Ontario scored 29 seconds into the game and routed Manitoba in the first half 5-0 before eventually winning the Alberta Cup 6-4.

"Manitoba will not give up. You can tell they have been National Champions - they never let up." says assistant coach; Manager Sharolyn Wouters. "When Nichole Heckle is back in their lineup they will be even tougher". Trainer and substitute coach Vanessa Cowlen added "Our defensive play and goaltending got us to the championship game and our relentless forechecking won the final for us".

Stacey Cunningham gave Ontario a 2-0 lead scoring at 29 seconds and at 3:41 of the first period. Jessica Boersma and Laura Williams set up the first goal while Josee Surprenant and Genevieve Rancourt set up the second. Karen McWilliams made it 3-0 at 7:33 when Dana Haley and Christina Mischerin set her up on the left post. The game leveled for the next six minutes before Laura Williams scored on a Jessica Boersma rebound. Courtney Howell also assisted on the goal. One minute later McWilliams stole the ring from a Manitoba defender and buried a backhand in the top corner.

In the second half Manitoba got on the scoresheet at 2:44 when the tournaments leading scorer Angela Simpson beat Julie Ann Rheume. Josee Surprenant made it 6-1 at 3:22. "We really stopped skating after Josee's goal" commented Head Coach Glen Gaudet. "Manitoba have a lot of fire power and if you do not continue to skate and check they will come after us. There is no quit in Manitoba". Manitoba scored 3 consecutive goals to bring the score to 6-4 with 6 minutes to go. The last 6 minutes Ontario hung on to preserve the win.

September 21, 2002 - 12:00 PM

Ontario Advances to Alberta Cup Final

Ontario defeated Manitoba 7-5 in the final round robin game. The win moved Ontario into first place in the Round Robin portion and will meet Manitoba in the final at 5:00 PM EST tonight. Manitoba finished second with a 4-1 Record. Alberta finished third after defeating Nova Scotia 8-1 while Saskatchewan defeated British Columbia 4-3. Saskatchewan finished 4th and BC finished 5th.

Ontario dominated the first half and led 3-1 at the end of 20 minutes. Christina Mascherin opened on a bullet shot at 3:43 to Give Ontario a 1-0 lead. At 11:35 Karen McWilliams completed a 3 way passing play from Mascherin and Dana Haley to improve the lead. Four minutes later Katie Lugg made it 3-0 after being set up by Josee Surprenant. At 17:33 Chelsea Hanson put Manitoba on the scoresheet. The second period saw the teams exchange goals at 1:23 and 1:59. Lugg from Surprenant gave Ontario a 4-1 lead but Manitoba responded immediately with a goal by M. Madziak. At the 5 minute mark Marlene Crewdson scored unassisted to give Ontario their 3 goal advantage.

Manitoba would not quit scoring sinking 2 consecutive goals to close the gap to 5-4. Karen McWilliams stole the ring off a Manitoba defender and scored her second goal of the game at 12:17 and Jessica Boersma restored the 3 goal margin at 13:10. Assisting on the goal were Jernna McBride and Stacey Cunningham. Ontario outshot Manitoba 19-15. Steph Sonier earned the win for Ontario.

September 21, 2002 - 9:30 PM

Alberta Battles Back for A Tie

Alberta scored 3 late goals to tie Ontario 4-4 in Alberta Cup action. The tie leaves both teams in the hunt for a spot in the final against Manitoba. Manitoba remains undefeated at 4-0 after beating Saskatchewan 8-4. British Columbia defeated Nova Scotia 2-1 in the other Round 4 game.

Ontario scored the only first period goal at the 1:15 mark when Josee Surprenant converted a 3 way passing play from Allison Shoobert and Katie Lugg. Julie Anne Rheume stopped 21 shots in the first period and ended the game with 40 saves.

Alberta tied the game during a 2 man advantage at 1:07 of the second period on a goal by Jill Lange, Ontario responded with 3 straight goals, Jessica Boersma gave Ontario a 2-1 lead at 3:40 with assists from Sarah Fabbro and Courtney Howell. Katie Lugg from Shoobert and Surprenant made it 3-1 at 7:23 and Dana Haley scored from Karen McWilliams and Jenna McBride 30 seconds later. Ontario's bubble burst when Alberta scored 3 times in 1 minute and 19 seconds to tie.

