Montana Spicer looks for a passing option at the Junior State Championships. Photos: supplied
The Junior State Hockey Championships were held across Shepparton and Bendigo at the weekend and Echuca-Moama was well represented.
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Ayla Berryman, Montana Spicer, Georgia Thorpe and Nash Berryman were selected for the under-14 competitions in the North West Lightning, the team chosen from players in the Central Vic, Kerang, North Central, Sunraysia, Wimmera and Goulburn Valley regions.
Local Mick Gulson coached Ayla, Montana and Georgia in the under-14 girls’ Lightning, which competed against the eight other regions in three days of intense competition in Shepparton.
Nash Berryman gets the ball forward.
The lightning had mixed results in the pool stages, managing draws against the Gippsland Bulls and South West Eagles, but losing their other four fixtures.
This saw the side seeded into a seventh-place play-off against the Eagles, where the Lightning prevailed 2-1, earning seventh and placing as the highest of the three non-metro sides.
Ayla Berryman maintains close control.
Meanwhile, Nash competed with the under-14 boys’ Lightning in Bendigo.
The Lightning picked up a big win in the second game of pool action, defeating Gippsland 6-1, with Nash getting his name on the score sheet.
However, things weren’t as easy in their other fixtures, and they also found themselves in a seventh-place play-off.
Georgia Thorpe battles for possession.
Down 2-1, the Lightning snatched a late draw, but it wasn’t enough to push them above opponents North West Tigers in the overall standings and the side finished eighth.
The championships were a selection event for the under-14s Victorian squad, with the team to be announced in the next week.
All four local players have been building impressive resumes in recent years, both locally and in representative teams, and are prospects to watch in the future.
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