Named as the 2013-2014 Coach of the Year was South Dundas Novice C2 Lions coach Matt McCooeye. The presentation to McCooeye, above right, was made by South Dundas Minor Hockey Association vice-president Mike Domanko.
It’s been the most successful season ever, for the Seaway District High School Senior girls volleyball team, who, after winning the Eastern Ontario (EOSSAA) championship on their home court on Thursday, February 20, collected the Upper Canada Cup Championship and the OFSAA B Consolation Gold Championship.
The Spartans were at Richmond Hill, March 3-5 where they competed in the Ontario Championship. They played in the C Pool and were seeded 12th overall in the tournament.
“We didn’t have a great day on Monday, and we felt that we could have done better,” said coach Lindsay Waddell. “But we regrouped and played some really good ball Tuesday and Wednesday.
The C pool included Charles Garnier, Quinte Christian, King’s Christian and Cité des Jeunes.
Seaway’s shaky start began with losses to Charles Garnier (14-25, 20-25) and Quinte Christian (18-25, 18-25).
They then scraped past King’s Christian (16-25, 25-22 and 18-16) and had an easy time of it against Cité des Jeunes (25-8, 25-12).
They ended up third in the C pool and moved to the B side of OFSSA.
In the B, best-of-five, consolation quarter-final match, they met Marymount and produced 25-23, 25-21, 25-20 wins. Next up was Durham in the semi-final Consolation match with Seaway winning three sets to one (25-22, 25-9, 24-26 (loss), 25-13).
For the Consolation Gold Medal match, they met Xavier and won three straight (25-22, 25-23, 25-19).
“Once we went to the B side, we won every game after that. We were very strong defensively, the entire tournament, which is what I credit most of our success to.”
“The girls passed the ball really well and dug up everything that other teams threw at us.”
Casey McNairn, Allison Lee and Tiffany Roskell gave strong defensive efforts all tournament long, while Shannon van Moorsel and Kaitlyn Geurkink were very good at the net and blocked many of the other teams’ big hitters.”
Sophia Currier had a great tournament and set the ball extremely well.”
“We were very happy to win the Consolation Gold title. To be a small school from such a small town, we are extremely pleased to be one of the top 10 ‘A’ volleyball teams in the province.”
“I think going to OFSAA the last two years also really helped, as it allowed the girls to get over the shock of being there. This year they were more comfortable with their surroundings and with their opponents. They had the confidence that they not only belonged there, but that they could win. We didn’t win a single set at OFSAA last year, so to win five games and come home with some hardware is a huge accomplishment.”
“The girls should be very proud of themselves. It’s been an amazing season.”
Following their EOSSAA win, the Spartans competed for and won the Upper Canada Cup in Gananoque. They opened with a win over Athens in two straight sets, and defeated Smiths Falls in three. That put them first in their pool and got them a bye into the semi-final where they met and defeated South Grenville in two straight sets.
For the championship, the Spartans met Russell High School and claimed the Upper Canada Cup in two straight sets.
Members of the Spartans team are co-captains Sophia Currier and Casey McNairn, Shannon van Moorsel, Jessica Hartle, Katrina Geurkink, Allison Lee, Kaitlyn Geurkink Tiffany Roskell, Ali Van Hoof, and coach Lindsay Waddell.
Five of the Spartans graduate this spring.
The South Dundas Lions were unable to get on the scoreboard in Upper Canada Minor Hockey Midget B Rep playoff hockey here Saturday night, as the Char-Lan Rebels collected their second consecutive win to claim the East Division championship and the right to move on to the Upper Canada five-point, league championship series.
The East Division championship series opened in Char-Lan, last Wednesday, February 26, with the Rebels claiming the first two points up for grabs with a 5-2 victory.
They brought their game to Morrisburg, Saturday March 1, for win number two by a 3-0 count. That gave them the East Division Championship series four points to zero.
