Chris Stedile
Castlegar News
A local Grade 8 girl along with a team of extremely talented young hockey players knocked the socks off parents and coaches alike in the US earlier this month.
Faithe Harris was just one of the several BC girls chosen to play in the North American Prospects Showcase Tournament in Chicago.
The 2001 Selects — their year of birth — played six games against American teams and not only came out on top in each bout, but achieved shutouts in four of the six games.
Faithe’s mother and supporter Carmen Harris said: “The team is composed of girls from around the province, mainly the Lower Mainland so it’s a big deal for a local girl to make the team and furthermore for that Canadian team to win that international tournament.”
Carmen explained that this tournament was a way to introduce these young kids to the post-secondary school system and possibilities across the border for rising hockey stars.
“[Faithe] loved it and she’s just as excited to travel to Winnipeg later this year too,” Carmen added.
A similar tournament is being held in the coming months based around the same principle of introducing and familiarizing the youth with post-secondary schools and hockey, only this time in Canada.
The competition in Chicago this year was fierce.
The West Coast Selects consist of top females from the US who travel the world and win nearly every event they are in. They won this tournament last year and two years ago and also won the U14 tournament in Finland last year against other countries.
The U14 Chicago Young Americans were the state and regional champions and won the U14 bronze medal at the US Hockey Arena National Championships this year, but despite all these accomplishments, were no match for our Canadian girls. In fact, the girls were almost too much for themselves to handle, as BC Select team coach Tracey Warren explained.
In the final minutes of the final game, the girls almost dashed their own dreams of taking first place, with a goal on their own net in the closing minutes. A shootout followed soon after and luckily the team kept it together for the final win.
Warren said: “Everyone was simply amazing and each player had some special skill that they brought together like a puzzle to contribute to a total team effort.
“The girls really played well against some teams that have played together all year and got stronger each game. The coaching staff are really proud of how hard the girls worked and what the group accomplished.”