Bell Leads Canada at Women’ s U-18 Worlds
The United States beat Canada 3-1 in the final of the World Women’ s U-18 Hockey championship in Zlin, Czech Republic, but two Manitobans-- Ashton Bell, the rodeo champion from Deloraine, and Corinne Schroeder, the goalie from Balmoral Hall, played well for Canada during the tournament. Bell, who stars with the Westman Wildcats of the Manitoba Female Midget Hockey League, and Schroeder who teams with her sister Megan at BH, were named to a roster that also included assistant coach Delaney Collins of Pilot Mound, Man. Schroeder is one of the top goaltenders in the U. S.-based Junior Women’ s Hockey League. In eight games so far this season, she has a 2.50 goals against average and a. 928 save percentage on a team that is 6-3-5 through its first 14 games. Bell, meanwhile, is a very interesting two-sport athlete. For four years, she has competed in high school rodeos.
“ I started when I was in Grade 6,” she told hockeycanada. ca.“ I’ ve always just rode horses. There were a few people I knew who competed in it, so I just thought I’ d try it out.” She has competed in barrel racing, pole bending, goat tying and breakaway roping in the Manitoba High School Rodeo Association. Her best event was breakaway roping and although she qualified for nationals one year but couldn’ t compete because it interfered with a hockey camp.“ It’ s just a nice break to get away from hockey,” Bell said of her rodeo exploits.“ You can go out whenever and just ride. It’ s very relaxing.” Bell has already committed to play hockey at the University of North Dakota.
THE NOTEBOOK: For the second consecutive year, University of Manitoba Bisons captain Jordan DePape was named to the U Sports men’ s hockey roster for a special series of games against Canada’ s national junior men’ s team. The games were played before the World Junior at the Centre d’ Excellence Sports Rousseau, home of the QMJHL’ s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada … Colt Conrad from St. Alphonse, Man., scored the game-winning goal for Andy Murray’ s Western Michigan University Broncos at 11:55 of overtime to give the Broncos their first Great Lakes Invitational title since 2013. The championship game at Joe Louis Arena finished in a 1-0 victory for WMU over the Michigan Tech Huskies. Conrad was named a tournament all-star and GLI Tournament MVP … Led by top scorers Kyle Schroeder and Blake Burr, the City Triple A Midget Sharks went out to Banff and chewed up the competition. The Sharks defeated their league-rivals, the Winnipeg Warriors, in the semifinal and then beat Sherwood Park, Alberta’ s Strathcona Warriors 5-2 in the championship game to win the Banff Invitational Tournament... No one in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League has had a better year than Jeremey Leipsic. The Portage Terriers star, who leads the MJHL in scoring, has 22 goals and 68 points this season in his first 40 games. He’ s so far ahead in the scoring race, he leads the No. 2 scorer, his linemate Chase Brakel, by 10 points. In the month of December, Leipsic had five goals and 19 points in just nine games and was named MJHL Player of the Month for December. It’ s the second time this season that Leipsic has been named player of the month. He was also named Player of the Month for October when he had nine goals and 28 points in 14 games … And St. James Canucks veteran assistant captain Mitch Lockhart had a tremendous month of December. In six games, Lockhart had seven goals and 12 points and was named the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League’ s player of the month for December. n
DARBY GULA
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