GOALTENDERS FERGUSON/SULLIVAN
LEAD LADY STING TO GOLD
submitted photo
Front row l-r Kim McPhail Manager, Karley Ferguson,
Erica Sullivan, Jennifer Zavitz, Kendra Marotta,
Shauna McPhail, 2nd row- Sidney Weiss,
Allison Lawrence, Jenna Rops, Nicki Parkes, Sydney
Smith, Emily Williams, Chantal Caraher, 3rd
row-Trainer Sandy Ferguson, Alice Huber, Riley
Wilhelm, Kassie Roache, Darian Adams, Back row –
Paul Caraher, Vicky Marotta, Eric Smith, Kerry Adams
(Absent – Krystal Adair)
The Sarnia Lady Junior
Sting Bantam A team competed in the Ontario Women’s
Hockey League Provincial Championships this weekend
and came home with a prestigious Gold Medal.
The girls opened with a
round robin matchup with Niagara Falls. It was a
close affair with Sarnia coming out on top 2-1.
Goals were scored by Darian Adams and then Kassie
Roache with the winner on a pass off the sideboards
from Sidney Weiss. Karley Ferguson was in net for
the victory with some exceptional saves in the dying
seconds as Sarnia was outmanned 6-3 because of two
late penalties, one of which led to a two game
suspension to team captain Sydney Smith.
Game two showed the
depth of the team’s defence as Riley Wilhelm, Jenna
Rops, Shauna McPhail, and Alice Huber had to play
without their leader Smith and also Krystal Adair
who was at the National Wrestling Championships in
Vancouver. They had an exceptional game holding the
opposition to no goals with numerous blocked shots
and a 1-0 win: Shutout to Erica Sullivan - Loss to
host Mississauga.
Game three saw Sarnia
meet up with Stratford for the 12th time
this season and our first loss of the tournament.
However the previous two wins assured a spot in the
Elite Eight. Next up – Ottawa Ice – a new foe.
With a trip to the Final
Four on the line, Sarnia played a spirited affair
and opened with a goal from Weiss with a shot to the
top right corner after a great head-man pass from
Smith. Chantal Caraher opened her scoring for the
tournament after a feed from Adams and Weiss. Emily
Williams clinched the victory with an empty-netter
and the 3-0 final score. Sullivan got her second
shutout.
Next up was Sudbury. The
ice was slowly deteriorating making play near
impossible. Sting forwards forechecked the Wolves
relentlessly led by Allison Lawrence, Jen Zavitz and
Kendra Marotta. As the game wore on all players were
showing fatigue. Skating to the faceoff circle was
now a chore. Ferguson stood on her head in this one
and went the distance – six periods! With 6:47 left
in the third overtime, Rops fired one into the
corner where Caraher scored after blocking an
attempted Sudbury clearing pass and threw it between
the wickets for a thrilling win. After the ensuing
melee the team headed back as the Championship game
was mere hours away.
The final hurdle for
Gold was the Sault Ste. Marie Wildcats. Before the
game the captain of Stratford came by the girls in
warm-up wishing them good luck in the game.
The ice was almost
unplayable by this point, disappointing the team and
the OWHA executive in attendance. However ‘both
teams had to play on it’. After listening to an
opening salvo of “Hockey Night in Canada” on the sax
at rinkside, the girls were pumped to go on.
The game was a rough
affair with penalties being exchanged on a regular
basis. The game featured some more spectacular
goaltending from both teams and more intense
forechecking from Sarnia this time from Nikki Parkes
in particular. It was a 0-0 draw at the end of
regulation. The 10th period of the day
would be the last for the Lady Sting. After Caraher
gets hauled down on a breakaway, she was awarded the
greatest scoring opportunity in the form of a
penalty shot in overtime. She was thwarted on the
effort but would not be denied as minutes later, on
a 5-on-3 powerplay she tipped in a shot from the
point from McPhail on a pass from Smith. Erica
Sullivan got her third shutout of the weekend
allowing no goals and with her partner Ferguson
posted 4 shutouts!
The girls had a
gutsy effort and all of Sarnia should be proud of
them in their Golden Effort!! |