Yorkton natives Riley Rozdeba and Jarod Hilderman couldn't be happier with their decision to move to Wilcox to play for the Notre Dame Hounds hockey program after winning a midget provincial "AA" championship on March 28.
"Most people don't move away from home at my age (16), they stay with their mom and dad until they graduate," said Hilderman. "But I have loved it here and winning a "AA" provincial banner is such a great way to end the year. I'm happy I chose to come here."
"It was such a great feeling to win provincials," added Rozdeba. "Everyone was so excited. It's a big accomplishment."
The Hounds squared off against the North East in the finals. After game 1 ended in a 2-2 tie, it all came down to the second game in the total-point best-of-two series.
It seemed North East had it in the bag after taking a commanding 3-0 lead; however, Notre Dame wouldn't say die. They battled back in the third period to tie the game up at three.
"Our coach took a timeout and got everyone settled down and focused on the comeback," said Hilderman. "We got some good breaks and the puck started to bounce our way after that. But our team really came together and worked hard."
In the last minute of the first frame of extra time, Rozebda played hero, scoring the provincial banner-winning goal on a wrist shot.
"I just put it on net and it went in," said Rozdeba. "I'm really happy I took that shot. There wasn't much time left and I just wanted to get something on their goalie."
Rozdeba had more to celebrate after the game than just his game-winning goal; it was also his 17th birthday.
"It was a great day," he said. "Afterwards we went and got pizza and just hung out together as a team. You won't have many days better than that. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday."
Before taking on North East, the Hounds edged Martinsville and Swift Current.
"They were both tough series," said Hilderman, who is a Swift Current Broncos prospect. "We had to work hard to come out on top."
