U16 Rattlers win Alta. title
PROVINCIAL CHAMPIONSHIP CAPS OFF IMPRESSIVE SEASON
For the first time in 19 years, a U16 ringette provincial title is coming to Lethbridge
The Lethbridge U16 Rattlers headed to provincials in St. Albert last weekend and earned the gold medal thanks to an 8-4 win over the Drayton Valley Inferno.
The last Lethbridge U16 ringette team to win a provincial championship was in 1999.
The Rattlers started the weekend with a win over the Leduc Jaguars. Lorelei Koch scored three goals, Brooke Robinson added two and Lisa Beswitherick provided the other. Trey Blair was in goal.
The Rattlers battled to overtime in their second game, but lost 8-7 to the Inferno.
Brynn Stevenson and Ruthie Bohnec each scored twice for the Rattlers, while Emily Miller, Mikayla Miller and Beswitherick added singles. Blair was in goal.
The Rattlers earned their second win with a shutout decision, blanking the Red Deer Rush 12-0 as Teyha Trekofski earned the shutout.
Bohnec and Emily Miller each had a hat trick, Stevenson and Brooke Robinson scored twice each and Kiarra Robinson and Koch added one goal each.
That put the Rattlers in a crossover game Saturday against the St. Albert Steel and the locals prevailed with a 5-3 decision as Mikayla Miller scored three goals and Brooke Robinson and Koch added one each. Blair was in goal. The Rattlers 3-0-1 record put them in fourth after the round-robin and pitted them against the first-place Lacombe Edge.
For the second time of the weekend, the Rattlers headed to overtime as the teams battled to a 5-5 draw after regulation, but Lethbridge earned the win in double overtime as Koch completed a hat trick bid with the game-winner.
Mikayla Miller, Emily Miller and Bohnec scored the other Rattlers goals against Lacombe.
In the rematch against the Inferno, the Rattlers enjoyed a strong start, doubling up their opponents and earning the provincial gold medal.
Brooke Robinson, Bohnec, and Mikayla Miller each scored twice in the championship game. Emma Zgurski and Koch each scored once. Trekofski was in goal. This year’s Rattlers team has played together for the past nine years.
The team came close to gold two years ago, settling for silver.
The Rattlers won their home tournament in November and also won gold in Mississauga in December and the Golden Ring in Calgary in January, Canada’s largest ringette tournament.