Last Wednesday night in Char-Lan, the Rebels went up 2-0 in the first period before Jordan St. Louis (from Josh Black) was able to put the Lions on the scoreboard.
Then in the second period, the Lions counted a big goal from Josh Black (assisted by Jordan Smail and Spencer Heldens). The 2-2 tie held into the third period when the Rebels got two in a row.
They scored their fifth and final goal in the empty Lions net for the 5-2 victory.
Josh Martineau and Zack Frawley shared the Lions goaltending.
Back home in Morrisburg, it was a much tighter game with the Rebels taking a 1-0 first period lead. That lasted throughout the second and into the third period when the Rebels counted another pair.
Zack Frawley was in net for the Lions.
The Rebels will next play the winner of the Kemptville/Perth West Division series for the Upper Canada Minor Hockey League Championship.
The Lions, who won the league’s Sportsmanship Award for the least penalized team, expect to compete in a couple of tournaments later this month.
The playoff season ended for the South Dundas Novice C2 Lions here Sunday, when they were handed their second consecutive loss by the Brockville C4 Jr. Braves.
The Braves opened the series with a 3-0 win on home ice last Thursday, February 27.
Simon Doncaster scored twice in the win and Finley Brown added a single.
Then in Morrisburg, Sunday, the Braves wrapped up the four point series with a 4-1 victory.
The Braves led 2-0 after the first period, and 3-1 after two.
The lone Lions goal was scored by Matthew Mason with help from Wyatt Barkley late in the second period.
Nick Pirano led the Braves scoring with two goals, while Colin McLeod and Ethan Pert scored singles.
Our little rockers met each other in the “B” final of the “Big Four” bonspiel. Martina and Kyra Lewis, and Erin and Annika Gibbons lost their first game to Metcalfe, but won their second against Winchester. Nolan Belanger, James Szuky, Tommy Derikz and Abby Tritzsky lost a nail-biter to Winchester and defeated our other team to win the “B” championship.
The next day in the Ran Wylie bonspiel, Martina and Kyra Lewis, Rhiannon Beckstead and Abby Tritzsky won both of their matches to finish second. The curlers had a great time and are preparing for the little rocks playdowns in Cornwall on March 2.
At the senior men’s Bernie Brunt Invitational Bonspiel last week met at the club, with teams from Winchester, R.C.M.P., Russell, City View, Cornwall, Rideau and Kingston in attendance, as well as two local teams.
The early draw was won by the Marseille foursome from Winchester. As the high-scoring team they got their name on the trophy. Raymond Benoit, Peter Zeran, Jack Barkley and Fred “Boomer” Langlotz played well, but did not figure in the prize money.
In the late draw, Andy Patenaude, Mahlon Locke, Neil Williams and Bob Youmelle also finished out of the money, losing to Henry’s Prescott team, who tied with City View to win the draw and prize money. As usual, the meal was excellent, the ice was great, and the day was a financial success. The hard work of the volunteers was much appreciated.
The final Parnell competition for the season was held on Friday, and while three of our senior men’s teams wanted to represent us, we were only allowed one entry.
Raymond Benoit, Peter Zeran, Karl Duncan and Earl Jeacle defeated Dave King, Al Harriman, Rick MacKenzie and Fred Langlotz on Thursday and won the right to go to Lancaster for the bonspiel.
They won their first match against Prescott in an extra end, and after lunch played a strong Cornwall team. Unfortunately, Cornwall won, and with the point total, our fellows placed second to Lancaster. Well done anyway, fellows!
Susan McIntosh, Kathy Norg, Joanne Baker and Claire Locke competed in a ladies’ invitational “favourite twosomes” three-day bonspiel in Cornwall. Susan’s team lost on Friday night to Cornwall and dropped a Saturday match to Lancaster, but defeated another Lancaster foursome in the afternoon, qualifying them for the “D” final. They lost that match on Sunday, but came home happy, having enjoyed the meals, the costumes and the live band.
