U11 B Girls win gold at Orangeville tournament

The St. Marys Landscaping U11 B Girls St. Marys Rock earned the top prize at the Sweetheart Tournament in Orangeville Jan. 23-25. Pictured in the front row, from left to right, are Harper Hillman, Adelyn Laidlaw, Addy Blake, Mya Grose, Jacklyn Kittmer, Ella Stacey and Addison Poetker. In the middle row, from left, are Monica Hinz, Scarlett Maddock, Jillian Davies, Sianna Sicilia and Kira Henderson. In the back row, from left, are coaches Mike Kittmer, Rob Davies, Gracie Hillman and Derek Laidlaw.

By St. Marys Independent Staff

The St. Marys Landscaping U11 B Girls St. Marys Rock captured the gold medal at the 46th annual Sweetheart Tournament in Orangeville Jan. 23-25.

Head coach Mike Kittmer praised the team’s work ethic throughout the tournament.

“The biggest thing this weekend was the girls’ compete level on every shift,” said Kittmer. “To start our year, we preached giving 110 per cent, and this weekend, no one took a shift off. The girls fed off one another all weekend as well. When they looked at their linemates and teammates and saw how hard they were pushing, it increased the expectations on themselves to push as well. I couldn’t be happier with the way the girls showed up, competed and pressured teams all weekend. They represented St. Marys extremely well, and I hope this gives them confidence heading into WOGHL (Western Ontario Girls Hockey League) Playoffs and Provincial Playdowns.”

Additionally, Kittmer said the Rock’s puck movement was something they worked on before the tournament, and the team executed incredibly well.

“On the Thursday practice before we hit the road to Orangeville, we worked on carrying the puck while keeping their speed, and on getting puck possession back off rebounds. Our speed and hunger to get the puck were big factors this weekend. In chatting with one of our opponents, he agreed with our aggression, saying that they were unable to move the puck like they did in the rest of the tournament, and attributed it to our hard work every shift.”

The Rock’s record of two wins and one loss in the three-game round-robin was good for second place in their pool. Following round-robin play, the tournament hosted a skills competition. Adalyn Blake went two-for-three in the breakaway challenge, while goaltender Mya Grose stopped two of three attempts, earning four points apiece for the team.

In the relay race, Addison Poetker gave the Rock an early lead before Sianna Sicilia, Jacklyn Kittmer and Jillian Davies finished strong to win their pool. This set up a head-to-head relay final against the Georgina Golden Hawks. After a dropped handoff by Georgina, the Rock seized the advantage and captured their division’s skills championship.

St. Marys then faced off against the Golden Hawks in a semi-final game with a berth in the championship contest on the line. Kira Henderson scored early in the first period, her third goal in four games, which held up as the eventual game-winner. Georgina mounted pressure in the third, but disciplined team defence and a key blocked shot by Davies kept play to the outside. Grose closed the door for her third straight shutout, sending the Rock to the gold-medal game.

The bench boss noted Henderson’s goal was an example of the teamwide effort turned in by his team throughout the tournament.

“They wanted a medal this weekend, so we are all pumped that medal was gold,” Mike Kittmer said. “We have relied a lot this year on the (Jacklyn) Kittmer-(Jillian) Davies-(Adelyn) Laidlaw line to drum off our offence, but the (Adalyn) Blake-(Scarlett) Maddock-(Kira) Henderson line got hot this weekend as well.  Ella (Stacey) is our little pinball, and she rolled through the lines all weekend and brought an added bit of energy to each shift. Her energy led to a lot of puck possession for our team this weekend.”

In the final, the Rock matched up against a strong Grand River Mustangs squad. St. Marys controlled much of the first period but was denied by the Mustangs’ goaltender. The second period was evenly played, with Grose making several timely saves. Stacey eventually broke through, picking up a loose puck in the St. Marys zone and converting on a breakaway with a five-hole goal.

That marker stood as the game-winner, with another blocked shot in the final minute by Davies. Adelyn Laidlaw was able to get the puck deep in the Mustangs’ zone to finish off the game, with Grose earning her fourth consecutive shutout.

Mike Kittmer explained how their improved starts to the games contributed to their success.

“This group of girls had struggled to come out in the first period and push the other team,” he said. “When we announce our starting lineups, we always remind the starters that they get the opportunity to set the game’s tone. The girls did just that this weekend and came out flying each game. While we credit Mya (Grose) with the shutouts, we also did not trail for a single minute after game one. The girls are much more confident and aggressive when we have the lead, but we also continued to push and not drop off our aggression, and made the other teams play to our pace instead of us playing to theirs.”

Mike Kittmer also credited the team’s defenders for making significant contributions throughout the tournament.

“Our defence core of (Sianna) Sicilia, (Monica) Hinz, (Addison) Poetker and (Harper) Hillman had their heads up this weekend,” he said. “They all made some great breakout passes and moved the puck up the boards as plays required and played some really strong defence.”

That strong defensive performance was emphasized as critical to the Rock going as far as they did.

“We are a low-scoring team, so the group has to defend well first and take advantage of the offensive chances we get from it. The coaching staff has reminded the girls that the best defence is putting a lot of pressure on their players, and eliminating the time and space to make a decision. While we have had glimpses of it this year, this weekend, they were always pushing hard on the opponent’s defence and got those turnovers we promised they would, and that led to offensive chances.

“On our defensive end, we have been working with the defence to push the approaching players to the outside, and keep the shots to the outside,” Mike Kittmer continued. “The girls kept the middle-ice shots to a minimum and helped make the net that much smaller so Mya (Grose) could step out and play her angles.”

During the banner ceremony, Grose was awarded the Monique Babineau Memorial Trophy, presented to a goaltender who demonstrates outstanding character on and off the ice. Grose received the majority of the tournament’s 96 nominations amongst the 27 teams.

While her on-ice performance was exceptional, Mike Kittmer emphasized Grose’s sportsmanship and kindness. Throughout the weekend, Grose formed friendships with opposing goalies, including a Georgina Golden Hawks netminder she went out of her way to comfort after a tough semi-final loss. Following Sunday’s final, Grose went out of her way to congratulate her new friend after learning the Golden Hawks had captured the bronze medal.

“Mya may be small in stature, but she has a huge heart and is a very big part of our team,” Mike Kittmer said. “From her acrobatic saves to her maturity and compassion, she’s a special player and an even better person.”