The BC U16 Ringette Team captured the National Championship title last weekend in Fredericton marking the first time a BC team has won the nationals for this age group.
Every member of the team is a BC Games alumni having competed at the 2012 BC Winter Games in Vernon.
Laura Watson, was a coach at the 2012 BC Winter Games and is also the Sport Development Lead with viaSport. Watson said, “I had the opportunity to coach many of these outstanding young women and couldn’t be more proud of their accomplishments. It’s a huge credit to the success of the BC Games program that 100% of these girls are champions as BC Games alumni. The first step in their Games development is the BC Games, providing these athletes with a base of skills that they don’t learn on the ice but are vital to being a high performance athlete. These skills include proper nutrition, sleeping habits, travel and mental preparations. These are skills that are not learned in league experiences through regular practices and game play. It’s these developmental opportunities that form the foundation for athletes’ high performance careers and give them the skills to excel.”
The BC Winter and BC Summer Games are an important step in the development of athletes often inspiring them to move towards higher levels of competition like National Championships, Canada Games and ultimately the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Congratulations to the following athletes:
Taylor McIntosh, Delta
Lauren Watson, Port Moody
Arisa Cadeau, Delta *
Bayley Bird, Maple Ridge
Rachel Gauthier, Langley
Ingrid Bakke, Delta
Dana Dunstan, Surrey
Katie Stanoffsky, Pitt Meadows
Jenna Suzuki, Delta
Sydney Schwartz, Surrey
Hailey Valancius, New Westminster
Monica Salt, Delta
Sarah Knight, Port Coquitlam
Tiana Ollive, Langley*
Sarah MacDonald, Langley*
Cassie Dercaloustian, Delta
In addition to the historic win, three of the athletes were named to the all-star team – Arisa Cadeau, Tiana Ollive and Sarah MacDonald.
Photo courtesy of Ringette Canada