U15 Stars ranked #15 in province

LEAMINGTON — The Southpoint Stars U15 hockey team currently sits in first place in the Southwest ‘A’ Division of the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association, while being ranked #15 in Ontario.

The Stars are just wrapping up their regular season and are poised to take on the Chatham-Kent Crush in a two-game playdown to see who moves on to the provincial championships April 8-10.

“Being new to Southpoint, we really didn’t know what to expect,” says head coach Marc Arthrell. “But the association has been extremely accommodating to us.”

The girls have had a successful month so far, with their most recent wins being over Chatham-Kent and Bluewater. They are battling Bluewater for that first place position in the standings.

Even with one of the youngest rosters in the province, the Stars have excelled and are competing very well against teams with more experienced rosters.

The U15 Southpoint Stars in a recent photo taken at Wheatley Arena. Back row, from left: Grace Ondracka, Meridith Coulter, Sadie Helgerman, Jacqueline DesRosiers, Jocalin Hastings, Megan Derbyshire, Evelyn Albano, Adriana West, Jaclyn Weston, Cassie Isberg. Front row, from left: Addison Minello, Lily Seal, Elizabeth Arthrell, Brynn Bellmore, Sidney Kelly, Chelsey Benoit and Emily Owen. Team staff (not pictured) are coaches Marc Arthrell, Jack Weston, Craig Owen and Michael Seal, manager Nikki Bellmore and trainers Misty Ondracka and Anna West.

Photo submitted

According to Arthrell, they are planning a jump to AA hockey next season.

“We’re very excited about icing an AA team, which is the top tier of hockey in the province,” he said. “We’ve set our goal to be among the top 10 teams in the province next year.”

With the Winter Olympics on the world’s stage right now, the Stars are peaking at just the right time as Canadian hockey fans turn their attention to what the Canadian women’s team is doing.

The OWHA is widely recognized as the best girls’ hockey league in North America and Arthrell is eager to see what his team can do.

“Being a top-10 team in that league is quite an accomplishment for a small association like Southpoint,” he says.

On Saturday, Feb. 12 the Stars skated to a 4-1 win over the London Devilettes U15A Majors.

The locals prevailed in a very physical game, led by Emily Owen who potted a goal and added two assists. Adriana West scored twice, with the other goal going to Jacqueline DesRosiers. Grace Ondracka got the win in goal.

On Sunday, Feb. 13 the locals hosted the London Devilettes U15 Minors and came away with a big shutout victory by a 3-0 count. They remain undefeated at home. Brynn Bellmore led the way with two goals, while Megan Derbyshire contributed the single. Cassie Isberg recorded the shutout.

The Stars host Chatham-Kent Crush in Wheatley at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 17 for game one of their playdowns. A trip to the provincials is on the line.

They will follow that up at Forest Glade Arena on Sunday, Feb 20 as they host Chatham-Kent at 2 p.m.

“We’d love to have you come out and cheer us on,” says Arthrell.