Ring drops on Western Canada Championships Manitoba looking to celebrate milestone with ringette titles By: Joshua Frey-Sam Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Thursday, Mar. 30, 2023 Last Modified: 12:15 PM CDT Friday, Mar. 31, 2023 Updates

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It’s the biggest tournament in Western Canada and it is being staged during a monumental year Manitoba for ringette.

The ring dropped on the 2023 Western Canadian Championships on Thursday in Winnipeg. Nearly 500 of the best players from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia have gathered to represent 25 teams across four divisions for the three-day event.

Fittingly, Manitoba hosts the tournament as Ringette Manitoba celebrates its 50th anniversary. It’s also the first time since 2017 that Winnipeg has hosted the event.

Manitoba not only has a representing team in each of four age divisions (U14AA, U16A, U19A and Open (18+A), but will also ice a second team in both the U16A and U19A divisions. Round-robin play will continue Friday while playoff matchups take place Saturday, with games being held at Seven Oaks Arena and East End Community Centre.

All signs point to Manitoba’s U19A squad making a deep run this weekend.

“I’m so excited,” said centre Taylor Ratz, 19. “Obviously, I’m so proud of the team because I’ve played with most of them for five years now. They’re really like my closest friends at this point, so I’m so proud to be able to do it with them and stay together as a team for that long.

“We’ve all gelled together quite well. I’d say it’s a huge component to a team. We really learned how our players play and where they are on the ice, so it’s not so much skill at this point. It’s knowing your players and where they are.”

Ratz has played ringette for 14 years but is competing in her first Western championships. Success came quickly as she scored in Manitoba’s opening game, a dominant 7-1 triumph over Saskatchewan.

“I’m trying to keep it lighthearted, not take it too seriously, because if we get down on ourselves, that’s make or break for the team then. Our coaches have gone to Westerns before, so I’ve learned a lot from them and how to approach this,” Ratz said.

The squad is hoping win a U19 gold medal for the province for the first time since 2019. Manitoba has fared the best in Open (18+) A division recently, winning gold five times since 2008.

“This has been our goal from the beginning of the season,” said Mark Ratz, Taylor’s father and head coach of the U19A team. “We knew there were steps to get there, but we’ve had our sights on playing Westerns right from Day 1. We’ve made that our goal along with winning provincials so we’re here now.

“Anytime you achieve those goals, you feel pretty proud and you feel pretty good about your game, and our momentum has been moving forward from game to game since Day 1.”

Of the Manitoba-born players most likely to turn heads this week, Ava Hepburn ranks near the top. The 13-year-old forward is playing in her second Westerns, and is considered one of the bright up-and-comers.

“Definitely the team bonding experience and just playing all the other teams and having fun with it,” Hepburn said of what she enjoys most about the event. “I feel like we are really excited and we’re gelling pretty good. The team is together really well.”

Hepburn, who represents the BVRA Blaze throughout the regular season, was going to quit skating altogether eight years ago after a brief stint with hockey, but decided to give ringette a try.

Turns out the teen enjoyed life as a ring handler instead and has made quite the name for herself since.

“I think (I want to) just take it as far as I can go. Keep on pushing myself and try to get as best as I can be,” Hepburn said. “It would be amazing (to win the WCRC). It would feel great. And it would definitely be a dream. Yeah, I really hope that does happen.”

Day passes are available at the door of Seven Oaks Arena or East End CC for $15, or $35 for the weekend. Children under 12 can watch for free.

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jfreysam

Joshua Frey-Sam
Reporter

Josh Frey-Sam reports on sports and business at the Free Press. Josh got his start at the paper in 2022, just weeks after graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College. He reports primarily on amateur teams and athletes in sports. Read more about Josh.

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