Canadian Lacrosse Association – OTTAWA, ON (July 27, 2016) – The Canadian Lacrosse Association (CLA) Female Box Lacrosse National Championships, the first national tournament of the 2016 season, came to an exciting end in Calgary, Alta., this past weekend, with Team Ontario capturing two gold medals and Team Alberta winning the other.

A total of 10 all-star teams, comprised of over 300 athletes and coaches, competed for gold throughout the week-long competition. The provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Ontario, as well as the First Nations Lacrosse Association, were all represented at the event, which had three divisions of play (Bantam, Midget, and Senior).

During the opening ceremonies on July 18, the country’s best female box lacrosse athletes had the honour of listening to Haley Irwin, two-time Olympic gold medalist in ice hockey and member of the Calgary Inferno of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL).

After the opening ceremonies, it was non-stop action on the floor, culminating with some memorable medal matches.

“Once again this year, the medal games were very exciting,” said tournament organizer Kevin Murray. “We had crowds that ranged from 250 to 500 fans for the gold medal games. The finals were also webcasted so that friends and family members back home could watch the action online.”

Kayle Osborne, who led the division in scoring with 19 points (12 G, 7 A), scored twice to guide her Ontario squad to a 4-1 win over British Columbia and capture the Bantam gold medal. Tori Verbeek added a goal and an assist for Ontario, a team that was pretty dominant throughout the tournament, finishing with a 6-1 record.

British Columbia were not able to fend off a third period offensive surge from Ontario in the Midget finals, eventually falling by a score of 7-5. Ontario was able to claw back from a deficit thanks to a balanced attack that saw Camryn Gallagher, Chelsea Campbell and Clare Johnston each tally two points. Leading the scoring for Team BC was Raachel Beaulieu (1 G, 2 A) and Kaila Barteski (1 G, 1 A).

The win from Ontario ended British Columbia’s four year streak of winning gold in the Midget division.

The bronze medal in the midget division was awarded to the host province Alberta, after a decisive 6-1 win over Nova Scotia. Hannah Bourget (1 G, 2 A) scored three points, while Adrienne Boudreau (2 G), Kennedy Conn (2 G) and Erin Tocheniuk (2 A) added two each.

The action was capped off with another Alberta medal, this time gold in the senior division thanks to a 9-2 win over First Nations. Tabatha Aldcroft led the way with three points, while five other teammates finished the game with two. The host team finished the tournament with a perfect 7-0 record.

It is evident that the level of skill in female box lacrosse is steadily improving, which is a positive sign as the discipline continues to grow throughout the country.

“The crowds were loud and the emotions were high,” said tournament convenor Stew Begg. “The skill level was exceptional, leaving some of the U.S. post-secondary scouts in attendance memorized with the level of play.”

After two successful years in Calgary, the CLA Female Box Lacrosse National Championships will move to the east coast for the 2017 and 2018 seasons, with Lacrosse Nova Scotia taking over the hosting duties.

For more information on the event, including box scores and player statistics, visit http://pointstreaksites.com/view/femalenationals/2016-female-box-lacrosse-nationals-homepage.

About the Canadian Lacrosse Association           

Founded in 1867, the Canadian Lacrosse Association (CLA) is the governing body responsible for all aspects of lacrosse in Canada. Our organization is comprised of 10 Member Associations representing nearly 80,000 individual participants, including coaches, officials, and athletes of all ages and abilities. The CLA’s mission is to honour the sport of lacrosse and its unique nation-building heritage, by engaging our members, leading our partners, and providing opportunities for all Canadians to participate. We strive to accomplish this while adhering to our core values of health, excellence, accountability, respect and teamwork. The CLA oversees the delivery of numerous national championships and the participation of Team Canada at all international events sanctioned by the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL). The CLA is proud to be affiliated with partners that share the same vision and values, including our corporate partners – New Balance Athletics, Warrior Sports, Westjet, and Baron Rings – as well as our funding partners the Government of Canada, the Coaching Association of Canada, and the Canadian Lacrosse Foundation. For more information on Canadian Lacrosse Association and the sport of lacrosse, visit our website at www.lacrosse.ca and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

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For more information, please contact:
 

Alain Brouillette

Communications and Marketing Coordinator
Canadian Lacrosse Association
Phone: 613-260-2028 ext. 302
Email: alain@lacrosse.ca