Ontario Festival 3 Concorde Gate, Suite 306 Toronto, Ontario, M3C 3N7 Website: www.ontariolacrossefestival.com

Media Contact: Ron MacSpadyen Email: [email protected] Business Telephone: (416) 426-7068 Business Cell: (416) 918-7064

FESTIVAL MEDIA RELEASE August 21st, 2015

REPEAT WINS AND LAST PERIOD HEROICS TAKE OVER IN THE NOVICE PROVINCIAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 1 returned to the Novice A Provincial final in 2015, taking on the Centre-Wellington Mohawks 1 for a chance to win their second title in a row.

The teams left the first period in a 2-2 tie, but the Warriors quickly took control of the second period. Tye Sanderson opened the scoring for the Mohawks, but was followed by goals from Zachary Tucker, Marcus Mazza, Luke Robinson, and Scott Clapham to put the Warriors ahead 6-3. The Mohawks came within one of the Warriors with an unassisted shot from Christopher Rathwell, and a goal from Tobias Wilson. Clapham found the back of the Mohawks net with one minute left in the second period, extending the Warriors lead to 7-5. Though the Mohawks struck first in the third period with Sanderson’s second goal, the Warriors came raging back for the win. Jamie Darlison pushed them ahead with two goals, followed by shots from Lucas Arsenault and Ethan McLean. The Whitby Warriors proved their dominance, taking the Novice A Provincial title with an 11-6 win over the Centre-Wellington Mohawks.

The Kahnawake Mohawks were also in contention for a repeated victory, battling the Orangeville Northmen in the Novice B final. The Northmen dominated in the first period, scoring four goals and shutting the Mohawks out completely. Aiden Long was credited for three goals, while Nick Devins picked up the fourth. The Mohawks shot back in the second period with a Shatekaienthon VanDommelen goal, but Long and Logan Sawyer extended the Northmen lead with two unassisted goals. Matthew Martin pushed even further, logging two goals in the last four minutes of the period for an 8-1 lead. The Northmen cushioned their lead early in the third period with shots from Devins and Sean Costigan. Though the Mohawks tried to climb back with efforts from Owen Rice, Bossy Rice, and Tehahente Albany, the damage was already done. The Northmen held the reigning champions to three goals in the final period, taking the Novice B title in a 10-4 win.

The Novice C Provincial final took place between the undefeated and the 2-1-0 Caledon Bandits. The Bengals came out strong in the first period, scoring five goals to the Bandits two. Will Stewart and Easton Wainwright scored two each, while Hunter McGilvery logged one for the Bengals. The Bandits took control of the game in the second period, holding the Bengals to one goal from Stewart. Daniel Dorval opened the scoring, followed by Adomo Zingaro who blasted four goals in three minutes to give the Bandits a 7-6 lead. The Bengals were not so easily defeated, shutting the Bandits out of the third period while they chipped away at their defense. Stewart scored two more goals for a game total of five, while Wainwright scored his second, and Clark Dunford registered his first. The Bengals finished the period with a 10-7 score, taking the Novice C title over the Caledon Bandits.

The Wallaceburg Griffins returned to the Novice D final for the first time since 2013, battling the 2-1 Kitchener-Waterloo Braves 2 for the title. The Griffins edged ahead 2-1 in the first period with two goals from Kaelen Smith, while Logan Hock scored for the Braves. The Braves pushed through in the second, keeping the Griffins to one goal. They took a 4-3 lead with a goal from Evan McDonell, and two from Daniel Deckert. The third period was hard fought with solid defense on both sides. The only respite came with 31 seconds left in the game, as Smith scored the tying goal for the Griffins to force overtime. Brayden Sands gave the Griffins the lead with a goal assisted by Smith, but the Braves responded seconds later to extend overtime play. The second overtime remained a stalemate, sending the teams into a third overtime with a 5-5 tie. Carter Barnes came through for the Griffins with seven minutes left to play, and the Braves could not respond. The Griffins took home their second Novice D title in three years with a triple overtime 6-5 win.

The Novice E final saw two new faces come to the plate, as the Burlington Chiefs 2 took on the Guelph Regals 3. The teams exchanged goals in the first period, heading into the second with a 1-1 tie. The Chiefs edged ahead with a goal from Josh Buiter in the second period, shutting the Regals out for a 2-1 lead. Buiter opened the third period with his second goal for the Chiefs, followed by three shots from Justin Bottineau, and an unassisted goal from Kyle Ferguson. The Regals shot back in the last two minutes of play with two goals from Jacob Parkes and Evan Pastorius, but the Chiefs were too far ahead. They took the Novice E title with a 7-3 victory over the Regals.

The New Tecumseh Renegades started strong in the Novice F final against the Arthur Aces. The Renegades controlled the first period of play by collecting two goals from Jacob English and Rory Randall, and keeping the Aces off the scoreboard. Cole Rij scored two goals to put the Renegades up 4-0 early in the second period, but Rory Peters finally broke through for the Aces to make the score 4-1. Peters and Cameron McNabb continued the Aces momentum, scoring two goals early in the third period to come within one of the Renegades. Randall shot back for the Renegades, but the Aces came through with rejuvenated energy. McNabb and Peters hit the back of the Renegades net again, to tie the game 5-5 with five minutes left to play. Though the Renegades put up a good fight, Peyton Woods scored with nine seconds on the clock to put the Aces up by one. Peters logged his fourth goal of the game with one second left, and the Aces stole the Novice F title 7-5.

-30-

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Taylor Craig Festival Event Communications Ontario Lacrosse Festival [email protected]