Ontario meets Manitoba at 11:00 AM Sunday.

September 21, 2002 - 12:30 PM

Alberta Cup Report after Round 3

Manitoba and Ontario remain undefeated shutting out their opponents. 9-0 Manitoba over Nova Scotia and 6-0 Ontario over Saskatchewan. Albert stayed alive for a spot in the final with a 5-3 victory over British Columbia.

Julie Ann Rheume continued the run of outstanding goaltending for Ontario. Earning her shut out with spectacular saves, Julie Ann back boned Ontario's third straight win. Katie Lugg was reunited with her Ottawa teammate Allison Shoobert and the duo along with Josee Surprenant combined for 4 goals. Opening the scoring at 1:37 of the first period on a pass from Shoobert was Jenna McBride. Courtney Howell gave Ontario a 2-0 lead at 5:05 converting a pass from Lugg and McBride. At 7:16 Lugg made the score 3-0 to end the 1st period scoring. Shoobert from Lugg and Surprenant at 3:33 of the second period pushed Ontario's lead to 4. 13 seconds later Jessica Boersma scored from Howell and Jenna Clements. Lugg completed the scoring at 11:27 pouncing on a Surprenant rebound. Elysia Muise also collected an assist.

Ontario's next game is tonight against Alberta.

September 20, 2002 - 8:30 PM

Ontario and Manitoba remain undefeated after Round 2

Ontario and Manitoba remain undefeated after round 2 action of the Alberta Cup. Manitoba came from behind to defeat Alberta 7 - 6 While Ontario handed British Columbia their second defeat 6 - 1. Saskatchewan upped its record to 1-1 tied for third with Alberta by trouncing winless Nova Scotia 9 - 0.

Brilliant goaltending continued for Ontario as Stephanie Sonier thwarted the attack of BC. Stopping 31 shots Stephanie lost her shutout with just over 8 minutes remaining in the game. The first 10 minutes of the game went end to end with great chances and saves at both ends of the ice. With 9:41 remaining Courtney Howell picked the short sided corner just off the post to give Ontario the lead. Sarah Fabbro had intercepted a pass in the neutral zone and passed to Laura Williams who fed Howell. Howell fed Jessica Boersma at 8:19 and Jess snapped a wrist shot into the top corner. At 5:49 Howell scored again with a bullet from the slot during a 2 man advantage. Williams and Boersma assisted. Katie Lugg made it 4 - 0 on another wrist shot from 15 feet out. Josee Surprenant and Stacey Cunningham drew assists. Laura Williams ended the first period scoring a breakaway goal with 52 seconds remaining. Boersma set Williams free when she stripped the BC defender of the ring in the neutral zone.

The second period was one of solid defensive play. Cunningham made it 6-0 when she backhanded a Surprenant rebound past the goalie with 15:28 remaining.

"This was our best game to date our commitment to our end of the rink was very good. Along with a relentless fore check this is the formula for success. Tomorrow will be tougher as everyone in now in do or die situations" said head coach Glen Gaudet.

September 20, 2002 - 1:30 PM

McGill Backstops Ontario Win

Lindsay McGill stopped 22 of 23 shots she faced as Ontario defeated Nova Scotia 6 - 1 to Open The Alberta AAA Tournament

Allison Shoobert opened the scoring at 2:32 of the first period. After receiving a pass from Marleen Crewdson. Shoobert deked the Nova Scotia defense and released a quick wrist shot, which beat the Nova Scotia Goalie. Fifty-nine seconds later Stacey Cunningham found Josee Surprenant behind the Nova Scotia defense and Josee made no mistake making it 2 - 0. The next 15 minutes saw end to end action with both goaltenders making save after save. With just over a minute remaining Cunningham scored short handed on a 30 foot wrist shot. Dana Hasley assisted on the goal.

The second period started with Genevieve Rancourt completing a 3 way passing play to score Ontario's 2nd short handed goal. After passing to her defensive partner Jenna McBride who fed Surprenant in the attacking zone, Genevieve received the return pass, which she buried in the short side of the Nova Scotia net.

Lindsay lost her shutout when Katherine Markusson scored from the edge of the crease with 8 minutes remaining in the game. Ontario answered 30 seconds later when Courtney Howell converted a Jessica Boersma free pass. Katie Lugg rounded out the scoring by converting a Surprenant pass with 5 minutes remaining. Ontario received 5 penalties while Nova Scotia received 6.

