Two elite-level ringette teams that include players from Airdrie will see their 2021-22 seasons continue into April, thanks to some stellar performances at their recent provincial championships.
The Big Country Zone 2 AA Ringette Association, which includes players from Cochrane, Airdrie, Rocky View County, Strathmore and the surrounding areas, saw two teams bring home medals from provincials this winter. Their podium placements qualified the two teams for additional tournaments this spring to compete against some of the top teams from Canada.
The U16AA Zone 2 team won the U16AA provincial title in Sherwood Park on Feb. 27, defeating the Calgary Surge 5-2.
Head coach Wes Clark said the players were excited – and also relieved – to win the banner. The first-place finish qualified the Zone 2 team for the upcoming U16AA nationals, which will be held in Calgary from April 3 to 9.
“We were ranked number one going into the provincial tournament and had been ranked number one pretty much all year,” he said. “There was a lot of pressure – it’s sometimes not easy to win when you’re in that position.”
Despite their team-to-beat reputation coming into provincials, Zone 2 didn’t get off to the best of starts at the tournament. According to Clark, the team lost one of their round-robin fixtures, which meant they had to play a cross-over game against the Calgary Matrix for a berth in the gold-medal final.
Clark added there was a sense of Déjà vu among the group, as the Zone 2 team had lost to the Matrix in the cross-over game at provincials two years ago, which bumped the team down into the bronze-medal game.
This time, he said his players managed to put forward one a strong performances to secure the win, feeding the Matrix the red pill by beating the Calgarian team 6-2.
“They were super motivated in those two games. In the two most important games – the cross-over and the gold-medal match – we outscored our opponents 11-4,” he said.
The Zone 2 team’s strength as a team comes from the players’ dedication to both the sport of ringette and each other, according to Clark. He added the team’s roster includes players from Rockyford, Strathmore, Indus, Langdon, Chestermere, Cochrane, and Airdrie.
“They have an unbelievable work ethic and are a nice bunch of ladies to be around,” he said. “They are willing to learn and try new things all the time. They have a wealth of knowledge and that’s what makes them a strong team and a tough team to play against.”
Clark added the team’s defence is also a boon – the team only allowed one short-handed goal all weekend at provincials and didn’t allow a single goal when down two players.
“In fact, we actually scored a shorthanded goal, so the girls really step up defensively,” he said.
The Zone 2 team will continue to practise regularly and play exhibition games in the lead-up to nationals next month, according to Clark.
U14AA take silver
While Zone 2’s U16 team topped the podium this season, the U14AA Zone 2 team blazed their way to success against the odds at their own provincial tournament in Sherwood Park.
The U14AA Blaze finished their Alberta championship tournament with the silver-medal on Feb. 27, winning every game but the final.
Head coach Jody Nouwen credited the Zone 2 players’ self-belief and trust in each other throughout the tournament in helping secure a podium position.
“I think someone would say we were the underdogs going into this tournament,” she said. “We were [ranked] fifth out of nine in the province, so had a battle to get to the final. We actually went undefeated, so won all four of our [round-robin] games to earn a bye into the final, which guaranteed us a silver medal. We were hoping for gold.
Like most Zone 2 teams, the U14AA Blaze includes players from a wide geographical draw zone. Nouwen said this year’s roster features four players each from Strathmore, Chestermere, and Airdrie, and one each from Cochrane and Dewinton.
“I know it’s a large zone, but we typically have fewer players try out than a typical Calgary team would,” she said. “The fact Zone 2 does as well as it does with having less girls come to these AA tryouts is awesome.”
Nouwen said the Blaze are used to tough competition. During the regular season, Zone 2’s U14 team plays against teams a year or two older in Calgary’s U16A division, due to a lack of viable teams to play against in their own age group.
“Some of these girls are a lot bigger and stronger than our athletes, so it’s a challenge all the time to give them a really good game,” she said. “But we were able to do that all year. We were at about a 75 per cent win rate, which is pretty good when you’re playing a year or two up.
According to Nouwen, the silver-medal showing qualified the Blaze for the U14AA Western Canadian Ringette Championships, which will be held in Regina, Sask. from March 31 to April 3. The tourney will feature the top U14 ringette teams from Canada’s four westernmost provinces.
