Three Quesnel teams were in Terrace for an earthquake-truncated ringette tournament.
After two games a-piece for the U10 novice and U12 petite and one and most-of-a-second for the U14 tween team, the teams made the decision to drop the Sunday portion of the tournament and come home.
“As a result of the this traumatic experience, all Quesnel teams decided we would cancel our remaining games and travel back to Quesnel on Sunday morning,” U14 tween coach Kevin Christieson said.
Before the quake, the girls had posted an impressive record in the tournament.
The U10 novice team had won both of it’s games. Their first win came against Prince George, with a final score of
9-5.
Their second, and last, game of the tournament was an even more decisive 11-1 win over Houston.
The U12 tween team had a mixed record on Saturday. Their first game, against Houston, was a mark in the right category, with the Quesnel girls coming out on top of the Houston girls, 13-10.
Their second game was a tougher haul, against Terrace, which they lost, 7-13
The U14 girls dominated in their first game against Houston, 15-0.
Things were going well against Terrace, with Quesnel on top 70-2 with seven minutes left in the game, when the earthquake hit.
“It was a terrifying experience for the players still on the ice, coaches, and parents watching in the stands,” Christieson said.
“It felt as though the arena was about to come down on us.
“The beams on the roof were swaying, the cement was moving throughout the arena and there were a lot of tears and panic.
“The shaking seemed to last for a long time and the players took shelter along the boards and were then taken off the ice to a dressing room where they took off only their skates and then had to evacuate the arena.”
With that interruption and the players being quite shaken up, the teams decided to head home early Sunday and skip out on their final games.