In other first round action Alberta defeated Saskatchewan 11 - 1 while Manitoba defeated British Columbia 5 - 2.

September 18, 2002 Ontario heads West to check out the competition;

Doug Freeman added " Based on Nationals, you would have to give the nod to either Manitoba or Alberta as the favoured teams since they met in the Belle final last year and these teams are mostly Belle aged players. But I like our chances. We have a good blend of speed and power up front. I love our defense and our goalies all have character."

Head coach Glen Gaudet was asked his thoughts and he said he would comment after the tournament is over. "We're just getting used to each other and we want to accomplish a lot. Our first two weekends together have been excellent. Red is a good colour to bet on"

Alberta and Ontario were tied 7-7 at the end of regulation time and after a scoreless overtime period went to a 5 player shootout to determine the winner of the Saskatchewan 18 and under AAA Ringette tournament. Ontario had finished first over all with a 4 win 1 tie record in the round robin portion of the tournament. Alberta also had 4 wins but had lost one game to Ontario 6-5. In the final, Alberta jumped into an early 2-0 lead but by half time Ontario had reduced the lead to 3-2. Alberta out shot Ontario in the first half with Stephanie Sonier making 17 saves compared to Alberta's 11. At the half Julie Ann Rheaume replaced Sonier. 10 seconds into the second half Stacey Cunningham from (Genevieve Rancourt tied the game at 3. However, Alberta rebounded back with three consecutive goals in a three and a half minute span which gave them a 6-3 lead with 16 minutes remaining. Ontario scrapped back with two goals of their own and with ten minutes remaining in regulation time had the score to 6-5. Jill Lang with her 3rd goal of the game gave Alberta a two goal cushion with 8:05 remaining. Rheaume closed the door on Alberta at that time and Christina Mascherin sent the game into overtime with goals with 5:19 and 2:28 remaining. Ontario narrowly missed winning the game in regulation time when Jessica Boersma was robbed by the Alberta goalie with 14 seconds remaining. On the ensuing rush, Rheaume was injured when an Alberta player collided with her trying to score. Shots at the end of regulation time were 35-33 for Alberta. The stage had been set for the overtime. Sonier returned to the net for the overtime with Rheaume on the bench having her knee checked. Both teams exchanged 3 shots over the 5 minutes and the game remained 7-7. The Shoot out began Ontario went first and Josee Surprenant with a deke to her right and a terrific backhand gave Ontario a 1-0 lead. Alberta sent Jill Lang who went to her left and shot to the top right corner and it was 1-1 Katie Lugg repeated Jill's move and Ontario had a 2-1 lead. Alberta followed with a deke to the right and the score was 2-2 The next two players from both teams were stopped and now each team had one shot left. Ontario sent Jessica Boersma, two nifty moves and Jess's shot found the back of the net. Ontario had a 3-2 lead. Alberta sent their captain, who went left and went for the top corner, but Stephanie Sonier made the blocker save and Ontario was the tournament champion. "It was a great weekend for our team here in Regina" commented Doug Freeman " We were able to hold a lead and we were able to come from behind" Sharolyn Wouters added, " All of the provinces are competitive. The quality of play is outstanding. One bad play and you get scored on. It is amazing Ringette. " Jodi Jensen who has just joined the Ontario bench staff this past month was happy with her new troop. " We are improving in our end of the ice. This is a very skilled group and they are paying attention to detail" ""We accomplished a lot this weekend " added Glen Gaudet. "We learned how good Ringette is in Western Canada and how much more work we have to do. We had great stretches of Ringette, but we were not at the top of our game for 40 minutes every game. It is fun whether you win sloppy or win convincingly. I think we played very well under pressure this weekend. I also saw more penalty shots this weekend then I have in 5 years." 