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Thanks to the Quesnel Observer for providing some of the news items for this section of the website!
2005/2006 Quesnel Ringette Association News
Quesnel Ringette named B.C.'s Best - Photo and Story By Neil MacKinnon - Quesnel Observer
May 7, 2006
Accolades continue to pour in for Quesnel Ringette. At last weekends B.C. Ringette Association annual meeting, QRA hauled in association of the year honours for the second time in three years. New president Austin Smith was named BCRA volunteer of the year. Past-president Melinda Moorhouse, who stepped down this spring, said it was a perfect cap to what was one of their best seasons on record. Four teams brought home medals from provincials. It has been an amazing year and I don't think I could have gone out on a higher note, Moorhouse said. This association has really taken off and all credit has
to go to our parents, volunteers, and the kids. Even in years where we lost every single game, they didn't quit. They're pretty good with reality, they're good losers, they're good winners and they just keep plugging away. Smith didn't know about his award until Thursday night, as previous commitments prevented him from going to the AGM. I what? he asked when Moorhouse handed him a plaque recognizing his efforts and explaining what it was for. No way. I didn't know that. I don't know what to say. A tireless and relentless volunteer and promoter of ringette, Moorhouse said it's people like Smith who have helped local players reach the levels they have. You've done so much work and you've helped this association tremendously, Moorhouse said. You've become a very good ambassador for the sport. There was a time we'd have to beat down doors for sponsorship of our teams. Now, the phone rings without really having to go out and look for it. That's largely thanks to your work. Smith was quick to give others credit for his accomplishment. I didn't expect this at all, but Quesnel Ringette has a very strong executive and that really helps, he said. In all honesty, I just enjoy it. I get teased once in awhile because I'm always sticking up for ringette.
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Alan Armstrong was also recognized at the meeting, honouring his outstanding contribution and development for the organized sport of ringette in the province. Armstrong was Northern League's representative on BCRA's board. He stepped down this year.
Serena Black received a Northern League bursary to help with her future education.
Babes Golden - Quesnel Observer
April 16, 2006
Winning medals is becoming common place for Quesnel ringette teams.
Babes on Blades masters team took the C Division title at the Abbotsford Chicks on Ice Masters Tournament last weekend.
I could not be prouder of the effort the team put in this weekend, coach Mike Pelchat said. In the tourney opener, the Babes earned a 6-6 tie against Vancouver's Barracudas. Quesnel's ladies had a firm grip on the game, but let a four-goal lead slip away in the final seven minutes of the game. The Barracudas increased their intensity late in the game, Pelchat said. We got a little rattled, took a few penalties and ended up with a tie. Babes refocused Saturday, dishing out a 9-3 drubbing of Port Coquitlam's PoCo Motion in the morning. They added a 6-4 win over Langley Silver Bullets to their repetoire in the afternoon. The two wins and a tie put the Babes at the top of the C Division round-robin play and into gold medal contention Sunday. Quesnel met the Barracudas again in the final, in a hard fought game for top place in the division. They pressed hard from the start and scored in the first minute of play. Babes stayed focussed on their game plan and held off the early onslaught, potting two in the first period for a 2-1 lead at the half. Barracudas continued to press hard in the second period, but could not shake the Babes off their game, and ended up taking penalties in their effort to gain the lead. The Barracudas pulled their goalie and finally scored with 29 seconds left on the clock. Babes on Blades took the C Division title with the 4-2 win in the final. Team manager Signe Nielsen was thrilled with the win. We have been coming to this tournament for several years, but had only one win until now. To go undefeated this time is a fantastic feeling.
Major Provincial Medal haul for Ringette - By Neil MacKinnon - Quesnel Observer
March 26, 2006
Quesnel's ringette teams made their trip to the provincials count, in a big way. All four local squads who attended the tourney in Vernon last weekend came home with hardware, the best results of any club in any sport at such a tournament in years. The tween C club earned a gold medal, the tween B's won silver, the junior B's brought home the bronze and the petite B's won the competition's Fairplay award for outstanding sportsmanship to go along with their bronze-medal effort.
