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The Medicine Hat U19 Mustangs won gold at the Ed Horvath Invitational, beating the Buffalo Plains Blitz 6-5 on Sunday at the Moose Rec Centre.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat U19 Mustangs defended home ice over the weekend.
The U19 Mustangs won gold at the Ed Horvath Invitational ringette tournament, winning a third gold medal in a row at the locally held tournament.
The Mustangs overcame a 5-2 deficit in the second half, beating the Buffalo Plains Blitz 6-5 to claim first place. Head coach Rod Thompson says fans told him it was the greatest ringette game they had ever seen.
“When we tied it up, when we got our third goal and we felt the momentum change, the crowd started to feel it, too,” Thompson said. “You could feel the energy in the building. Then when we tied the game up, the barn got pretty loud. When we went ahead with a couple minutes left, it was a pretty energetic and great atmosphere to be in.”
Sophie Kerr scored a shorthanded goal with 2:16 left in the second half, winning the game for Medicine Hat. The goal capped off a four-point contest for Kerr, who tallied a hat trick with an assist. Hannah Thompson had a goal and two assists and both Erika Want and Pacie Harper found the back of the net in the finals.
The U19 Mustangs went a perfect 6-0 in the tournament, opening the weekend with an 8-1 win Friday morning over the Bow View Apex. Later that day they beat the Buffalo Plains Wild 9-5. The Mustangs topped the Blitz 6-1 Saturday morning before beating the Regina Ravens 3-2 that night. They punched a finals spot with an 8-3 win over the Ravens on Sunday.
The U19 Mustangs made their way to the finals outscoring their opponents 40-17. But it was the final four goals Sunday, coming from 12:10 left in the game, that showcased an ability to handle adversity.
“I was really happy with the way that our girls adjusted, they pivoted, they fought back, and with the way they dealt with adversity,” Thompson said. “I was super proud of the way they responded and the composure they showed. It was just a great, great response. It was a great result for a mature, cohesive group of young ladies.”
Thompson hopes they carry the momentum and lessons learned into the rest of the season.
“How we dealt with adversity as a team, when we were really backed into a corner, it’s experiences like that we put under our belt and it’ll definitely benefit us come provincial time,” Thompson said.
Medicine Hat’s Open B Smash team won gold, beating the Lethbridge Rattlers 9-3 on Sunday for a 5-0 weekend. Medicine Hat’s Open C Force team finished 0-4.
The U16B Mustangs lost in semifinals action Sunday, falling 6-4 to the Bow View Brisk who won gold over the Indus Rise 5-2. Medicine Hat finished fourth in the division.
The U14B Mustangs had a 3-2 weekend, falling in the semifinals Sunday to the Bow View Royals. The Royals beat the Lethbridge Rattlers 6-2 for the gold, the Mustangs finished third.
The U12B Mustangs were 3-1 heading into Sunday, ultimately falling 8-5 to the Regina Cougars in semifinals action. The Bow View Cowgirls won the U12 division, Medicine Hat finished third.
Medicine Hat had three U10 Mustangs teams playing in the weekend, at Step 1, Step 2 and Step 3.
The Step 3 Mustangs went a perfect 4-0 across their contests, outscoring opponents 49-15. No scores were reported for the Step 1 and 2 Mustangs.
Thompson, also the president of the Medicine Hat Ringette Association, was happy with how the 40-team tournament played out and he is already looking forward to continued growth for next year.
“It wouldn’t have been possible without the volunteer hours that were spent by many parents and our organizing committee,” Thompson said. “They did so much work behind the scenes and worked countless hours around the clock for not just the past weekend, but really the months leading up to this event.
“Our sponsors were critical in us hosting such a successful ringette tournament. Our sponsors, our partners in the community, if it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t have been able to have such a successful event.”