11/12/2003 FINAL RELEASE ONTARIO WINS SHOOT OUT Game Visitor Score Home Score Date    Time Venue B01  Ontario 4  Saskatchewan 1 November 8    08:00 Communiplex B04  Alberta 5  Ontario 6 November 8    14:00 Communiplex B08  British Columbia 2  Ontario 2 November 9    09:20 Communiplex B10  Quebec 1  Ontario 8 November 9    14:00 Communiplex B13  Ontario 5  Manitoba 4 November 10    08:00 Communiplex B17  Alberta 7  Ontario 8 November 10    14:00 Communiplex   11/08/2003 Ontario remains undefeated beating Alberta 6-5. Ontario won a seesaw battle with Alberta at Emerald City Saskatchewan. Jill Lange put Alberta ahead at 2:04 of the first half. Stacey Cunningham sent a slider at the Alberta net at 3:56 to tie. Katie Lugg had created the scoring chance with a great check at the Alberta blue line. 45 seconds later Karen McWilliams was awarded a penalty shot after being hauled down on a breakaway. On a nifty deke and backhand Karen blared her shot in the top right corner. At the 5:07 mark Ashley Peters tied the game for Alberta and at the 8:04 mark Kailyn Barrie gave Alberta the lead. Katie Lugg was set up by Josee Suprenant at 17:09 to tie the game. Steph Sonier made 14 saves in the first half. Ontario controlled the second half out shooting Alberta 21-18 and took the lead at the 8:10 mark when Jenna McBride finished off a 4-way passing play from Rancourt to McBride to Howell to Boersma and back to Jenna before she picked the corner from just off the post. Alberta tied the score 4-4 at 10:34 when Tarin Scobie found the back of the net. Right off the ensuing free pass Jessica Boersma walked through the Alberta triangle to put Ontario ahead for good. McBride and Rancourt drew assists. Ontario went ahead 6-4 when Alberta defenceman under pressure from Lugg and Suprenant gave the ring to Cunningham in the high slot. Stacey made no mistake with 14:09. With 4 minutes to go Alberta made the score 6-5 when Barrie scored her second goal of the game. Ontario plays British Columbia at 9:20am Saturday morning. Ontario dominates first period, holds on for 4-1 win. Out shooting Saskatchewan 28-8 in the first half Ontario built a 4-0 lead. Katie Lugg opened the scoring at 3:28. Stacey Cunningham picked up an assist. Courtney Howell made it 2-0 scoring while Saskatchewan was 2 players short. Marleen Crewdson assisted. At 10:23 Christina Mascherin (from Dana Haley and Josee Suprenant) made it 3-0. 1 minute and 30 seconds later Suprenant from Lugg made it 4-0. In the second half Saskatchewan evened up the play testing Julie Anne Rheaume with 18 shots out shooting Ontario 18-15. Julie Anne lost her shut out with 4 minutes remaining when Knoll scored from Beattie and Hingten.     10/22/2003 Kingston Ringette showcase Team Ontario Team Ontario practiced at the centre 70 arena in Kingston in front of a large crowd of "Ringette people" After practicing for 45 minutes, the team played an intersquad game with the red team defeating the white team 7-2. Many of the spectators commented on the speed and skill of the team, but what was heard mostly was the enthusiasm of the Kingston players in the stands. Katie Lugg commented from the bench about the banners in the crowd and the players felt "we better play good". After the game the team was invited back to a potluck supper with the novice and petite teams from Kingston where the teams gave the banners to Team Ontario to use at their games. "The hospitality was amazing" and "these young Kinston kids made the drive worthwhile". "This was more then just a practice it was a neat experience" Thank you Kingston Ringette and especially the players who worked on the banner" said captain Dana Haley. "We really appreciate your support" Ottawa/Gatineau week end a success before close to 1,000 spectators Team Ontario defeated Team Quebec 11-7 at the Guertin Arena in an offensive exhibition of Ringette. Shots on goal were 52-41 in favour of Ontario in a game that featured a lot of offensive. The first period ended with Ontario ahead 3-2. The second period saw 7 goals with Ontario taking a 7-5 lead into the third period. Quebec started the third period with two quick goals to tie the game 7-7 before Ontario salted the game away with 4 straight goals and an 11-7 victory. The next day at the Nepean sportplex Ontario swept the week end series with a 9-3 win. Ontario was in control of the game for the most part and had period leads of 3-1 and 7-3. "Quebec played the Gloucester Open team this morning, and you could see the toll it took in their legs. They were not as quick today as yesterday " responded Glen Gaudet when asked the difference in the games. "Quebec is a very fast and strong team that cannot be taken lightly. Alberta may be the only team quicker then them" Team Ontario next will travel to Regina Nov. 7, 2003 to participate in their AAA tournament. September 22, 2002 - 8:00 PM Ontario Wins Alberta Cup