Thrilling overtime effort earns gold
The West Fraser tween C's were solid all weekend, going undefeated in round robin action and earned their way to the finals with a 3-2 overtime win in the semifinal to play off for the gold. Goalkeeper Ashley Gandy stood on her head against a relentless Delta attack in the final to ensure a sudden-death ending.
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Tween C co-coach Rob Parisotto said while all of their games could have gone in favour of either team, the final was about as exciting as it gets. We were almost 17 minutes into overtime before we finally scored. That's quite a ways to go in this sport without a goal. They worked very hard and it was certainly rewarding to see them come out the way they did. Jenelle Derksen scored the golden goal and then the gloves went flying off and cheers echoed through the arena, Parisotto said. It was probably the best period we played in the whole tournament. We really put a lot of shots on net and we kept the play in their end for most of that period.It sure felt good to get that goal in our favour instead of not. They were a pretty excited bunch. Parisotto added it was probably better being behind the bench than on the edge of his seat in the stands. I think the parents there were probably more nervous than the kids. The kids were pretty calm and collected, while their parents were cheering up a storm. |
The tween C's are building a dynasty as it was the second year in a row the team claimed provincial gold.
Overtime heartbreaker dashes golden dreams
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With a flawless round robin effort, the 5 Seasons Sports tween B's beat Kelowna's Westside in the semifinal to advance to the final against Richmond. Quesnel battled back from a three-goal deficit to take the lead late in the game only to have Richmond pour on the heat to force the extra period.Pete Belbin, the tween B's co-coach, said it was tough to come so close and lose. I just about had tears in my eyes. I know we had a few girls who were crying there. It was tough. They made it that far and, in my opinion, the better team lost. Despite the devastation, Belbin was impressed with the fortitude of his team. I can honestly say that I've never seen a group of kids work so hard. Every game, every one of these girls gave it everything they had. It was a real special thing to be a small part of. |
Petite B's muscled to bronze-medal
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A 2-1-1 record in the opening round was enough to pave the way to a shot at the gold for Cariboo Ford petite B's. In the semifinal, the petite's lost 6-4 to the eventual provincial champs from Terrace. Quesnel rebounded in fine fashion, smashing Vernon 8-2 for third in the province. While winning the bronze was an awesome accomplishment for the squad, co-coach Rob Stauffer said the fairplay award was almost as important. Not only did they play some outstanding ringette, not only did they do it in real close games, all of them exciting on both sides, but to win the fairplay award was definitely an added bonus. You're not only achieving a third-place result in the entire province, but you're doing it with class and in a sportsmanlike fashion.
Junior B's rode to success in style
For the Mack Trac junior B's, a two-win, one-tie record in the round robin put them into the semifinal, where they lost a controversial 5-4 game against Richmond, after having the tying goal disallowed. Not only does their co-coach Al Armstrong think they were the class of the entire tournament, but he helped to make sure they knew it. For their last round robin match, the coaching staff rented a limousine for the girls to transport them to and from the game. It's important for a provincial tournament that there's something else there besides the actual tournament. Then, when something like this happens, which is obviously very disappointing for them and they didn't do quite as well as they expected, there's still other memories there. They had a ball. Armstrong added he couldn't have asked for more from his team.
Ringette fun for all at BC Winter Games - By Ken Alexander - Quesnel Observer
Although they went winless at the BC Winter Games, three of their four games were close for the Cariboo North East ringette team. Melia Moorhouse, 13, was one of nine people representing Quesnel at the ringette competition in Trail. She says their final game, which determined who advanced to the bronze-medal game, was very close but they lost 3-2. Her mom, Melinda, was the assistant coach and team manager. She says the girls, including the 10 from Prince George, played really well as a team. They may have had better results if the flu bug wasnt working its way through the ranks.
Melinda says she was surprised with the parity among the teams. She laughs as she talks about the circumstances the ringette'teams played under. They stayed in Rossland but played in Nelson. That meant we had a 20-minute ride back to Trail for breakfast and an hour on the bus to get to our games. It was very interesting. This meant the ringette players had to spend the whole day in Nelson. I think we were in one of the oldest rinks in B.C. We think ours is old ... no. Noting there was no heat in the rink, the girls warmed up in the brand new arena which was hosting speed skating. It was very comical but that was part of the fun. We had to go through the mens washroom to get out on the ice. Regardless, she says the girls enjoyed the experience and the hospitality was great. The people were wonderful. Melia says enjoyed every aspect of the Games.
