The weekend of January 17–19 ended in a proud moment for the U14 Eastman Heat ringette team when they experienced their very own gold medal moment.
According to the team’s head coach, Mark Ratz, it was an exceptional accomplishment.
“This was really special because this team is only the second Manitoba team in 24 years to ever win a gold medal here,” says Ratz.
Calgary’s annual competition is known as the Esso Golden Ring tournament, a prestigious affair that brings out around 170 ringette teams from across Canada to compete.
“Alberta has produced, year after year, some of the top players who actually end up playing for Team Canada ringette,” Ratz says. “Playing out there helps us, when we’re developing and young, to see where we can work on stuff and how we [measure up].”
U14 Eastman Heat played five games throughout the weekend, including the championship. Each one, Ratz says, kept the coaches and parents on the edge of their seats.
“We had one loss in the round robin, but every game that we won was won by one goal,” Ratz muses.
Ironically, it was a rival team from Regina that took silver medal in the end.
“We met them twice for gold medal matches in other tournaments and, each time, we’ve only come away with silver. So beating them in [Calgary] for the gold medal was a real challenge for the girls.”
The U14 Eastman Heat are made up of exceptional ringette players from across eastern Manitoba. Seven of the players hail from Niverville and the rest come from places like Lorette, Beausejour, and Oakbank.
Ratz hails from the Dufresne area and has been coaching ringette for the better part of 12 years. He coaches alongside his daughter Taylor and a couple of her teammates from their own Eastman Heat days.
The fact that Ratz is still coaching long after his daughter aged out of the program is testament to the kind of dad he is. While he could walk away feeling accomplished, he stays on to enjoy the rewards of watching his daughter become a successful coach in her own right.
For years now, the Eastman Heat have had a special way of paying tribute to the teammate chosen player of the game. It’s a faux fur coat the player gets to don during post-game celebrations.
The U14 team’s goalie, Layne Wallace from Niverville, had the honour of wearing the fur coat following the team’s gold medal win.
“We’re very proud of this team because it’s a pretty powerful accomplishment for them,” Ratz concludes. “It demonstrates for them in real life how, if you put in that effort and work, it can lead to some magical things.”
