Islanders at OFSAA!
Congratulations to Manitoulin Island’s Amber Wiwchar (Manitoulin Secondary School) and Sierra Pangowish (Wikwemikong High School) who ran with the best of Ontario’s track and field distance runners at this past weekend’s OFSAA championships. The pair ran in the 3000m junior girls’ showdown hosted at the University of Guelph’s amazing facilities. Way to go girls, keep up the great work.
Maxwell hits a new personal best at NCAA meet!
Evansville’s Joseph Maxwell has been on a track and field scholarship with the University of Tennessee for the last two school years. Very well decorated in Canada with his throwing skills he has now gone stateside. This season, Joseph started out being ranked 18th for his shot put.
In a recent National Collegiate Athletic Association meet at the University of Texas in Austin, Joseph threw his best ever ‘put’ in an amazing effort with a 19.50m (63’ 11’’) marking to put him in ninth place. Making his first ever NCAA event all that more special, his parents travelled down to Tennessee to take in the triumph.
Panther alumnus’ daughter also stand-out athlete
Allaura Peltier, daughter of former stalwart Panther defenseman Grant Peltier, is an impressive multi-sport athlete at just 10 years old. Although she started playing hockey since she was three she had two older siblings in rep hockey so if anyone was double-booked, unfortunately Allaura missed out. Once she turned the ripe old age of four, however, she started rep lacrosse and hockey making the Sudbury Lady Wolves Atoms.
During last season with the Lady Wolves she was scouted twice for Rush and Pro Hockey and has been to three tournaments with Pro Hockey and with another soon, down in Rochester, New York. She has also decided to join the Rush crew for a tournament in Toronto next weekend.
She also attended a Sting Ray tryout in Sudbury and has been offered a spot with their roster. On top of her busy schedule she has also attended two lacrosse tournaments. She will be playing with the Sudbury Rockhound peewees. Her first is in July and then the provincials later in the summer. The Rockhounds have won at the Rockhounds and at a recent event in Stayner. Keep up your hard work, Allaura!
Volunteers for Kids’ ball tourney?
The Mindemoya Co-ed Youth Softball Tournament set for June 21 to the 23. Organizer Greg Lockeyer has attracted 28 teams including some 320 youth players ages fives to 16. With this immense undertaking and the requisite schedule due this week, Greg has put the call out for help as they are still in need of volunteers to step up and help out. For example, among all the demands on the days of the tournament, there is some need to prepare the fields at Central Manitoulin Public School. Greg would like to extend a hearty thank to those who have offered up their names to help and to the sponsors who have stepped up so far although, there is apparently always room for more. Please reach out to Greg on Facebook if you can help out.
Elite weekend camp for future hockey stars
Three weeks ago the top 2004 born hockey recruits from the NOHA region and beyond were selected to participate in the OHF/OHL U15 Gatorade-sponsored Program of Excellence Camp in Sudbury. Local AAA Sudbury Wolves Minor Midget players Liam Bridgeman and Carson Shawana were joined by fellow Islanders and current Panthers Damion Debassige, Lattrell Peltier and Trent Bell, as well as top tier players from Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie, North Bay, Mississauga and Toronto. The program iced four teams of 20 players, who all enjoyed several practices, two games, dryland training sessions, seminars on nutrition and position specific strategy building practices. Also included, was an OHL combine-like fitness testing session. The players got the opportunity to stay with their camp-mates in residence at Laurentian University for the weekend, and enjoyed a real taste of what life could be like at the higher levels of competitive hockey.
Remissing!
My apologies and congratulations to Sarajane Lawton, a Manitoulin runner who also competed way back in the Sudbury Rocks 5K race but unfortunately I missed her in the roll-out of results. Keep on running, Sarajane!
A good sport is good for sports.
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