Highlights of 2017
Lyle Carter takes a look back at some of the high points for local sports and the tremendous accomplishments.
What a year for great sports stories featuring local teams and players.
Readers’ views may differ somewhat from this writer’s outlooks, only adding interest to the year 2017, in review.
Friday night, April 20 saw Truro Bearcats hoist the Maritime Hockey League championship silverware in Miramichi, N.B., edging Miramichi
Timberwolves 4-3 in a dramatic game seven.
Bearcats goaltender Jason Rioux was named the game’s first star, after brilliantly turning aside 34 of 37 shots.
It was Truro’s fourth Maritime championship in recent years under Coach and General Manager Shawn Evans. It was likewise the fourth Maritime junior title
for Bearcats president Keith Mackenzie and owner Stu Rath.
■■■
Rowan Sears was busy attending try-out camps with the Canadian Junior Men’s Fastpitch Team in early 2017. During the summer, Sears received an important telephone call.
“It was one of the Team Canada coaches,” said Sears, 17, of Brookfield.
“He told me I would be going to Prince Albert in 2018. From there, it was all excitement. It was a great feeling finding out I had made the team, but I know there is a lot of hard work ahead.
“To see my parents so happy too (Andrew and Jill Sears) this was definitely one of my biggest moments in sports.”
Last summer saw Sears, a shortstop, play for both the Nova Scotia Canada Games U21 fast-pitch team and Colchester Royals U18 team. In hockey, he played for Pictou County Weeks Major Midgets in the Nova Scotia Major Midget
Hockey League. In this, his second season with Pictou County, the outstanding right wing prospect has seven goals and nine assists in early season play.
The World Junior Fast-pitch Championship took place in Prince Albert,
Sask., July 7-15. Nova Scotians David “Bubba” Watson, of Milford and
Brendon Walker, of Ellershouse
also played for Team Canada.
■■■
During August, East Hants Shooters Bar & Grill Mastodons won the Canadian
Senior Men’s Fast-pitch Championship with a 6-5 win over Newfoundland Galloway Hitmen.
The Mastodons’ lineup included former Brookfield Elks players Patrick
Stewart, Jay Duffy, Jason Sanford and Coby Crowell. Coaches
Chris Hopewell and Mike Wood were also both former longtime Elks.
The game’s last play and what followed at the Gordie Howe Complex in Saskatoon, was revisited by Mastodons’ star firstbaseman Patrick Stewart.
“A groundball was hit to our shortstop Nick Shailes, I remember catching his throw at first base,” said Stewart, 32, of Brookfield. “A log-pile followed at the pitcher’s mound on top of our pitcher Justin Schofield and our catcher Jason Sanford.
“It went on for several minutes — it was unreal, the feeling of finally winning a Canadian championship.” Stewart, born five years after the Elks won the same Canadian men’s championship (1980), said he’s learned lots about the historic win from former players he golfs with. They include his uncle Robbie Cooke, Mike Henderson, Robert Putnam and Bobby Campbell.
“It’s pretty neat when you think about it,” Stewart said. “The Elks won their Canadian championship at the same Gordie Howe Complex that we did.”
■■■
The Rogers Hometown Hockey Tour, with hosts Ron Maclean and Tara Slone, was in Truro, Oct. 28-29. The national telecast appeared to be positive exposure for Truro and Colchester County. The same weekend saw a successful 20-year reunion of the inaugural Truro Bearcats, the 1997-98 team. Now 38 to 40, these aged players were guests of honour of today’s Truro Bearcats making for a rather historic occasion at the Rath-eastlink Community Centre.
■■■
More recently, Dec. 10-16, the World Junior A Hockey Challenge was played at the RECC.
This gave local hockey fans a rare opportunity to watch live action featuring players from Russia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, U.S.A. and many Canadian points.
Organizing committee chairman Dave Ritcey commended his committee co workers, the more than 120 outstanding volunteers and the RECC staff. Ritcey called it a team effort by Truro, Colchester, Millbrook First Nation and the municipal, provincial and federal governments.
“Thank you to everyone,” Ritcey said. “The tournament, I believe, was the talk of the town. Hockey players frequently visited the malls, stores and restaurants; they walked our streets igniting excitement within our community.
“We had a sellout crowd of over 3,100 for the final game which was televised live on TSN.
“Canada West capped things off by winning the gold medal; it was awesome.
What a way to close out 2017 in Truro, Nova Scotia.”