Joey Payeur
Amy Penner chose a fine time to go hat shopping.
Penner’s natural hat trick, including one via a penalty shot, carried the Fort Frances Energy Fitness Wild to a come-from-behind 3-2 win over the Kenora Yellow Jackets in the championship game of the 10-team Kathy Sanders Memorial Tournament for Bantam girls’ hockey in Dryden over the weekend.
Kenora was in control with a 2-0 lead before Penner caught fire and stole the Yellow Jackets’ dream of gold away.
The Wild had won Pool 2 with a 3-1 record during the preliminary round, then defeated Fort Frances Skates & Blades 6-1 in one semi-final.
The Pool 2 runner-up Yellow Jackets, meanwhile, blanked the Fort Frances BDO Stars 5-0 in the other semi-final.
Energy’s triumph in the final was payback for the Yellow Jackets’ 2-1 win over the Wild in preliminary-round play.
But that was the last down note for Energy, who then beat the Schreiber North Stars 5-2, the Dryden Warriors 2-0, and the Kenora Warriors 4-1.
The BDO Stars rebounded for a 3-2 win over Skates & Blades in the bronze-medal game, meaning three of the top four placings at the tournament belonged to Fort Frances teams.
Jessica Coran paced the Stars with a pair of goals against Skates & Blades while Sarah Milling added the other.
Madisyn DeGagne tallied both goals for Skates & Blades.
Pool play results were not available for the Stars and Skates & Blades by press time.
The PeeWee edition of the Sanders Memorial Tournament goes this weekend in Dryden.
