The Mister Transmission Orillia Jr. B Kings are on their first hot streak of the season.
The Kings roared to a 15-7 win over the Akwesasne Indians Saturday night at Rotary Place. The team was coming off their first win of the season as they edged the Mimico Mountaineers 10-9 in a barnburner on Friday night.
The Orillia squad is now 2-4-1 on the young season, good enough for second place in the Ontario Lacrosse Association’s Mid East division.
The Kings have been led on the score sheet this season by forward Mark Watters. The 18-year-old Orillia native had four goals and three assists in Saturday night’s game. The rookie already has 24 points this season in just five games.
“It feels good to be contributing,” Watters said. “My teammates have been finding me and we have been rolling as an offence.”
The left-hander says the team is only now starting to click and the results are showing. Even Watters himself is just starting to settle in.
“As a rookie, I didn’t really know what to expect,” he said. “I’m giving it my best out there and hopefully it can help the boys to keep winning.”
Watters says the nearly 200 fans who packed Rotary Place on Saturday night is what gave the Kings enough energy to win despite playing four games in the last five days.
“The crowd is getting loud when we score,” he said. “Honestly it’s awesome to have that fan support.”
Kings captain, Noah Quarrington, contributed an assist in the winning effort on Saturday night. The Rama defenceman now has four points on the season. While starting the season with two losses and a tie isn’t ideal, Quarrington says the team is heading in the right direction.
“I think we are really starting to roll now,” he said. “We are starting to pick it up and we are getting comfortable with our systems.”
Quarrington, 20, says it’s been a real team effort this season and everyone has played a role in the recent success.
“I think the boys have a ton of confidence right now,” he said. “I think we just have to stay focused and take it one game at a time.”
After being held off the floor for two years during the COVID-19 pandemic, Quarrington says he and his teammates are having a lot of fun being back in action. He hopes the team can make the playoffs this season and make a run for the Founder's Cup.
Head coach Jim Meredith says there is still a big learning curve for the Kings to grasp before they can reach their full potential.
“We are getting there, and we are learning,” he said. “They are slowly buying in.”
Meredith believes the Kings have gotten a little bit better with each game they have played, noting their confidence is rising
“The players are actually enthused again,” he said. “I think they all know that this is a learning year to try and get back to respectability and then make a run from there.”
Meredith says rookie forwards Marcle Colsen and Watters have been the team’s bright spots early in the season. Colsen has nine points through the team’s first seven games. The duo proves that the Kings have a bright future ahead, he says.
“I don’t think we have a fifth-year player,” Meredith said. “The goal is to have everybody back, add a couple of bodies maybe, and hopefully get a little bit better.”
Meredith pledges that the Kings will continue to move forward toward being a championship calibre team.
The Kings are back in action against the Indians on Sunday afternoon. The opening face-off is 2 p.m. at Rotary Place in west Orillia.
