The Soo U18 AA Girls Greyhounds faced a challenging weekend of hockey from October 23 to 25, travelling south to compete in the 2026 USA Canada Cup Series against 13 other programs representing Ontario, Florida, Wisconsin and Michigan.

The tournament provided the Greyhounds with an opportunity to measure themselves against high-level competition from both sides of the border, as they faced Belle Tire U16, Madison Capitols 16U, Lovell Academy 16U and Niagara U18AA.

Sault Ste. Marie finished the weekend with a 1-4 record, with the tournament offering valuable lessons in resiliency, physical play and the importance of maintaining a consistent level of competition throughout three periods.

Greyhounds Open Against Belle Tire
The Greyhounds opened their tournament on Friday afternoon, October 23, against Belle Tire U16.

Soo struck first when Kaia Boissoneau scored an unassisted goal at 13:03 of the opening period to give the Greyhounds a 1-0 lead.

Belle Tire responded later in the period, with Riley Moses finding the equalizer at 3:03, assisted by Molly McNamee, to send the teams into the first intermission tied 1-1.

Neither team scored in the second period, keeping the contest close heading into the final frame.

Belle Tire, however, broke through in the third period, with Maddie Metzger scoring at 14:07 before Anna Vonk added another at 11:54. Metzger scored her second of the game at 10:46, and Jane Janda rounded out the scoring at 7:08 as Belle Tire pulled away for a 5-1 victory.

Liberty McAlpine started in goal for the Greyhounds, while Claire Davis handled the goaltending duties for Belle Tire.

Madison Capitols Pull Away in the Second
Soo returned to the ice Saturday morning for an 8:30 a.m. matchup against the Madison Capitols 16U.

The teams played a scoreless opening period before Madison found its offence in the second.

Ellie Kaptur opened the scoring at 13:14, followed by Olive Zigovits at 1:50, with Ella Gretebeck Henderson assisting on the latter goal. Kaptur then added her second of the game just 10 seconds later, again assisted by Gretebeck Henderson.

Neither team found the back of the net in the third period as the Capitols secured the victory.

Liberty McAlpine once again started in goal for Soo.

Lovell Academy Presents a Difficult Challenge
The Greyhounds faced Lovell Academy 16U on Saturday afternoon, with the American program putting together a strong offensive performance in a 7-0 win.

Issy Myers opened the scoring at 5:42 of the first period, assisted by Montana Morris, giving Lovell Academy a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes.

Lovell Academy extended its advantage in the second period. Mia Comardo scored on the power play at 12:10, with Cassidy Dailey and Carsyn Lien collecting assists. Ashlyn Cook then scored twice, at 4:38 and 49 seconds remaining in the period, to make it 4-0.

Cook completed her hat trick at 11:56 of the third period, with assists from Gabby Sojda and Comardo. Dailey added another at 7:03 before Morris scored on the power play with 44 seconds remaining to complete the 7-0 final.

Cassidy Cooke was in goal for the Greyhounds, while Carsyn Lien started for Lovell Academy.

Greyhounds Show Fight Against Niagara
Soo closed out its tournament Sunday morning against Niagara U18AA, with the teams combining for eight goals in a 6-2 Niagara victory.

Niagara built an early lead in the opening period, with Megan Whitty scoring at 13:14, assisted by Avery Williams. Mia McAdam added an unassisted goal at 9:15 before Grayce Bell made it 3-0 at 4:10, with Dillon Mertz earning the assist.

The Greyhounds responded late in the period when Gabby Pierman, a call-up from the U15 Greyhounds, scored an unassisted goal at 1:47 to put Soo on the board.

Niagara restored its three-goal advantage early in the second period when Macy Roberts scored at 9:27, assisted by Mertz.

Soo continued to battle, and Averie Atkinson brought the Greyhounds within two at 7:54, with Fiona Prophet and Madison Lang assisting on the goal.

Niagara added two more goals in the third period. Emma Konderka scored unassisted at 8:13 before Bell added her second of the game at 6:59, with Mertz picking up another assist to seal the 6-2 result.

Cassidy Cooke started in goal for Soo, while Alayna Bell tended the net for Niagara.

Buck Emphasizes Resiliency and Consistency
Following the tournament, Greyhounds head coach Jenna Buck pointed to the team’s resiliency and its ability to adjust to a more physical style of play as important takeaways from the weekend.

“The girls did a good job demonstrating the importance of resiliency when playing difficult teams and adjusting their game to a much more physical style of play,” Buck said.

While the Greyhounds showed they could compete against strong opponents when playing to their potential, the next step is finding that level of play consistently.

“The team needs to continue to build on finding consistency in their games. When the girls push themselves to work and skate hard, they competed against some of the top teams in the USA,” Buck explained.

“It’s having them find that consistent level of compete for 3 periods of hockey, game after game.”

Buck also emphasized the value of tournaments like the USA Canada Cup for players who aspire to continue their hockey careers beyond U18 AA.

“This tournament is a great eye opener for players looking to continue on past U18AA hockey. For those girls interested in playing Junior, USports, or NCAA, it’s tournaments like these ones that really demonstrate what competition is going to look like at the next level and what it takes to get there.”

The weekend also provided the coaching staff with a clearer understanding of areas that need improvement as the season progresses.

“This weekend showed us some important gaps we have systematically and the importance of fixing those errors now so that they can compete better in tournaments moving forward,” Buck said.

Focus Shifts to OWHA League Play

With the USA Canada Cup Series complete, the Greyhounds will look to apply what they learned against high-level competition as they prepare for their upcoming Ontario Women’s Hockey Association (OWHA) Southern League, Central North games.

Soo has a couple more ice times scheduled before heading to North Bay and Sudbury to begin that stretch of league play.

The tournament served as an early-season measuring stick for the Greyhounds, highlighting both the challenges of competing against top programs and the areas where continued development is needed.

For Buck and the Greyhounds, the focus moving forward will be on correcting systematic errors, improving consistency and bringing a determined, hard-working approach to every period as they continue their 2026-27 season.