Cedar Glen Tournament Boon to Young Athletes

Seaway District High School recognized its top athletes at the both the high school and intermediate levels at the annual sports banquet held in the gymnasium  on Thursday, June 14. :Pictured above are the school’s top athletes at the intermediate level. From l-r, they are Cole Fowler, Alex Satura, Sophia Currier and Jane VanMoorsel. Fowler and Ventura were co-winners of the top male athlete award and Currier was named the top female athlete. VanMoorsel and  Cody Smail (who was not available for the photo) won the intermediate Sportsmanship Awards.

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The club held its first New Year’s Eve bonspiel and party for some years, and our president, Mahlon Locke, tells us it went well and that they hope to have another one next year. There was a full slate of curlers, with the top athletes on the evening being Sam Locke and Rachelle Eaves, with Rick Mackenzie and Janie Connolly right behind them. 

The participants played two-person games first, and in their second games combined high and low scorers for a four-end match, with each one skipping for an end. Finally, the third game involved draws to the button, with final scores reflecting total points earned. With television coverage of the New Year’s Eve entertainment in certain large venues to augment their own, the revelers eventually headed home after a great evening. 

The event was open to non-curlers, as well as former members and friends. It was a great mix of people, and we’ll look forward to the renewal of festivities next year.  

     The senior men’s playoff last Wednesday saw Martin Schneckenburger, Wally McDonald, George Rutley and Ron Brown drawn against Pete Zeran, Jack Dikland, Karl Duncan and Earl Jeacle. It was well-curled game, with Martin’s team triumphing on the last rock of the ten-end match. They would join our other champions in Cornwall for the Parnell competition on Friday. Jack Barkley, Doug Jarvis, Maurice Kolff and Andy Patenaude curled Sid Morrell, Neil Williams, Raymond Benoit and Al Harriman. Each team won four ends, but the Morrell foursome emerged as the winners. Good competition as always in these elimination matches.

     On Thursday a senior mixed team ventured to Alexandria for their one game bonspiel. Steve and Alice Thompson, Keith Robinson and Sharon Van Allen took to the ice against two Mount Royal fellows and two late replacements from the local area. The Morrisburgers could only win three ends against this fine group, who won the overall championship among the eighteen teams in the competition. 

In spite of it all, it was a wonderful day, and our representatives met many fine people, including twelve the teams from the province of Quebec. We’ll be back next year!     

     In the Parnell in Cornwall, our champions acquitted themselves well, splitting their matches. Sid Morrell, Neil Williams, Raymond Benoit and Al Harriman dropped their first game to the Prescott foursome that won the trophy, but defeated Lancaster in their second. Martin Schneckenburger, Wally McDonald, George Rutley and Ron Brown were squeezed out in their first game against Lancaster, but managed a huge win against the top Cornwall team. The highlight of the match was a shot by skip Martin, slipping his shot between two tight guards to knock out the enemy shot stone to lie and win the match. Don and Sally O’Brien were there to support our teams. Good to see them there, even behind the glass. 

     Glen Cougler’s stick bonspiel had 10 teams confirmed at time of writing, two from our club. It should be interesting to watch this fine invitational bonspiel.

     Susan McIntosh’s next two-person bonspiel is also on this month. There’s a sign-up sheet in the lounge.

    With 10 teams signed up for Thursday morning we’ve had to go to 9 and 11:15 a.m.

starting times to get everyone playing each week. Unless there’s a new schedule out, the plan is to have teams formerly on a bye play in the 11:15 a.m. draw each time. It’s good to see the daytime mixed numbers so high. 

Good curling!

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“We had fun.” That expression by player Jack Cole sums up the Morrisburg Combines performance at the Canada Senior Games in Edmonton from August 27-29. 

Each game was close, but the Combines lost all four. 

The 2014 version of the Canadian Senior Games attracted over 2000 participants setting for itself a new record in attendance. 

The Morrisburg Combines qualified for the Canadian Games by winning a hockey gold medal in the 2013 Ontario Senior Games in the 65-plus age division. 

“This national event itself was a quite a big, well-organized deal with impressive opening and closing events, quality entertainment and darn good food,” says Jake Cole of Ottawa who was enjoying his first time at the games with the Combines.

Accompanied by several of the players’ wives, the Combines made some noise both on and off the ice.”

“It was super encouraging to hear the cheers from our fans when we scored or goalie Les McAllister made a great save,” says Cole. “It was also a fine time of laughing and teasing during the dressing room time before and after each game. In fact, as most old timers players will undoubtedly agree, hockey dressing room banter has basically not changed since we were teenagers, with the same corny jokes and everyone taunting and poking fun at each other mercilessly.”

The Combines arrived in Edmonton as a team that had only played together for four exhibition games back home. 

“We learned that our competition had been playing regularly all summer and also that they had played together for years. Right away, we could tell we were up against some very good hockey teams.”

The Combines first game was against the Rocky Mountain Elks. The Elks scored first, but the Combines recovered to tie it. Alberta went up 3-1 with the Combines getting a late one back and then pulling goaltender Les McAllister only to have their goalie make a terrific save off Fern Gauvreau in the dying seconds to preserve the 3-2 win. 

The second game put the Combines against Calgary’s Jeff Bowles, “a team that seemed to know just how far to bend the rules without getting penalized” says Cole. Bowles got some early goals and the Combines never really got going until near the end, losing 5-2. 

The Combines final two games were close, with leads see-sawing back and forth but they lost both games identical 4-2 scores to the Elks and to Bowles. The Bowles team won the championship with a 5-2 victory over the Elks.

The Combines’ tournament scoring leaders were Lester Holmes and Jack Haines (who scored an outstanding goal on a howitzer-like shot in the Combines last game). 

Special recognition was given to Combines defencemen, Bryan Helmer, Alvin Darling, Wally Ryan, and Ron Alguire, who, along with Les McAllister kept out many potential goals and basically kept the team in every game.

The “Combines”, are now a 65-plus team (with players up to 78 years old) that been competing in the Senior Games, at the provincial and national levels since 2000. 

While never winning gold nationally, the team has won several provincial titles and expects to be back competing again next February in Haliburton, Ontario for another provincial gold.

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