Phoenix claim D8 crown
It’s nine in a row for Resurrection after 4-2 win over Celtics
KITCHENER — This time around, the outcome was never really in doubt.
The Resurrection Phoenix captured their ninth consecutive District 8 field hockey championship Wednesday with an impressive 4-2 victory over the St. David Celtics at Woodside Park.
Sara Steinfield, Chloe Hillier, Grace Davis and Justine Bissonnette staked the Phoenix to a 4-0 lead on a glorious fall afternoon and the Celtics replied with late goals from Jenna Berger and Chloe Davidson.
“I’m very happy with the outcome today and I’m really proud of my team,” said Davis.
“Everyone has put in so much effort and hard work this season and for me, it’s a blessing to play with my sister (Avery).”
The Phoenix and Celtics were meeting in the District 8 final for the fourth straight year. Resurrection escaped with a 2-1 win in last year’s final, but Wednesday’s game was never in doubt.
Resurrection came out flying and didn’t let up until the game’s final few minutes.
The Phoenix advance to next week’s sixteam Central Western Ontario (CWOSSA) championship and the Celtics’ season is over.
The Southwood Sabres and Bluevale Knights have already secured CWOSSA berths as Waterloo County (WCSSAA) representatives and a play-in game between the Sir John A. Macdonald Highlanders and Elmira Lancers will determine a third WCSSAA representative.
St. David goalkeeper Marley Dowling had a strong performance Wednesday and kept her team in the game with several early stops, including a nice pad save on Bissonnette.
The Phoenix opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a textbook goal from a short corner. Grace Davis pushed the ball to Rachel Buttinger, who passed to Avery Davis, who passed to Hannah Cook. Steinfeld redirected Cook’s hard shot past Dowling.
Resurrection added a second goal on the final play of the first half. With the bench yelling “10 seconds, 10 seconds” at Buttinger, the Grade 11 midfielder passed the ball to Hillier, who in turn blasted the ball into the back of the net. The halftime whistle was blown immediately after the score.
Davis and Bissonnette scored in the early going of the second half and the Celtics, who never stopped trying, were finally rewarded with two goals in the final two minutes.
“I’m happy for my team but you have to give credit to (St. David). They’re a strong team and I really do believe they deserve to go to CWOSSA with us,” said Hillier.
“But it’s just us, so I hope things go well next week and we get a chance to win our OFSAA title back.”
Resurrection has won five of the past seven all-Ontario championships but settled for silver last year, losing to Bluevale in the championship game at RIM Park. The two teams that advance to next week’s CWOSSA final will advance to the Nov. 2-4 OFSAA championship in Burlington.
For the Celtics, it was a case of déjà vu all over again, a strong season that ended with a loss to the Phoenix.
“They’ve got a great team but we never gave up and I’m really proud of our performance today,” said Berger.
Prior to receiving their championship medals, two of Resurrection’s captains, speaking on behalf of their teammates, issued a formal apology to a St. David’s player for sending an inappropriate photo message on Snapchat.
Southwood and Bluevale will meet Thursday for the WCSSAA championship, with Elmira and SJAM playing at the same time for a CWOSSA berth.