The BC Hockey Female Midget AAA League kicked off the 2009-10 season this past weekend with the first weekend of league play. The six (6) teams in the Female Midget AAA League travelled to the Lower Mainland to play nine (9) games, October 10-12.
The Female Midget AAA league will use the same league play format for the 2009-10 season as they did last year. Each team will host a league play weekend whereby all the teams come together, similar to a tournament, at the same place one (1) weekend a month to play multiple league games against the other teams. This has been a measure adopted by the league to maximize playing time and to reduce travel and accommodation expense.
The following will provide a summary of the weekend’s action as well as updated league standings.
The first game of the weekend on Saturday, October 10 pitted the Thompson-Okanagan Rockets against the Fraser Valley Phantom. The Rockets had a strong opening period scoring two (2) unanswered goals. Karoline Huber potted the first and Julia McKinnon with the second. The Phantom cut the lead to one (1) in the second with a marker by Jennifer McLean. The teams exchanged goals in the third and the Rockets won the first game 3-2.
The second game of the day had the defending Female Midget AAA League Champions the Vancouver Fusion against the Vancouver Island Impact. The Fusion picked up where they left off scoring three (3) goals in the first period to take a 3-0 lead. Alex Yallouz led the way with one (1) goal and one (1) assist in the period. The Fusion continued to dominate play in the second adding two (2) more goals to their lead. Goal scorers for the Fusion were Nicole Saxvik and Haneet Parhar. The teams exchanged goals in the third and the Vancouver Fusion went on to win 6-1.
The first game on Sunday, October 11 saw the Thompson-Okanagan Rockets take on the Prince George Cougars. The Rockets came out strong and did not let up play scoring two (2) goals in the first, two (2) more in the second and capped off by three (3) goals in the third. Alex Gowie had an outstanding game scoring two (2) goals and two (2) assists. Ashley Fisher picked up the shutout win in net for her team.
The second game of the day pitted the Vancouver Island Impact against the Kootenay Wildcats. After a scoreless first period the Wildcats broke it open in the second period with three (3) goals. Goal scoring was spread around with three (3) different goal scores; Kelly Mckelvey, Sally Vlanich and Carling Chown. Unfazed the Impact’s Maggie Paugh scored an early third period goal to cut the lead to two (2). Three minutes later the Wildcat’s Michelle Jones restored the three (3) goal lead for her team. The teams exchanged goals late and the Wildcats picked up their first win of the season 5-3.
The first game of the afternoon and third of the day had the Vancouver Island Impact taking on the Thompson-Okanagan Rockets. Each team had a strong first period, but it was the Rockets up 3-2 heading into the first intermission. Early in the second period the Rocket’s Alex Gowie put her team up 4-2. The Impact clawed back late and cut the lead to one (1) with a marker by Emily Heavenor. This was as close as they would get, the Rockets added three (3) more in the third to win 7-3.
The final game of the day on Saturday saw the Kootenay Wildcats taking on the Prince George Cougars. The Wildcats took the early 2-0 lead in the first period with goals by Christina Bonacci and Hailey McLean. The Cougars cut the lead to one (1) before the period was over with a Taya Garneau goal. The Cougars continued to pressure in the second and scored at 18:27 of the frame. The goal scorer for the Cougars was Stacey Duncan. In an exciting third period, the teams exchanged goals and the game ended in a 3-3 tie.
The Vancouver Fusion took on the Prince George Cougars in the first game of the day on Monday, October 12. Late in the first period the Fusion’s Brittany Wakefield scored to give her team the 1-0 lead. The teams exchanged goals in the second period and the Fusion took a 2-1 lead into the second intermission. The Cougars pressured in the third, but were unable to score. The Fusion added one (1) more and picked up the 3-1 win.
The second game of the day turned into a goaltender dual between the Fraser Valley Phantom and the Kootenay Wildcats. After a scoreless first period the Wildcat’s Shannon Hall scored to give her team the 1-0 lead. The Phantom pressured in the third period, but could not beat the Wildcats goaltender. The game ended in a 1-0 win for the Wildcats.
The third game of the day and last of the first weekend of League play had the Vancouver Fusion taking on the Fraser Valley Phantom. The Fusion came out strong and scored 23 seconds into the game, but before the first was over the Phantom responded to tie the game at one (1). The teams continued to battle in the second and heading into the second intermission the Fusion were up 3-2. The Phantom’s Ashley Gray tied the game early in the third, but this was short lived. Jackie Lang scored her second of the game 50 seconds after the Gray marker. The Fusion held on to win 4-3.
2009-2010 Midget Female AAA Regular Season Standings
|
Team
|
Games Played
|
Win
|
Loss
|
Tie
|
Points
|
|
Thompson-Okanagan Rockets
|
3
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
|
Vancouver Fusion
|
3
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
|
Kootenay Wildcats
|
3
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
5
|
|
Prince George Cougars
|
3
|
0
|
2
|
1
|
1
|
|
Fraser Valley Phantom
|
3
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
|
Vancouver Island Impact
|
3
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
The next weekend of Female Midget AAA League play will be October 23-25 in Nelson, BC.
The Female Midget AAA League was initiated in the 2007-2008 season in response to the membership’s desire to provide an opportunity for elite female hockey players to come together on zone teams to challenge other elite Female Midget teams.