The luck of the draw challenged the Rockyview Junior Ladies Silvertips right out of the gate last weekend – squaring off against the top teams in their league for their first two games of the year.
“We were short bench and we were up against the toughest teams in the league. What we put out this weekend was phenomenal,” said Jaimie Betterton, the team’s new captain. “It kind of gets the intimidation off for the rest of the season – as soon as you’re out there and you face one team, it makes it easier the next time.”
The Silvertips box lacrosse squad hit the road to take on the Sherwood Park Titans on Saturday – the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League’s 2016 provincial gold medal winners – followed by a battle on Sunday against the Edmonton Saints, who took the league’s silver medal.
Rookie goalie Payton Gammon took 80 shots in the first game, with Cochrane’s Mikayla Miller taking 72 in the second. Samantha Mathews put the ‘Tips on the board the first game, with Christina Olver,
Rookies Lauren Murphy and Kara Kondrat rounded out the points in Game 2.
Though the final scores weren’t in the Silvertips favour, with losses of 9-1 and 12-5 respectively, coach Todd Betterton said the girls put in a winning effort.
“We weren’t surprised with the outcome, but we were really happy with what we saw in terms of the team jelling,” said Todd. “The girls worked hard to the very end of both games – a coach couldn’t ask for anything more than that … I just want us to be able to compete every game despite what level of team we might play against.”
The Junior Ladies Silvertips formed last year with players from Cochrane, Strathmore, Calgary, Airdrie and more, and finished the regular season in fourth place.
This season, the team needed to be born again – with eight rookies, and a new captain and assistant captain since last year’s aged out of the system, along with six other stickballers.
Betterton, who at 19 years old still has two more years to play at the junior level, said while this year’s Silvertips roster is young – only four players are out of high school – she hopes to foster an environment that’s both competitive and filled with camaraderie.
“A goal as a captain for me – my biggest thing is just making sure that the team is not caught up on win or loses –since we‘re a team that’s building,” she said. “If you’re a first year junior now, you’re spending five years with this team. (It’s about) creating those bonds on and off the court.”
