Jan 27, 2026 | Britt Pilon | 62 views
OWHA U9C takes GOLD at Orangeville Sweetheart Tournament
The Saugeen Shores U9C girls hockey team showed grit, determination and heart as they started the second half of their season with a bang, bringing home the gold medal at the 46th annual Orangeville Sweetheart Tournament.On Friday the girls started strong with a 4-4 tie against the Lucan Irish and a decisive win against the Upper Maitland Mustangs where Kylie earned her first shut out of the tournament. Goals were scored by Della, Bree, Adelyn, Adyson, Rose, Ennah, and Avery, with assists by Brooklyn, Reese and Livie.
The Storm woke up early Friday morning and took the ice in an arena that was only slightly warmer than the -26 temperatures outside. They finished out the round robin by holding the Woodstock Wildcats to a 2-2 tie, with goals from Della and a defensive wall made up of Reese, Emery, Halle, Ennah and Vivien that advanced the team to play the top seeded team of the other U9C pool in the Semi Final.
Saturday night saw the Storm going toe to toe against the Sarnia Sting, coming from behind to catch up to a 2 goal lead. This triggered a 5 minute overtime with no goals scored and a very tense shoot out to determine who would move on to the finals. Between the game and the shoot out, Della and Bree earned the first three goals against the Sarnia goalie of the entire tournament, and a final shot through the five hole by Adelyn finished the game. Meanwhile, Kylie made an incredible shoot out debut stopping two out of three goals and ensuring the girls would need to be up and ready for a 7am puck drop Sunday to battle for the gold.
The championship game was an intense match up against the South Huron Sabres. With an impenetrable defensive line, relentless backchecking by the forwards and a second tournament shutout from Kylie, the Sabres weren’t able to add anything to their accumulated 32 tournament goals. Della kept her streak going, with an early snipe in the first period that added momentum to the team and a second insurance goal with 28 seconds left while the team faced off against6 skaters after the Sabres pulled their goalie.
Coach Dave, Coach Jeff, Coach Brett, Coach Joe and Trainer Michelle, as well as the families were amazed by the dedication and strength the girls showed both on and off the ice as they battled their way to earn their first Championship of the season. They look forward to taking Neola off IR and doing it all again in February in Oshawa.