Several of the ladies wore interesting outfits. One pair, for example, dressed as ketchup and mustard (favourite condiments being the twosome in that case). That must have been worth the price of admission. Maybe Susan brought home pictures.
On Saturday, the Merkley Bonspiel was on at Metcalfe. Morrisburg, Russell and Winchester each brought two teams to compete. Our champions, Robbie Stitt, Robert Houze, Rick MacKenzie and John Toonders lost their opening match to Metcalfe and defeated Russell after lunch. This qualified them for the “B” final. With Robbie having to leave early, Joe enjoyed the banquet and skipped the team against Giroud’s Russell foursome. Russell won the competition and will defend the trophy next year.
Joe McCooeye, Larry Cooper, Peter McCooeye and Wally Baker dropped their matches against Winchester and Russell. The “A” final was an all-Metcalfe affair, with the championship won by Bill Woods’ team. It was a great day for the men
Once again, the Seaway Spartans have reigned supreme on the volleyball courts, with both the senior and junior teams claiming the SD&G A school championships last week.
The Junior girls claimed their championship in Glengarry, on Tuesday by defeating L’Heritage, two out of three in the championship final.
The Junior Spartans had a good year, said coach Lilace McIntyre. After finishing in third place in the regular season, they demonstrated some great play at the final to earn the championship and the right to advance to EOSSA in Deep River (today, February 19).
McIntyre also credits the local Spikes volleyball program, run by Andy Lee and a team of volunteers, for helping to develop some strong players.
The Senior Spartans won their championship against the L’Heritage Dragons on their home court last Wednesday, February 12.
In finishing their regular season in first place, the Spartans toughest competition came from the Dragons. They lost only one set all season and that was to the Dragons.
Once again on Wednesday, the Dragons were up to the task. In fact, after Seaway won the first set, the Dragons turned it up a notch to win the next two and take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-three match.
Seaway scraped out a close 25-20 win in the fourth set to stay alive and then put it home with a 15-6 win in the final.
“They were strong today,” said Spartans coach Lindsay Waddell of L’Heritage after Wednesday’s close finish.
“These girls [the Spartans] have so much heart,” she said of the huge effort from the Spartans as they calmly worked their way back on Wednesday.
“They are very strong mentally, and they really worked hard all season. They really wanted this.”
The SD&G A school championship win qualifies the Spartans for EOSSA which will be hosted by Seaway, tomorrow, Thursday, February 20.
While many feet are making for some really great soccer, South Dundas Minor Soccer President, Phillip Blancher is looking for “many hands to make less work.”
According to Blancher, the South Dundas Minor Soccer Association, which has been providing soccer for hundreds of kids for the last 18 years, is in desperate need of new volunteers and board members.
Last year, the association provided soccer for 450 children who were taught the game by 80 coaches.
In the past couple of years, the association has seen a major changeover in the organizing committee.
“A lot of the long-time committee members had been there for 10 plus years, and after that long it kind of takes its toll,” says Blancher. “Their kids were no longer in the program, and they wanted to move on.”
“So over the last couple of years, the organizing committee was involved in a gradual transition, and last year we had a totally new group. It was a bit of a bumpy year for us, but we got through it.”
Heading into the 2014 soccer season, Blancher says the committee’s major concern is “trying to get people to commit to helping out. And because we can’t get help, the few who are helping are beginning to burn out.”
“We have a very good group of volunteer coaches, which is great. What we really need is two key people, one for field maintenance and the other to handle the canteen, in addition to volunteers who will help out with both.”
“We have a really great and very successful association, but it’s all the parts that make it work.”
Minor soccer currently has just four committee volunteers including Blancher, Stephanie Lough secretary/vice-president, Jennifer Byvelds treasurer/registrar and Cindy Peters who represents the separately run Seaway Kickers Soccer Association which offers competitive league play soccer.
Blancher explains that field maintenance involves mowing and lining the fields. The association owns a riding mower used to touch up mowing when needed as regular mowing is provided by the school board on the school fields and the municipality on the south fields.