It was fun. I liked how they had all the dances and stuff like that, the six-year ringette veteran says. The whole team, coaches and managers included, slept in a classroom, and Melia says she made a few new friends.
We watched hockey and speed skating because it was held right next to where we were playing. Speed skating was pretty interesting. Melia says she didnt mind the 14-hour bus trips to Trail and back. Actually, it wasn't that bad because we travelled at night, so we pretty much slept the who time.
Although they went winless at the BC Winter Games, three of their four games were close for the Cariboo North East ringette team. Melia Moorhouse, 13, was one of nine people representing Quesnel at the ringette competition in Trail. She says their final game, which determined who advanced to the bronze-medal game, was very close but they lost 3-2. Her mom, Melinda, was the assistant coach and team manager. She says the girls, including the 10 from Prince George, played really well as a team. They may have had better results if the flu bug wasnt working its way through the ranks.
Melinda says she was surprised with the parity among the teams. She laughs as she talks about the circumstances the ringette'teams played under. They stayed in Rossland but played in Nelson. That meant we had a 20-minute ride back to Trail for breakfast and an hour on the bus to get to our games. It was very interesting. This meant the ringette players had to spend the whole day in Nelson. I think we were in one of the oldest rinks in B.C. We think ours is old ... no. Noting there was no heat in the rink, the girls warmed up in the brand new arena which was hosting speed skating. It was very comical but that was part of the fun. We had to go through the mens washroom to get out on the ice. Regardless, she says the girls enjoyed the experience and the hospitality was great. The people were wonderful. Melia says enjoyed every aspect of the Games.
It was fun. I liked how they had all the dances and stuff like that, the six-year ringette veteran says. The whole team, coaches and managers included, slept in a classroom, and Melia says she made a few new friends.
We watched hockey and speed skating because it was held right next to where we were playing. Speed skating was pretty interesting. Melia says she didnt mind the 14-hour bus trips to Trail and back. Actually, it wasn't that bad because we travelled at night, so we pretty much slept the who time.
Other members of the squad included Santana Belbin, Breanna Cullinane, Megan MacDonald, Melinda Moorhouse, Jamie Pawluk, Jenny Pelchat and Marrissa Pitzoff. Garth Verbonac went as an official.
Ringette rides high in Houston - Quesnel Observer
Its one thing to attend a tournament, have fun and win a few games. It's another thing entirely to send three teams and have each of them pound their opponents into submission, and all go undefeated. However, thats exactly what Quesnel teams did at a Houston ringette tournament last weekend.
Its one thing to attend a tournament, have fun and win a few games. It's another thing entirely to send three teams and have each of them pound their opponents into submission, and all go undefeated. However, thats exactly what Quesnel teams did at a Houston ringette tournament last weekend.
The Cariboo Pulp novice squad started their weekend success story by doubling up on Terrace 10-5. From there, they downed Prince George 9-4 and hammered on Houston 7-2.
The Kal Tire novices laid a 8-3 licking on Houston in their tourney opener. They went on to outscore Terrace in their second tilt 12-7 and followed that up with an 11-6 victory over Prince George.
To further fill the winners circle with Quesnel teams, the 5 Seasons Sports tween squad trounced Terrace 9-4. They also beat up on Houston in a pair of matches, 5-1 and 5-2 respectively. In the tweens second victory over the home-town squad, goaltender Megan Mallet stole the show and a sure goal by knocking the ring out of the air while lying on her back. Next up for the tweens is a shot at a provincial title in Vernon, March 16-19.
"Sweet" tourney for ringette - By Neil MacKinnon - Quesnel Observer
The Quesnel Ringette Association sent five teams to the Sweetheart tournament in Kelowna last weekend and two squads hauled home some hardware.
The top local team was the Mac Trac juniors, who were a domineering tour de force, winning all of their bouts. The juniors obliterated Terrace in the final by a score of 11-4 to earn the gold.
