Apr 15, 2025 | Amy Doherty | 168 views
Saugeen Shores OWHA U11C are the 2025 OWHA Provincial Champions!
It was a GOLDEN weekend for the OWHA U11C Saugeen Shores Storm, sponsored by Global Pet Foods, as they captured the U11C title at the OWHA Provincial Championships.
The provincial finals were held from Friday, April 11-Sunday, April 13 in the GTA, with this being the 50th anniversary of the OWHA and the OWHA Championships.
The U11C Storm went undefeated in 5 games, winning crucial games against two separate opponents whom they had yet to beat in tournament play during their regular season.
Our Storm girls started pool play Friday afternoon with a huge 3-2 win against Twin Centre, a familiar foe whom we had not been able to beat in past tournament play. Despite Twin Centre scoring the first goal of the game in the first period, the Storm came out strong in the second, with Sutton scoring the Storm’s first goal of the tournament in the second period, with Bria setting up the play. Eva, with support from Ruby, scored twice in the third. Twin Centre fought back, scoring with 9 minutes remaining in the game. Our U11s buckled down and fought to keep the lead, with keeper Teagan making key saves when needed. Alex and Sloane continued to dig in the corners and using their bodies to shut down scoring chances, Andi and Stella used their size and strength to move the puck out of our defensive end, while Chloe, Verity, Jacqueline and Kyrie continued to press the offensive attack to secure the win.
Game two saw the U11C Storm up early on Saturday morning, facing off against one of two Woodstock teams that were entered in U11C division (Woodstock Wildcats #6863). Our girls came out strong, with Eva, Sutton and Jacqueline scoring 4 goals, assisted by Kyrie and Chloe, before Woodstock was able to respond with two goals in the second. Bria potted a goal in the dying seconds of the second period, to bring the score to 5-2 for the Storm, heading into the third. Woodstock started the period strong, with a quick goal. However, our U11s did not let up. Eva scored twice more, with assists from Ruby and Sloane. In the net, Teagan shut down all remaining scoring attempts, and our defensive team of Andi, Sloane, Alex and Stella made sure that the Wildcats were unable to set up an offensive attack. The final score went in favour of the Storm, 7-3.
The last game in pool play had Saugeen matched up against the East Ottawa Stars on Saturday afternoon. Our U11s came out hot in the first period, with Bria, Chloe, and Eva scoring goals in the first period and Ruby, Sutton, and Ruby receiving assists. Heads-up defensive play by Alex and rushing attempts by Kyrie, Jacqueline, and Verity had the Stars under consistent pressure throughout the game. With the support of Saugeen Shores U18Bs in the crowd, the U11s never let up throughout the game. Chloe and Eva added three more goals to the Storm tally. Despite one last scoring rush by the Stars in the lastminute of the game, our Storm girls finished out pool play with a 6-1 win, securing themselves a spot in the semi-finals on Sunday morning.
Semi-final action had the U11C Storm competing against their regular season rival, the Wingham 86ers. From the first face off, our Storm girls did not stop skating, shooting, and pressuring their opponent. Kyrie, Eva and Verity each scored in the first, with assists from Bria and Alex. After a well-timed time-out, Wingham was able to score. Eva added an additional goal at the end of the first, with support from Ruby and Alex. Although there was no scoring in the second, the period was packed with action, including amazing back-checking from Jacqueline, Sutton and Verity, and stand-up defense by Andi and Stella. The third period was a nailbiter, with Wingham narrowing the score to 4-2 with 6 minutes left in the game. Between the pipes, Teagan continued to shut down chance after chance, ensuring our U11s stayed ahead. With a 4-2 win, the U11C Storm were heading to the Provincial Finals at 12:30pm.
Moving to the big ice surface and to a 12-12-15 minute format, including flood, for the Championship Game might have been overwhelming for another team. But our Strom girls were more than prepared for the additional challenge and pressure; months of practice had our girls well-conditioned to keep their energy-levels high while maintaining the mental grit that was needed to action the coaches’ game-winning strategy.
The gold medal match saw Saugeen Shores U11C facing off against the other U11C team from Woodstock. This highly ranked Wildcats (#6862) team was a rival that our U11s had yet to beat in past tournaments. Saugeen started the first period hot, with an unassisted goal by Bria. Saugeen continued to put the pressure on the Wildcats, with Bria setting up Eva to score the Storm’s second goal at the start of the second period. Kyrie, Verity, Ruby, Jacqueline, Chloe and Eva continued to fervently forecheck, while Stella, Alex, Andi and Sloane supported their goalie in front of their net. Saugeen made it to the end of the second period with a 2-0 lead heading into the flood, with Teagan looking confident as ever in net. Woodstock entered the third period with determination, and with a few power-play opportunities, they were able to score once, making it a one-goal game. As the final minutes wore down, Sloane, Jacqueline and Kyrie each made crucial shot-blocking plays. Andi and Stella confidently cleared the puck from their zone, while net-minder Teagan was locked in, keeping her team in front by making multiple clutch saves. Every Storm player gave all that they had in the dying minutes of the period and, even with Woodstock’s goalie pulled and an additional skater on the ice, the Wildcats could not stop the Storm in their pursuit for gold. The final score of the OWHA provincial Championship for U11C was 2-1 for Saugeen Shores.This team’s success was built through a coaching model that supported the development of all players through a team-based approach. Thank you to the coaches, bench staff, trainers and managers for their on-going dedication: Craig Johnston, Ben Wall, Darrin Gavey, Eric Fernandes, Bre Moss, Brittney Kealey, Dylan Wake, Barry Moss, Jess Pepin and Lori MacIntosh.It’s said that lightning does not strike twice. However, during the 2025 OWHA Championship Weekend, a STORM raged for 5 straight games that would not be stopped.Congratulations to Alex Pepin, Andi Fernandes, Bria Wall, Chloe Kealey, Estelle Stone, Eva McDonald, Jacqueline Seaman, Kyrie Gavey, Ruby Moss, Sloane Doherty, Sutton Johnston, Teagan Hennessy and Verity Wake, the 2025 OWHA U11C Provincial Champions!