Intermediate Bandits capture tournament gold

The Caledon intermediate Bandits won gold at the recent Cambridge tournament. Shown are (front , l to r) Blair Garrish, Will Thomson Walker, Tim Sztorc, Andrew Dimaso, Richie Fuoco, (middle) Skylar Schmidt, Kirk Hutchinson, Mike Brilliantes, Field Burgoyne, (back) asst. coach Carl Shaw, Darren Jones, Jason Vasey, Cory Schittenhelm, (head coach) Sonny Sampson, Kevin Shaw, (trainer) Eddie Delrizzo, Jason St. Jean, Chris Reid, M.J. Kiekebelt, Iain Campbell, (asst. coach) Rick Fuoco, Kevin Lusk. Missing from photo were Marco Delrizzo, Jonathan Sousa, Paul Taylor.

The Caledon Bandit intermediate lacrosse team competed in the second annual Cambridge Chiefs Lacrosse Tournament and came away with gold! This was the Bandits' second tournament win as they previously won the Innisfil event.

The Bandits trailed in both the semifinal and championship games, forcing overtime to solidify the victories. Head Coach Sonny Sampson commented after the win; "offence sells tickets, defence wins championships."

Caledon's goals against average over six games was 2.83 per game.

Caledon 4,

Newmarket 3

Caledon opened the tournament against their league rivals Newmarket 1 Redbirds. Caledon relied on two third-period goals to put this game away.

Andrew Dimaso used his quick stick to lead the attack scoring a pair of goals. Tim Sztorc and Kevin Shaw each added a single marker to round out the scoring. M. J. Kiekebelt, Iain Campbell and Michael Brilliantes all earned assists on the goals. Netminder Richie Fuoco held the fort, holding the Redbirds to three goals.

London 4,

Caledon 2

The senior Bandits suffered their only loss of the tournament, falling 4-2 to a skilled London squad. Caledon trailed this game 4- 0 heading into the third period. Tim Sztorc and Jason St. Jean both scored in the final frame, with Campbell, Brilliantes and Dimaso all earning assists. Full marks to the London goaltender as he stopped Caledon's comeback with an outstanding game. The Bandits' netminder Blair Garrish stood tall in the nets for his Bandits and also was at the top of his game.

Caledon 6,

Mimico 0

Caledon won a berth in the quarterfinals shutting out Mimico 1. Penalties were a factor in this game as Caledon notched five power play goals.

Cory Schittenhelm opened the scoring unassisted. Dimaso added his third of the tournament hitting the top corner assisted by Darren Jones. M.J. Kiekebelt, Jones, Sztorc and power forward Michael Brilliantes each chipped in singles. Jason St. Jean controlled the play earning assists on Caledon's final two goals. Fuoco was solid guarding the cage for Caledon, recording his second shutout of the season. The Bandits' defensive core stuck to assistant coach Carl Shaw's game plan, limiting the Mountaineers' scoring chances. Kevin Shaw, Kirk Hutchinson, Marco Delrizzo, Jason Vasey, Chris Reid and Kevin Lusk were all on the honor list.

Caledon 5,

Kitchener 2

M.J. Kiekebelt showed his talent leading Caledon to the semifinal notching a pair of highlight reel goals. St. Jean, Field Burgoyne and Brillantes finished off the attack for Caledon.

Caledon 6,

London 4 (overtime)

Caledon trailed the first period 2-1 as speedy Burgoyne lit the lamp for the Bandits. London continued to lead and opened up a two goal lead at the end of the second period. St. Jean, who had been solid throughout this tournament, scored back-to-back goals for his team and trailed London by one. Caledon pressed with many shots turned away by a hot London netminder. With 2:13 remaining, Sztorc weaved his way through the London defence and sent this game to overtime with a bullet of a shot. Sztorc became the Bandits' hero scoring the game winner assisted by Dimaso and Brilliantes. Will Thomson Walker converted St. Jean's pass adding an insurance goal to solidify a trip to the finals.

Championship

Caledon 5,

Elora 4 (overtime)

The Bandits matched up with Elora who eliminated Newmarket 1 in overtime to setup the gold medal game.

Caledon took a 2-1 first period lead on goals from Kiekebelt and Sztorc with his sixth goal of the tournament. Caledon again faced hot goaltending and fell behind by one at the end of the second period. Fatigue set in for both teams playing in their sixth game of the tournament. With just 34 seconds remaining on the clock, Brilliantes tied this game on a perfect pass from Jonsey who setup behind the Elora netminder.

At the 1:24 mark of overtime Brilliantes again rose to the top scoring the game winner assisted by Dimaso and Skylar Schmidt. The intermediate Bandits were presented with gold medals at the closing ceremonies. The Bandits will now prepare for a trip to Ottawa to complete their tournament schedule.