Mixed results for locals at Ringette provincials

At the end of play for the local teams at the Ontario Ringette Provincial "A" championships, the CTS Canadian Career College/North Bay Paramedics Junior team has one win and one loss while the West Ferris Ringette Belle team is 2-0.

The Juniors started off poorly in their morning game, giving northern rival Valley East a 3-0 lead after only 5 minutes of play. Janelle Martin scored before the end of the first period but this still left the locals down by a score of 3-1. The second period saw both teams trade goals (Drew Elliott scoring for West Ferris), leaving the local Juniors at the wrong end of a 4-2 final.

In the afternoon, the Juniors again allowed their opponent, this time from Cambridge, to take the lead in the first period. Janelle Martin continued to hold a hot hand, scoring 2 goals for Ferris, who trailed 3-2 after one period. The second period was a real thriller, which saw the teams trade goals time and again. Each time Ferris scored to tie it, Cambridge scored again to take the lead. Finally, with 4:55 left to play, Martin scored her third goal of the game to give Ferris a one goal lead, which they carried to the final buzzer, winning by a score of 7-6. Other goal scorers were Sarah Trottier with a pair and singles going to Alex Parker and Courtney Whitwell.

The Belles were given an early scare by Pickering in their morning game. The first period ended with Ferris hanging onto a slim 1-0 lead on a goal by Tara Roy (her first of 2). However, once the Ferris offence got warmed up, it kicked into high gear, outscoring their opponent in the second period by a 7-2 margin for a final 8-2 victory. Other goal scorers were Sara Lutecki with a hat trick, while Mel Lauzon, Jana Burgess and Amy Cook added singles in the rout.

The second game for the Belles was against Nepean, who have alternated between being very tough and being very easy in tournament play against Ferris this year. This time, the tough Nepean team came to play. Ferris jumped into a 3-1 lead in the first period on goals by Leanne Lajoie (2) and Tara Roy. However, in the second period, they couldn't find a way to score. Nepean scored their second goal with 3:25 left on the clock to make it 3-2. Ferris hit penalty trouble in the dying seconds, giving Nepean a short 2-player advantage but they could not score, giving Ferris a 3-2 victory and a tie for top place at the end of the first day of play.

Round Robin play continues at various rinks Friday and Saturday. The top 3 teams after round robin play will advance, with the 1st place team getting a bye to the
finals.

Submitted to BayToday.ca