Stars Continue To Shine On Day Two Of U-18 Canadian National Championships
Day two of the U-18 Canadian national championships are in the books. Ontario Red stayed undefeated looking for back-to-back national titles. Here's a look at all of the highlights from New Brunswick.
Ontario Red Stays Undefeated Eyeing Repeat
“The focus today was to start on time," said Ontario Red forward Riley Sorokan following her team's 5-2 win over Saskatchewan. "We came out flat yesterday and we needed to be better. We have such a trust in each other, and we know that no matter who is out on the ice, we can get the job done. In these tournaments, you have to take it one day at a time, and we’re onto the next one.”
Ontario Red lived up to their goal of a strong start with Rachel Piggot and Sofia Ismael scoring first period goals. Only 42 seconds into the second period, Kate Viel made it 3-0 for Ontario Red. After Halle Duchene got Saskatchewan on the board, Sorokan scored to send Ontario Red to the third with a 4-1 lead. In the final frame, Saskatchewan turns the tides outshooting Ontario Red, and it looked like they might mount a comeback when Addison Greve scored, but Ontario Red was able to hold off. With Saskatchewan's net empty, Maxine Cimeroni put the game on ice scoring Ontario Red's final goal in the 5-2 decision.
Grenier Shuts The Door For Quebec
Marilou Grenier made 28 saves for Quebec in a 3-0 shutout over Manitoba for their first win of the tournament. Madison Lévesque, Pénélope Lavoie, and Rosalie Tremblay all scored for Quebec. On an odd player rush in the first, Lévesque took the middle of the driving to the net where she tapped home a pass from Anaïs Leprohon to score what would hold on as the game winner.
It was Grenier however, who was the star of the game.
“We took advantages of our opportunities today," said Grenier. "At times, I thought I was pretty messy, but I am so grateful for my teammates as they laid out, did everything in front of me to make sure I saw the puck and it was cleared out of danger all game long.”
Sisson's Overtime Winner Lifts British Columbia
Only 34 seconds into overtime, Kennedy Sisson completed British Columbia's comeback scoring the 4-3 winner over Ontario Blue. After a deceptive entry by Callie Rice who found Sisson to the left of the net, Sisson walked to the net sliding a backhand that beat Ontario Blue's Avah Sedore five hole.
“This game had some ups and downs, but we pushed through it and took advantage of the chances we had. In overtime, we knew possession would be important. We used our speed, took the puck to the net and it went in," said Callie Rice.
Reese Reid, Sophie Harold, and Callie McLean had Ontario Blue's goals, while London McDavid scored, and Kaitlyn Mallette added a pair for British Columbia.
Alberta Fights To Comeback Win
After Karelle Daigle and Kendall Doiron scored first period goals for Team Atlantic, Alberta fought back to earn a 4-3 win.
After falling behind 2-0 in the first, the second period was a completely different story for Alberta. Emelia McDermid, Tayla Lamabe, and Ella Llyod each scored second period markers to put Alberta and the lead.
“Our coaches were great after the first period […] telling us we weren’t playing bad, but we just needed to bare down and start doing the little things right. It was important to not let the score affect us and keep pushing,” said McDermid.
Jordan Blouin added to Alberta's lead, which was cut to one by Hilary Wilkin, but it wasn't enough for Atlantic as Alberta hung on to win.
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