Rushton gearing up for lacrosse playoffs
Ainslee Rushton’s lacrosse goalie equipment makes her look like a giant in the crease.
Away from the rink, it’s hard to believe her tall and slender five-foot-nine frame is making all those saves while she draws doubleduty for the Prince George midget Posse and the B.C. girls midget provincial team.
Until you see the welts and bruises those heavy white rubber balls leave behind.
“When I came back from Calgary (after playing for the Posse in the Canada Day tournament) my thumb was double in size from having shots go right through the glove,” said Rushton. “My other hand was bruised and I had a cut on my neck and collar bone. I’ve had to work on (developing pain tolerance) over the years.”
The 15-year-old Rushton, who backstopped B.C. to the national girls bantam championship last year in Halifax, N.S., will be sticking closer to home for the Canadian Lacrosse Association national midget girls championship, which will be played in Coquitlam, Aug. 16-18
“It’s going to be hard because I’m playing against the older girls this year and I know there’s a lot of skill, from playing (in her first of three nationals) as a first-year bantam,” she said.
“I know Ontario’s best players and they’re so good, so this year will be another battle to get that gold medal.”
The national tournament will involve just three teams, B.C., Ontario and Nova Scotia. Alberta won’t be sending a team, which is disappointing for Rushton. She and her Team B.C. teammates beat Alberta 5-3 in last year’s bantam gold-medal final in Halifax and she wanted another crack at them.
The midget A2 Posse, coached by Doug Schoenwille, competed in the 11-team A1 midget division at the Canada Day tournament and Rushton split the goaltending duties evenly with Spencer Rogers.
The team went 0-4, but for Rushton the two games she played against high-calibre opponents offered perfect seasoning for the playoff action she’ll face over the next few weeks with her two teams.
“Those A1 shots were hard but I made a couple saves there and they were really good shots to take before nationals,” she said.
The Posse will travel to Langley for the A2 provincial championship, July 25-28.
Rushton has been the only player on her female provincial team from outside of the Lower Mainland for three seasons and the costs of commuting to and from Vancouver for regular training sessions add up.
“The coaches are going for a lot of fitness this year to try to get us in good shape for nationals,” she said.
Earl’s restaurant donated to her a large stockpile of bottles and cans for recycling. Rushton has had help from a few local sponsors to pay her travel costs and she’s always trying to find more backers to keep her playing high-level lacrosse.
Donations can be made directly to the B.C. Lacrosse Association in her name or through the National Sport Trust Fund.