PDHS Panthers go back-to-back in AABHN girls hockey

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The Paris District High School Panthers girls hockey team shut down any talk of being a one-player team on Wednesday.

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Facing undefeated Assumption College in the AABHN championship game at the Gretzky Centre, the Panthers prevailed 3-2 with an outstanding team effort.

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It was the second straight championship for Paris after it won the Athletic Association of Brant, Haldimand and Norfolk championship a year ago.

That win last yera was powered by superstar Madison Burr, currently playing for NCAA University of Minnesota-Duluth, but the Panthers proved that there was more punch to their team than one player.

“It feels really good,” said PDHS goaltender Kenzie Coates, who was outstanding in the final.

“We wanted this really bad. The girls played really well. It was probably our best game of the season.”

Paris coach Shane Seibert was extremely happy for his players. Despite the fact the Panthers had lost to Assumption twice in the regular season by scores of 4-1 and 1-0, the coach believed in his team.

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“It’s amazing,” he said when asked what it felt like to win.

“I’ve been with this team several years now and these girls battled their (tails) off. They knew they could do it. They just had to believe in themselves. They came out and did that.”

It wasn’t easy.

Things went back-and-forth to start the game but at 8:35 Carling Ruddell got the Lions on the board. That lead didn’t last long though because exactly one minute later, Sydney Kipp scored a nasty goal when she went bar down while falling to beat ACS netminder Kayli Sault.

That’s the way things stood until there was five minutes remaining in the second. Following a backhand goal by Reese Halliday, Rowan Worrall followed that up with a power-play marker with 3:30 to go until the third.

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Running out of time, the Lions pressed and they were rewarded on a power play when Ruddell got her second of the game.

At that point, Coates knew she had to stand tall.

“After the second goal went in, I knew I needed to keep the puck out,” she said. “I was nervous but trying to stay calm.”

Assumption continued to push for the tying goal but in the end, the Lions ran out of time and the Panthers clinched their second straight title.

Taylor Drinkle got two assists for PDHS with one apiece to Harley Shuart, Raegan Charter, Alyssa Oakes and Scout Hergott-Leader.

Victoria Sharp got two assists for ACS.

The Panthers were competing in a play-in game on Friday to advance to the Central Western Ontario Secondary Schools Association A/AA championship, which will be hosted by Simcoe’s Holy Trinity Catholic High School on March 4 and 5.

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In last year’s play-in game, Paris suffered a heartbreaking overtime loss.

“We’re looking forward to it,” Coates said. “Hopefully we win because we didn’t get to go last year.”

Seibert said now that the players have achieved one goal, it’s time to move on to the next.

“It’s frustrating that we have to play it but we understand,” he said of the play-in game.

“The team we’re going to be facing, I think it’s Hagersville, they’re a strong team as well. We have to play the exact same game we played today. We know we can do it.”

The result of that game was not known at press time.

ACS will play in the CWOSSA AAA championship on March 10 (in Waterloo) and 11 (Woolwich).

Other members of Paris’ championship team not already mentioned include Faith Smith, Sav Brown, Lily Goodyear, Dani Seibert, Addison Langille, Hayley Jackson, Megahn Balog, Brooklyn Boer and coaches Paul Armstrong, Shannon Pearson, Patti Halliday and Wilma Nicholls.

PDHS finishes the AABHN season with an 8-2 record. ACS was 9-1.

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