Beaconsfield’s SOTG Tournament
The Beaconsfield Junior High team held their first ever SOTG tournament on January 12th -13th, soon to become a semi-annual event. Due to floor renovations, the tournament was delayed from the weekend of December 9 th , the 11 th of which was international SOTG day. Originally 8 teams were registered, but only 4 teams were unable to participate. In December’s tournament (2018), a “miscellaneous” team will beinvited to play (from schools that may only have a few players) so that all players who want to can toss a disc (MISC team name was borrowed from the national junior girl’s team in 2015). Teams that did participate include St. Matthew’s Elementary, and junior high teams from Villanova, St. Kevin’s and Beaconsfield.
Part of the SOTG focus was reflected in a PINK WALL display, where participants were encouraged to share their past or recent SOTG stories, some of which are mentioned below:
Claire (St. Matthew’s Elementary) will receive a $20 UNL merchandise voucher for her entry: “There was one girl on Villanova that helped me up when I fell and kept saying good job and keep trying.”
Leah (BJH) stated “… a kid got the disc, but was told it was out. He wasn’t sure, (but) he agreed that it was out. They got most spirited player.”
Sophie (VJH) said “Last tournament we had no subs. We lost our games, except the last one, by one point, and it felt so amazing, and that’s when we really became a team.
Maddi (BJH) noted “My SOTG story was this morning…we had an amazing and spirited game against VJH. Lots of calls about out and in, foul or not were done fairly and everyone had a smile ”
Cody (SKJH) commented “Today we won the championship, and the other teams had awesome sportsmanship, following rules, etc.”
Abby (BJH) wrote “…on day one of the tournament, St. Matthew’s decided that instead of not saying anything and gaining in a point, they decided to call themselves out.”
Jason (SME Coach) shared “My favourite SOTG moment was watching others be helpful and respectful. Especially after a hard play or slip. One individual at Beaconsfield stood out in this, always congratulating others on great offense as well as
good defense.”
Matthew (BJH) wrote “I was at provincials last year and I caught the disc one handed, but then ran out of bounds. That team let us keep possession because they thought my catch was nice, even thought they should have taken possession.”
Dawson (BJH) shared “…in this tournament….against Villanova team….one player caught the disc halfway outside the end zone, and admitted he was out. The rest of the game was full of examples like these.
It’s obvious that these players are embracing SOTG, and I (Laurel Penney) am so proud of each one of them for that commitment to ultimate spirit in the most ultimate of sports. Tournament winners were St. Kevin’s (red) who received a banner and discs, and tied for most spirited winners were Villanova (blue) and Beaconsfield (black), who received spirit discs. An honourable mention goes to St. Matthew’s for playing so competitively, especially against much taller and older players.