The Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Northern Zone Championships are under way at the St. Albert Gymnastics Club.
The Alberta Gymnastics Federation sanctioned meet features 158 gymnasts from 16 clubs. The event determines the northern Alberta qualifiers for the April 16 to 18 provincials, hosted by the Dynamyx Gymnastics Club of St. Albert at Performance Arena. The top 12 all-around ranked provincial level 2 and 3 gymnasts per age group and level advance.
Today there are three sessions scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and two sessions Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Visit www.sagc.squarespace.com for more information.
The season is over for the St. Albert Flyers after going the distance with the Spruce Grove PAC Saints in the north conference semifinal in the Alberta Minor Midget Hockey League.
In the fifth and deciding game Sunday in Spruce Grove, bantam AAA Sabres’ call-up Luke Mahura scored twice and Jed Groenenboom and Carson Samoridny notched singles in the 6-4 loss.
Max Cathcart stopped 28 shots between the pipes. The Flyers fired a combined 33 shots at goalies Joel Wilson and Courtney Kostiuk.
Assistant coach Bill Pratt said ultimately the series and season for the Flyers goes back to game one when they were shut out 4-0 in Spruce Grove.
“To look from game one to five, it was a complete reversal from where we started. We gave them game one. They came in prepared and much more intense than we did. They outworked us and dominated us in game one,” Pratt said. “We were able to turn it around and pick up a couple games but couldn't close it out. But the last four games we played much better and gave them a test, so we we’re happy in that regard.”
In the do-or-die playoff tilt the Flyers gave it their best shot.
“The most you can ask out of your players in [a deciding playoff game] is that they leave nothing in the dressing room and put it all out on the ice. I think from a performance, effort and intensity point of view, we did that,” Pratt said. “We didn't have some very good breaks but in terms of generating offence and shots, we did a lot of things right.”
Pratt heard rumblings early in the season that expectations were low for the Flyers. Instead, they finished third in the north and fifth overall out of 26 teams with a 22-8-4 record, while losing to the second best team in both the division and the league.
“If you can bring intensity at this level and a focus, it doesn't matter what players start out as, as long as they commit and focus. There's no limit, to use a bad clichĂ©. At the end of the day you want to win championships, but this group did overachieve from an outsider’s perspective and it was because of the work they put in.”
