By Josh Bell
The father-son Nepean Knights lacrosse duo of Willem and coach Matt Firth were one of many local athletes to become Canadian champions this summer, winning gold at the July 31-Aug. 6 Peewee National Championships in Whitby.
Alongside fellow Knights player Cole Bowditch, the Firths went undefeated with Team Ontario at the tournament, outscoring their opponents 88-9, with 3 shutouts.
“Lacrosse is a lot deeper in Ontario for sure,” explains Matt Firth. “We have a higher caliber of lacrosse teams and programs and therefore players to pick from. So when you’re picking from the best of the best in Ontario, inevitably the team is going to be very skilled and very strong.
“We were kind of the favorites going into it, but the competition was tight, especially at the end. It’s a very significant accomplishment, so I’m very happy.”
Though his job as coach came first, Firth says it was “special” to win the national crown with his son on the team.
“There were 18 runners in total and 2 goalies, so I was pretty busy with what I was doing on the bench, and some of the time I forgot that he was there probably,” notes Firth, a former Ottawa Axemen player himself. “That realization sunk in for me kind of more after the fact when we were on the floor celebrating and you realize he’s right there beside you. It was pretty cool.”
Willem, who represented Ontario for the second straight year, also says he enjoyed having his father there.
“I was pretty excited to win,” adds the younger Firth. “It was a really fun experience.”
The Nepean organization has slowly but continuously seen a rise in representation at the nationals, reaching an all-time high of seven this year.
Knights goaltender Will Johnston competed at the Aug. 2-6 Bantam nationals in Saskatoon, playing and winning his four games in net, including the 13-1 championship game to give another undefeated Ontario team a gold medal.
That came on the heels of four champs from the Female lacrosse nationals in July – Bantam players Hailey Gibbons and Kayle Smith Osborne (along with Gloucester’s Leah Young) and Midget players Hunter Gibbons and Brianna Rino (with Gloucester’s Camryn Gallagher).
“It’s not something that happens overnight, it’s kind of gradually been building to this,” says the elder Firth. “We are attracting strong athletes into our lacrosse programs that are developing under good coaching with other strong athletes.
“I think elevating Nepean teams to play at the ‘A’ level – the highest level they can play in Ontario – that only makes them better, and makes them able to compete for spots on the provincial team.”
The Knights Midget ‘B’ girls’ team also won a title at the July 27-Aug. 9 Ontario Lacrosse Championships, while the Gloucester Griffins were silver medallists in the Novice ‘D’ and Bantam ‘B’ divisions.
“I think it’s a reflection of all the hard work that the players put into getting better, and the hard work that the parents, volunteers and coaches put into providing a great program for the kids,” signals Gloucester club president Greg Rampley. “From that perspective, it’s rewarding to see. I think overall there’s been a lot of growth in the program and in our player development overall.”
Swim, basketball & volleyball titles
Ottawa athletes claimed national crowns in a number of other sports in August.
Following his gold medal performances in the boys’ age 17-18 50-meter and 100 m butterfly at the July 27-Aug. 1 Canadian Age Group Swimming Championships in Calgary, Ottawa Swim Club’s Alex Perreault placed 6th in the men’s 100 m fly and 4th with the Canadian men’s 4×100 m medley relay team at the Aug. 24-27 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Hawaii.
Also landing on the podium at nationals were Finn Tucker (Ottawa Swim Club) and Dylan Byers and Alexandre Auster of the Greater-Ottawa Kingfish.
Products of the Ottawa Shooting Stars and Gloucester Wolverines clubs respectively, Ottawa Nationals Junior Elite League teammates Marin Scotten and Julia Chadwick won national titles with Team Ontario at the July 24-31 17U Women’s National Basketball Championship in Regina.
The Nepean Blue Devils’ Merissah Russell won bronze with the Fabienne Blizzard-coached Ontario U15 girls, while Ottawa Youth Basketball Academy players David Quinn and Owen Boisvert earned silver with the Ontario 17U team at the boys’ nationals on the same dates in Winnipeg, and Kanata Youth Basketball’s Darius DeAveiro and Ben Shoveller took bronze with the Ontario 15Us.
Ottawa Mavericks setter Maxime St-Denis and Ottawa Fusion libero Ethan Kalef were national champs with Team Ontario at the July 14-17 National Team Challenge Cup in Kingston.
Mavs middle Ella Stewart and left-side Alex Zakutney won a silver medal with the Ontario Red U16 girls’ volleyball team at the women’s NTCC tournament on the same dates in Richmond, B.C. Zakutney was also selected to the national youth team development program.
On the heels of their bronze at the NTCCs, Mavs setter Rebecca Maxwell and right-side Mia Workman won bronze with the Ontario 17U girls’ team at the July 19-23 USA Volleyball High Performance Championships in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Mavs club and Louis-Riel high school coach François St-Denis served as an assistant for the bronze medal-winning Canadian junior men’s national team at the NORCECA U21 Continental Championship in Gatineau.