The 5 Seasons Sports tween B squad scored some great results. They had a win and two ties in round-robin action. The tweens beat Penticton, which pitted them in the gold-medal dustup with their northern rivals from Prince George. Despite a hard fought battle, Prince George emerged victorious by a four-goal margin, 6-2.
The Northern Lights novice squad had an impressive three wins and a tie, but were defeated in a close 4-2 quarter -final tilt to the eventual gold-medal winners from Delta.
The Cariboo Ford petites stepped up to a higher level and lost all three of their games, but still managed to score at least one goal per game.
The Integris Credit Union belles had a respectable 1-2 record in the weekends action. Considering they had a drastically shortened bench, playing the entire tourney with only seven skaters and their two losses came at the hands of the two clubs that wound up in the finals, it was quite the feat.
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Quesnel Novice Team enjoying the Opening Ceremonies |
Rosy results for ringette - By Neil MacKinnon -Quesnel Observer
The Twin Arenas were abuzz with the action-packed intensity of the best ringette to hit the Goldpan City this year. With a total of 53 games and 30 teams from across the province in attendance, the annual Goldpan Ringette Tournament was its usual outstanding success, said Quesnel Ringette Association president Melinda Moorhouse.
It was very well received and it took a lot of effort and dedication from volunteers and businesses to make it as great as it was. In her fifth year with the QRA, Moorhouse said running the tournament year after year has helped her learn a lot. I will be retiring as president next year and it has been a great experience. This year was right up there with the best weave had. It has gotten a bit easier because I know more about the rules, the makeup of the coaches and the scheduling of it all. The one thing Ive been really struck by is how much other people do, from making signs to scorekeeping. All the little things really make the difference. 'While Moorhouse and her army of volunteers made sure everything ran smoothly, the local squads put forth a solid effort to earn some bragging rights.
In the bunny division, the Tolko squad came out on top of the Quesnel River Pulp crew with a 9-3 victory in the tournament's first game. Tolko went on to secure a 1-2-1 record, while the QRP team put their best foot forward, but fell short in all their matches.
The Kal Tire novice team had an awesome weekend, winning all their bouts, including a 5-3 victory over the Cariboo Pulp team, 8-3 against Terrace and 7-2 over Prince George.
The Cariboo Pulp crew went 2-1 on the weekend, beating Prince George 10-3 and added another 10-3 win over Terrace.
The Cariboo Ford petite squad bested Prince Georges C team 7-1, lost to Prince George's A team 10-6 and fell to Terrace 10-3.
The West Fraser tween Cs went 2-2 at the tourney, while the 5 Seasons Sports tween B's tied two matches and lost one, a 5-2 loss at the hands of Prince George.
The Macktrack junior club won all three of its contests, beating the Prince George squad 10-3 and 8-1, and edged Terrace's junior 6-5.
The Quesnel Integris Credit Union belles beat a Lower Mainland AA squad 6-5 in the weekend opener but then fell flat, losing to Prince George 8-3. Penalty trouble in their second match with the Lower Mainland AA squad proved costly as the belles fell by a score of 5-4.
The Babes on Blades ladies team went 2-2 on the weekend, losing to Abbotsford 8-2 and followed that up with a 4-2 win over Prince George, only to lose to Vernon 7-6 in their final match of the round robin. The Babes on Blades again beat Prince George 5-1 in the consolation final for third place.
Ringette squads rally in Prince George - By Neil MacKinnon - Quesnel Observer
Quesnels ringette teams got off to a rip roaring start last weekend.
With nine teams attending the Joy Hoffman Ringette Tournament in Prince George, a pair of novice clubs posted the best results.
The novice blue team went a perfect 3-0 at the tourney.
The novice white team swept their field to a 3-0 record as well.
The bunnies, while they gave a solid effort, had a bit of a rough go of it, going 0-3.
The tween C team had a tie and a loss.
The tween Bs beat Houston, but fell to Prince George in a pair.
The junior team downed Prince George and followed up with a tie against Terrace. In a later meeting, the juniors edged Terrace 5-3.
The belles opened the weekend with a win over Prince George. They later fell to the hometown club 3-2.
Quesnels ladies squad rallied to three straight wins against Prince George.
All the local clubs now have their sights set on their home tournament, which runs Jan. 6, 7 and 8