Over the weekend the Georgian Shores Lightning U18 team travelled to Cambridge to compete in the Hespler Classic.
They played two games Friday and started the weekend off right with a 3-2 win against the Cayuga Stars and a 5-2 win against the Nepean Raiders. Their third game was Saturday night at 10pm, but they still managed to pull off a 4-0 win against the second place Paris Wolfpack.
The Lightning ended the second day of play undefeated and at the top of the standings, putting them in a quarterfinal game Sunday morning against Paris again, who had fallen to 8th place after their loss. Their second win, 7-3, against Paris clinched the semifinal spot for the Lightning against the Durham Crusaders. In an intense 0-0 game all through three periods, the Lightning were able to come away with a big overtime win scoring at 1:11 left in the first OT and guaranteeing their spot in the championship.
The team brought a great attitude and worked hard all through the first period of the championship game against the Welland Tigers. By the middle of the second the Tigers had them down by a score of 3-0. The Lightning rallied and through hard work and fierce determination balanced the score board again 3-3 with 47 seconds left in the third. The stands were almost silent with the intensity. The Tigers made a final push and scored with 17 seconds left and even though the Lightning pushed back the clock beat them.
The Lightning finished with the Silver Medal and statistically first out of 19 teams. They played six games of great hockey showing outstanding sportsmanship, respect and teamwork at every turn. The Lightning had five of the top 20 players in the points race and a goalie in the top three.
The fans and Bench Staff with them this weekend couldn’t be prouder.
Submitted by Natasha Smith
