The U13LL Up Right Roofing Highland Storm participated in the 24th annual regional Silver Stick in Haliburton this past weekend.

Heading into their second game of the tournament, the Storm knew they needed a win over the Ennismore Eagles White team to give themselves a chance of advancing.

Kicking off the must-win effort was defenceman Callum Merritt, picking off a pass through the neutral zone and beating the Eagles defence on his way to open the scoring late in the first period. Duncan Evans-Fockler quickly added to the lead seconds later from a nice feed from defenceman Liam Milburn.

Jacob Manning’s two-way play and hard work was a constant throughout the game.

More offence was on the menu for the Storm. Claire Hamilton gave the Ennismore defence little time to control the puck and helped her team keep the puck in the offensive zone. Aiden Innes and Gibson Pockett battled hard on the boards, helping their team gain possession of the puck. Katie Lavalle’s aggressive play in front of the net caused trouble for the Eagles goalie.

Ennismore scored twice in the middle frame, however captain Lucas Upton’s first of the tournament would later prove to be the game-winner.

Defencemen Lucas Vale and Patrick Valentini, working both ends of the ice, added to the tally, scoring their firsts of the tournament either side of the buzzer.

Overall, the Highland Storm Up Right Roofing team had a great tournament. Goaltenders Matthew Meuller and Corbin Elliot took turns in net this weekend and were a big reason the Storm was able to advance to the semi-finals, breaking a three-way tie with least goals against