Thunder Bay Queens Back to Back Tourney Wins

CLOQUET, Minn. – Make it back-to-back tournament titles for the Thunder Bay Manshield Construction bantam A Queens.

Fresh off being crowned Queens Showcase champions a week ago Thunder Bay continued their stellar play by rolling to the Traveling Cup title in Cloquet, Minn. over the weekend.

Riding the stalwart goaltending of Taylor Gombola and Samantha Stubbs, who were both flawless, the Queens posted four consecutive shutouts en route to the Cup in Cloquet, including a 5-0 victory over the Grand Rapids-Greenway Lightning in the final Sunday.

Game 1 played Friday saw the side blank the Owatonna Huskies 5-0.

After a scoreless opening period the Queens got tallies from Delaney McLeod and Allyson Lesperance to go up 2-0 after two periods of play.

Thunder Bay then put the game away in the third tacking on three more markers off the sticks of Ellen Svane, Shealagh Hennessey and Katrina Cimini to wrap-up the game 1 victory.

Svane, Lesperance, Victoria Zieroth and Alyssa Piccolo all aided the cause with assists in the triumph.

A pair of games Saturday saw Thunder Bay produce similar results as they blitzed the Mahtomedi Lakers 7-0 before going even further as they dropped Lichfield-Cassel-Cokato of Minnesota 9-0.

Caitlyn Arella and McLeod both tallied twice in the romp over the Lakers with Hanna Johnston, Jessie Page and Cimini supplying singles.

It was all Thunder Bay vs. LDC as well with Cimini notching a hat-trick in the one sided triumph.

McLeod chipped in with a pair while Johnston, Svane, Lesperance and Tia Lampo also got in on the scoring barrage. Lesperance also dished out two assists.

Moving on to the final Sunday against a previously unbeaten Grand Rapids-Greenway side it was all Queens once again.

Zieroth had two of the goals, including the game-winner, to send Thunder Bay on their way to another gold medal.

After Zieroth opened the scoring Lampo lit the lamp to put the bantam A squad up a pair through one period of play.

It remained that way until the latter stages of the third when then Queens clinched it on markers by Zieroth, Piccolo and Lesperance.

The club will go in search of a tournament three-peat in their next out of town action, which goes Jan. 7-9 when they travel to northern Minnesota once again to compete in the Grand Rapids Star of the North event.