Myer boys top Westlane in SOSSA curling final
It was an all-Niagara Falls battle in the boys final at Tuesday’s Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association curling championships at the Welland Curling Club.
When the last rock was thrown, A.N. Myer advanced to the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations championships March 20-23 in North Bay with a 6-3 victory over Westlane.
“It was close and luckily we got a couple of steals,” Myer vice Davis Gollert said. “We are good at stealing, although, normally it is a disadvantage for teams to not have the hammer.
“That’s where we are comfortable and there’s no pressure to score.”
Myer, which includes skip Victor Pietrangelo, second James Harvie, lead Nick Simmonds and alternate Nathan Koop, advanced to the final by defeating Westmount 7-5 earlier in the day.
The 16-year Gollert feels his team’s mental makeup is what gives it an edge over the competition.
“We like to stay positive, we work well together and even if we mess up, we are going to come back,” the Grade 11 student said. “Our first (SOSSA) game wasn’t our best, but we really came back for this one and got the win.”
He feels the Myer team has made great strides since the start of the season.
“We’re a lot better,” he said. “Two of the guys on the team had never curled in their lives before and, for me, this was my first year of high school curling.
“We’re making more shots, we know more strategy and curling terms and we’re getting our weight down.”
Myer, which won a bronze medal at the Gore provincials, heads to OFSAA with a big goal in mind.
“We’re going to try and win it,” Gollert said. “We know we are going to be one of the better teams there, we know we can compete against all the teams and I think we have what it takes to win.”
A.N. Myer, 4-2 in Niagara Region High School Athletic Association league play, defeated Jean Vanier 14-2 in the NRHSAA Zone 3 semifinals and then knocked off Westlane 11-4 in the Zone 3 final. In the overall Zone 3 final, Myer dumped Saint Paul 11-3.
Westlane, made up of skip Daniel Krowchuk, vice Ben Rogen, second Indiana Stoakley and lead Niles Chamberland, advanced to the SOSSA final with an 8-3 victory over Grimsby.
The team was tied with A.N. Myer 3-3 after five ends before Myer pulled away at the end.
“It was a pretty tight game,” Krowchuk said. “I think we played a good game, but it just didn’t work out.”
The 18-year-old was happy with this team’s season.
“This is my third season skipping in my time in high school and we haven’t got out of zone before,” he said. “This was my first SOSSA and we went to Gore provincials this year.”
The Grade 12 student saw his team made big improvements this season.
“At the start of the season, we were pretty rough and it has been almost exponential growth in our skill and consistency.”
Krowchuk will graduate high school this year and is planning on trying out for the curling team at the University of Guelph.
Westlane, 4-2 in NRHSAA league play, edged E.L. Crossley 7-5 in the semifinals before losing to A.N. Myer in the NRHSAA Zone 3 final. Westlane then qualified for SOSSA by defeating Saint Paul 10-2 in a challenge game.
The Zone 4 championship team from Grimsby was made up of skip Andrew Houston, vice Adam Moor, second Matthew Murray, lead Adam Cameron and alternate Quintin Files.
After going 3-2 in league play, Grimsby beat Sir Winston Churchill 12-2 in the NRHSAA semifinals and then defeated previously undefeated Eden 9-3 in the Zone 4 final. In the overall Zone 4 final, Grimsby defeated Denis Morris 9-4.
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