and only good things can come from the effort given.”

A solid first period effort in Brockville on Wednesday night, resulted in a 2-0 Lions lead. However the Tikis recovered in the second and came back for four consecutive goals as they headed for the 6-4 win.

Sylvester Bzdyl had two goals for the Lions, while Zach Sequin and Michel Lefebvre added singles.

The Tikis were assessed 10 minor penalties and two 10 minute misconducts while the Lions sat out nine minors and one misconduct. The Tikis Cody Waite scored the lone power-play goal of the game against Lions goaltender Mikael Dion early in the second period.

The Lions were flat in Friday night’s game in Morrisburg against the visiting Athens Aeros. The Aeros put together two unanswered goals against Dion in the first period and another three in the second on their way to the 5-1 win.

Michel Lefebvre scored from Dylan Casselman and Chaffee on the Lions power play to spoil Dallas Slack’s shutout midway into the third period.

Each of the teams sat out three minor penalties and a pair of checking to the head misconducts.

Joining the Lions lineup is Dylan Dejong, a graduate of the local South Dundas Minor Hockey system.

Also seeing ice time are affiliated players–Peter Ketcheson of Greely who plays for Eastern Ontario Wild “AAA” Major Midgets; Brian Landry from the Cornwall Major Midget Colts and Isaac Brownlee from the South Stormont Major Midgets. 

Coming up this weekend, the Lions have just one game on Sunday afternoon when the Alexandria Glens come to town for a 2:30 p.m. start.

[…]

 

On Sunday, November 16, the South Dundas Atom B Lions picked up right where they left off from their November 8, 5-2 win over Brockville 2 Braves, this time with an 8-0 shutout victory over the Brockville 1s.

The Lions controlled the game right from puck drop, with the starting lineup of Quade Mullin, Cam Shaver, Monty Dejong, Jack McCann, and Alek Larocque hemming the Braves in their zone for the opening shift.

The highlight was when Mullin finished a pretty passing play from Dejong and Shaver just 50 seconds in for a 1-0 Lions lead.

Then it was Dryden Buter who hammered home a rebound from Stefan Kronstal’s point shot to put the Lions up by two. 

The play was started by Buter when he passed the puck back to defenceman Kronstal and then had the smarts to go to the net.

It took the Lions power play just four seconds to capitalize on a Braves hooking penalty with 4:08 left in the first period.

Then Spencer Barclay won the face off cleanly to his right winger Sam Connors, who one timed it past Braves goaltender Tyler Serson for a 3-0 Lions lead. 

Dejong made it 4-0 with 1:20 left in the first period after taking a feed from Mullin.

Barclay had the lone marker of the second, at 7:52, assisted by Connors, which enabled the Lions to carry a 5-0 advantage into the third.

At the midway mark of the third period, Dejong chipped the puck past a pinching Braves defenceman, then skated the length of the ice where he beat Serson high on the glove side to make it 6-0.  

Sean Nicolaassen put the Lions up 7-0, unassisted, and Buter was rewarded with 4:24 left on the clock on a play initiated by an Owen Patterson wrist shot into heavy traffic.

Once again, the Lions limited the Brockville 1s scoring chances with some great team defence.  

Goaltender Mateo Lacroix made the saves whenever he was called upon and was able to get his first career Atom shutout.  

Zach Scarbeau made a key play with just over a minute remaining to help preserve the shutout when he beat a Brave to a loose puck and fired it safely out of his zone without taking an icing call.

The win gives the Lions a record of 4 wins and 3 losses.  It also has them second in the East Division.

The Lions will practice twice this week before hosting division rival, North Dundas here Saturday November 22nd as part of Lions Day.

[…]