The association mowing is on a ‘needed basis’ affected by the growing season and rainfall. “It takes about one half hour per field, and we have five fields. But we don’t always have to do all of the fields, and if we had enough adult volunteers, we could divide it up. Three pieces of equipment are available to line the fields, again opening up multi-person (adult or student) possibilities”
The canteen manager stocks the snack bar and schedules workers for the four hours it is open each Saturday morning during the season. This year the season kicks off on Saturday, May 24, and will wrap up with the World Cup tournament on the weekend of July 25-26.
“All of the money from the canteen goes back into the program, and it is important to players and parents to have it open,” says Blancher. “We do most of our buying locally as we make it a policy to support our local businesses as much as possible. Last year we split the canteen work into one hour shifts, but this was difficult especially during the tournament. We really could have used more people.”
“We have a good group of student volunteers, and it is great for them as they are able to get community hours. We would welcome anyone who would like to help us out this year and into the future. They can be grandparents, parents, students or a member of the South Dundas community simply interested in helping the program, perhaps a soccer fan.”
“If we don’t get someone to set up and run the canteen, then we fear it will be closed on Saturdays.”
The South Dundas Soccer Association offers soccer to children beginning at the Little Squirts U7 level (born 2008-09) and running up to Midget at U19.
The biggest numbers of children are in the two younger groups with 100 to 120 kids per group making up about eight full teams each.
Blancher says that if there is anyone who can find a few hours to help the organization, they can let organizers know at the upcoming registrations or by calling him at 613-543-2168 or Stephanie at 613-543-3006. The two positions (field maintenance and canteen are committee members).
Registrations for the 2014 South. Dundas soccer season are set for Saturday, March 1 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. and Friday, March 21st from 6-9 p.m. Both will be held at the Iroquois Civic Centre. The cost is $40 per child
With the four points series between the South Dundas Peewee C House Lions and Char-Lan tied at a win apiece, each of the two were looking to put it away in game three played in Morrisburg, last night, Tuesday, February 11. The game result was not available at press time.
The series got rolling in Morrisburg, on Saturday, with the Lions claiming a come-from-behind, 2-1 win.
Callum Robertson scored the lone Char-Lan goal midway into the second period, and the 1-0 Char-Lan lead held until early in the third.
Jacob Byvelds, with help from Kurtis Markell, scored the tying goal for the Lions, and then, with 4:57 left on the clock Owen Orendi, with help from Tyler DeDekker, counted the winner against Char-Lan goaltender Tristan Martin.
Michaela Mustard and Kelly Forrester shared the Lions goaltending duties.
Monday night, February 10, the Lions were on the road and lost game two, 4-2, which evened the series at two points apiece. Details of the game were not available at press time.
The South Dundas Peewee C Lions finished the regular season in third place with 23 points.
Alexandria in first with 43 and NGS in second with 34 received first-round playoff byes.
That left the third place Lions (21 points) to play sixth place Char-Lan (nine points) in one quarter-final series, while South Stormont (21 points) and South Grenville (13 points) are in the second series.
Led by a shut out performance from Braydon Lalonde-Thompson, the South Dundas Novice C1 Lions wrapped up their four point series against the North Dundas #1 Devils with a 5-0 win here, Sunday afternoon.
The four point series opened in Morrisburg, last Wednesday, February 5, when the Demons scored an upset 2-1 victory over the regular season first place Lions, and then continued in Chesterville on Thursday, February 6, with the Lions evening it at two points apiece with a 3-1 win.
That set the stage for Sunday’s game that saw the Lions take charge early with three first period goals.
James Martens led the Lions attack with three goals and one assist, and Devon Honders and Zack Scarbeau added singles. Jack Croteau and Honders picked up single assists.
The Lions now move onto their second playoff round, also a four point series. They will meet the South Dundas Novice C2 Lions in round two, but the game schedule was not available at press time.
Last Wednesday, February 5, the C1 Lions were surprised by the Demons who swept into town to claim a 2-1 upset victory.
