The South Kent Lightning U18 Rep team participated in the Art Coombs Memorial Tournament in Paris, ON this last weekend and went all the way to the semi-finals.
To say the games were close is an understatement as they first faced the Kincardine Kinucks which ended with a blank slate. These teams faced each other in October at the Kincardine tournament with the same results, very evenly matched teams. The shut out goes to James Larsh and a tie for the Lightning. Later that same day, South Kent Lightning faced Oro Thunder in another closely matched duo. Lightning struck first with only 1.5 minutes left in the first period, when Quinn Pickering set up Cam Wellington for the goal. Six minutes into the second period, Carter Gates put away the insurance goal, assisted by Cory Beecroft and Mack Anderson. Less than two minutes later, Oro robbed Larsh of his second shut out and the third was a blanked period earning the Lightning of their first win.
Saturday’s game against the Delhi Rockets was fast paced and the highest scoring of the weekend. South Kent were able to score in each period, starting the first with Beecroft assisting on Anderson’s goal; in the second Beecroft scored, unassisted; and the third was Kolby Caughy scoring with Beecroft on the assist. Less than a minute after Caughy’s goal, Delhi was able to get on the board and steal the shut out from Daniel Rodger. Rodger’s goal tending, however, saved the game from a higher score. With a 3-1 win, South Kent moved on to the quarter finals in a good position with 5 points.
Sunday’s quarter final game against Saugeen Shores was another tight game which had plenty of shots on net but none made it past the goal line until the third period when, a minute in, Cory Beecroft put one in, assisted by Caughy and Pickering. Anderson soon duplicated it with Beecroft’s and Pickering’s help. Another shut out for Larsh and onto the Semi Finals for the Lightning, only to be duped by the South Grey Spartans. The Spartans scored within a minute of the game but it took South Kent the middle of the second to find an opening where Pickering netted the only goal, assisted by James Mifflin and Kolby Caughy. Unfortunately, the Spartans were able to get the winning goal a few minutes later to allow them to proceed to the finals. The team played some great hockey this weekend and didn’t disappoint their fans.
Earlier in the week, the Lightning had one league game against Mooretown Jr. Flags in another close one. In the second period, Caughy scored with help from Wellington and Beecroft for the only South Kent goal of the game. Less than a minute later, Mooretown scored and were able to get the winning goal with only a minute left in the game. This week, the Lightning face undefeated Wallaceburg Lakers and Lambton Shores Predators. South Kent Lightning U18 Rep team is sponsored by Taco Bell.