Photo: PhysioWorks Muskoka Senior Sting, Back row from left: Coach Austin, Ainsley, Kerri, Chelsea, Lacey, Kristy, Sydney, Megan, Coach Dan. Middle row, from left: Tara M, Ayla, Abbey, Olivia. Front row left to right Chantal and Bailey. Missing teamates: Lauren, Brinn, Tara and Coach Rob. (Submitted).
The Huntsville Sting girl’s hockey teams were delighted to host their 44th Annual Girls Hockey Tournament last weekend at the Canada Summit Center after a two-year hiatus.
The tournament ran from Friday, January 13-15 with 66 girls’ teams traveling from all over Ontario. The teams registered consisted of more than 1000 players, 200 coaches, and over 2000 spectators. The tournament offed a place for female hockey players to gather for a weekend of fun, competition, and friendship.
It began early Friday morning with games taking place at the Summit Centre in Huntsville, the Burks Falls Arena and the Baysville Arena (Lake of Bays Community Center). All teams brought true hockey grit and entertainment to the ice as the spectators cheered and encouraged every team over the course of the weekend.
As the teams began to play against one another, some teams moved on and the competition became fierce. Huntsville Sting had four teams make it into the semi-finals which took place Saturday evening and Sunday morning. The teams were U11 Black, U11 Gold, U13, and the Senior Team (named: “Physio Works Muskoka Huntsville Senior Sting Team”).
All teams were pumped with their family and fans cheering in the stands. The games were tight but only U11 Gold, U13, and the Senior Huntsville Sting teams moved into the finals after defeating their opponents.
The final for U11 Gold saw all players play hard but in the end, they were beaten by Ancaster Avalanche in their final game. The fans still congratulated the team for coming in second overall. The Sting U13 team played against Kitchener and went neck-to-neck through all three periods. With great goalie action and defense, the scoreboard read 0-0 after the game leading the team to overtime. Within the first part of the 5-minute OT, Huntsville scored to take the win for the Gold 1-0! Steve Mann, Head Coach of the U13 Sting Team, said, “Our team faced significant adversity in making the finals with very stiff competition in our division. Throughout the weekend our players supported/encouraged each other and were respectful to the other teams as well as the officials in their battles. They even managed to have a lot of fun bonding with their teammates between games, dance parties in the dressing room, & celebrating their successes. The championship win was their toughest game of the tournament with the only goal scored halfway into sudden-death overtime. The on-ice celebration was epic, fueled by the families in the crowd cheering. I feel privileged to have seen this same positivity occur over the entire weekend, in several arenas, and across many ice surfaces. It is such a great thing for us to host this tournament with teams coming from across the province celebrating all that is awesome about Girls’ Hockey. Can’t wait to do it again next season!”
In the afternoon, not long after the semifinal game win, the Huntsville Sting Senior team took to the ice to face off against Colborne Firehawks. Both teams played with skill and heart. In the end, the Huntsville Senior team took the win beating Colborne 2-0 for the Gold!
Over the years, the Sting tournament has brought families (including coaches and players) from across the province to Muskoka to enjoy the community, which has brought fun competition as well as benefits to the economy by increasing business at hotels, stores, restaurants, and other establishments.
The Huntsville Sting would like to give a huge thank you to Kerri Vallentin for her many years of service since 2011, on the Executive, and for being an active Sting hockey player. Vallentin’s husband Ryan has also helped her with the Sting league since 2014. The tournament would not run smoothly if it wasn’t for them organizing and running all that is required to make the tournament happen.
The Huntsville Sting highlighted and thanked all of their sponsors, volunteers, and teams after every game. Sponsors help to subsidize the not-for-profit girls’ hockey program. The money received from community partners is absolutely critical in continuing the development of female hockey players.
Sponsorship will assist with helping the teams pay for team expenses such as:
•The Annual Tournament
•Practice ice time
• Game ice time and referees
• Pucks
• Equipment for teams
If you are interested in joining the Huntsville Sting, check out their website at https://www.huntsvillegha.ca/
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