After a scoreless first period, Paul Hyndman put the Demons up 1-0 late in the second period.
Then, early in the third period, Nole Thompson made it 2-0, with help from Chloe Sharpley.
That was it for the Demons, but that was all they needed.
Martens struck for the Lions lone goal late in the third period, too little too late.
The Demons again challenged in game two played in Chesterville on Thursday, February 6.
Although the Demons held the Lions to a 2-1 first period lead, a Martens goal in the second period put it out of reach.
Martens opened the Lions scoring with an unassisted goal nine minutes into the first period. Then at 12:46 of the frame, Devon Honders counted, from Emerson McMillan and Zack Scarbeau, for the 2-0 Lions advantage.
Nathan Thompson scored the lone Demons goals against Lions goaltender Braydon Lalonde-Thompson to close the gap to 2-1, but the Lions held on, and Martens second goal cemented their win.
Coming up this weekend, the Novice C1 Lions are in a tournament in Cardinal.
It is coming down to the wire for the Morrisburg Junior B Lions, and while the Lions fate has been sealed for quite some time, they have become an important factor for several of the teams in the St. Lawrence Division of the Eastern Ontario Jr. B hockey league.
This past week, the Lions were unable to inflict any damage to other division hopefuls as they fell to the Casselman Vikings in Casselman, 4-2, last Thursday, January 30, and to the Char-Lan Rebels, 8-3, at the Char-Lan Rec Centre, on Saturday, February 1.
The Lions hosted Gananoque last night (Tuesday, February 4) in a makeup game and this, their final weekend of play will feature a home and home series with the Akwesasne Wolves.
The Wolves can be expected to be out in full force as they are challenging the Alexandria Glens for that all important fourth place finish and the St. Lawrence Division’s final playoff spot.
The Wolves and the Glens head into this week’s play tied with 41 points, the Wolves holding a game in hand.
A big match is set for tonight (Wednesday, February 5), when the Wolves take their game to Alexandria.
After that the stats would suggest the Wolves might be in the driver’s seat, as they play the Lions twice in their last weekend of action, while the Glens will be meeting the first place Casselman Vikings twice.
Last Thursday night in Casselman, the Lions kept it even at 1-1 in the first period with Maxime Choquette counting against Lions goaltender Brandon Chilton on the Vikings power play.
Isaac Brownlee answered at 10:07 and that’s the way it stayed until Drew Veenstra gave the Lions the edge 1:30 into the second period.
Choquette counted his second goal at 15:49, and the 2-2 tie lasted until 13:41 of the third period when Taylor Widenmaier counted what would be the winner.
Choquette chalked up his third goal into the empty Lions net for the 4-2 Casselman victory.
The Vikings Gianmarco De Meis gave up the two goals on 19 Lions shots on net, while the Vikings collected their three goals in 37 shots on net.
Saturday night action featured a wide open first period with six goals scored, four by the Char-Lan Rebels.
Justin Rutley opened the Lions scoring with help from William White and Michael Paquette, and Liam Morrow produced the Lions second counter with Cole Blanchard and Isaac Brownlee assisting.
The Lions fell well behind in the second period with Char-Lan counting three in a row before Curtis Evans got them stopped with his goal at 17:56 assisted by Drew Veenstra and AJ Jarvis.
The Rebels counted their final goal, to make it 8-3, early in the third period.
John Gilmer was in net for the Lions, and Ryan Cooper saw action for the Rebels.
Coming up this weekend the Lions will travel to Akwesasne, Saturday night, February 8, for a 7 p.m. game.
They will play their final game of the 2013-14 season on home ice on Sunday, starting at 2:30 p.m.
A reminder that the Lions are inviting all minor hockey players out to their final home game. Those wearing their team jerseys will be admitted to the game at no charge and there will be some draws for prizes carried out.
The Lions are also asking their fans to bring along a food donation for the Morrisburg location of the Dundas County Food Bank.
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