NEWS RELEASE
ORILLIA HAWKS
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After watching the Novice B Hawks soar to the championship in the previous game, the Tryon Construction Peewee BB Hawks pulled off the win in their division to make it back-to-back Hawks golds at the 38th Annual Walter Gretzky Tournament with an outstanding season-best effort.
The tournament started on Friday with a tough opening matchup against the Woolwich Wild. Orillia was playing well but went down 1-0 in the first. Just past the halfway point of the second, things took a serious turn and the game was stopped for a medical emergency.
Time out was called by the referee as his partner was struggling with an illness. After being checked out by team trainers and medical professionals in attendance the paramedics were called and he was taken to hospital for evaluation. The game would eventually be officially postponed and would need to be finished at a later time. Reports on the referee on Saturday were positive, saying that he was released from hospital in good condition after being monitored overnight.
Game 2 on Friday would have the Hawks matched up against divisional rivals the North Simcoe Capitals. After again going down by a goal, the Hawks were able to tie the game on a power play goal; the game ended in a 1-1 draw.
The second half of Game 1 was rescheduled Saturday, forcing both Orillia and Woolwich to play back to back games. In that second half, the Hawks did not come out as strong as they had on Friday and eventually took a 4-0 loss.
The Hawks returned to the dressing room for a quick break and a flood and then went right back out onto the ice to face another regular season divisional rival, the Scarborough Sharks in Game 3.
Game 3 was close with both teams battling to score. The Hawks were able to get the first one and hang on to that one-goal lead for the remainder of the game, skating to a 1-0 victory.
With Game 4 scheduled for Saturday night, the Hawks would get a break to have a rest and regroup.
With their record sitting at 1-1-1 they would need a Game 4 victory and some help from other teams to qualify for the tournament final.
The Hawks did their job and came out ready for a battle. They would get that battle in a rough and tough game against the home team, the Brantford Ice Cats.
The Hawks came ready to play and buried an early first period goal that would be disallowed on a quick whistle as the ref lost sight of a loose puck. The Hawks would not let up and eventually scored two more and skated to a 2-0 victory.
Between the second and third periods, the Hawks sent a scout over to the other pad to check on the status of the Scarborough vs. North Simcoe game as it would impact the standings that would determine who would qualify for the finals. Eventually, the Hakws would receive the news that things had gone in their favour and they were in.
In the tournament final, the Hawks would again be matched up against the Woolwich Wild. Looking for redemption, the Hawks came out with an outstanding season-best effort.
The game was back and forth with both teams battling hard, but the Hawks were able to score a huge second-period goal on a one-time play generated from a quick point shot. Both teams battled hard for the rest of the game and the Hawks were able to score a late game empty netter to seal the victory and the gold!
The team is coached by Jason Kanold, Steve Fagan, Brian Plue, Aaron Tryon, Dale Recollet and Peter DeCock. Team members include Dalayna Baker, Hailey DeCock, Melanie DeCock, Hanna Dupuis, Karley Eckstein, Sarah Fagan, Julia Fyfe, Kaitlin Genereux, Alyssa Kanold, Sofia Kring, Anica Plue, Sedona Recollet, Victoria Sawyer, Avery Thompson and Sierra Tryon.
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