Nobles Surge Into Spring: BRDHS Athletes Shine on Track, Field, and Beyond

By: Gurashish Dhillon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lakeshore News Reporter

As the school year moves into its final stretch, Belle River District High School’s Noble athletes are shifting their focus from early spring training to full competition mode. From the track to the soccer field, athletes are embracing new challenges, chasing personal bests, and building momentum toward a strong finish to the season.

Wrestling
Camden Gerard wrestled at the U17 national championships in April, the toughest wrestling tournament in Canada. The event was in Calgary, and he won bronze in the 42-kg category. Competing for Belle River, he also won WECSSAA and SWOSSAA, and finished second at OFSAA.

Track and field

The WECSSAA track and field meet took place May 12–15. Maison Newman, Trevor Murphy and Nolan Henwood placed second, fourth and seventh, respectively, in junior boys discus. Brydon Mitchell and Markcos Newman came first and third in senior boys shot put, fourth and eighth in discus. Emma Mitrevski proved herself a field force, placing second in novice girls javelin, shot put and discus. Boden Hlady placed second in novice boys shot put. Peytyn Tulk finished second in senior girls pole vault with a jump of 3m, and Isabella Madia placed fourth in senior girls high jump and long jump. Hlady also took gold in discus, while Milan Cuckovic placed sixth.

On the track, Brayden Labonte won the senior boys 400m hurdles with a meet-record 53.45s. Norah Meyer qualified fastest in the junior girls 100m final with an impressive 12.85s, taking silver in that event and the 200m. Marissa Madia earned silver and bronze in the 100m and 200m. Dallas Cusson placed fifth in the 300m hurdles, Isabella Madia was fifth in the 400m hurdles, and the senior girls 4x100m relay team of Bella Madia, Marissa Madia, Reese Marentette and Julia Allen finished third. Jesse Werstein, in his first WECSSAA meet, cut 10 seconds off his 1500m time.

The Nobles claimed the overall AA title and both senior AA titles. Fourteen athletes are moving on to SWOSSAA.

 

Cameron MacNeily of the senior girls soccer team makes a pass. Supplied Photo by Kevin Williams

Girls softball
The girls softball team opened May 12 with a doubleheader against North Star and Essex. They had a strong showing both offensively and defensively. Julia Cooney struck out batters in the heat, Nina Rosic shined at shortstop, and Emily Sauve turned a double play. Lauren Stephenson led the team with two doubles and singles, and Riri Ito added a double. Outfielder Ashlynn Allen said: “This season we’re having a lot of fun and trying our best!”

Boys baseball
The Nobles faced Massey on May 12 in a close game that came down to the wire. Despite a solid effort, they lost 5–4 after six innings. The team looks to rebound against St. Joseph’s.

Cocodona 250
Ronnie Bondy conquered an intense 200-plus km race in Arizona from May 7–9. The course even featured cliff climbs. Hard to imagine that distance? That’s about the same as running to London, Ont., and back. Two days, two hours and 34 minutes of non-stop racing. Amazing work, Ronnie!

Senior boys soccer
Despite a strong effort, the senior boys soccer playoff run ended May 13 in a 3–2 loss to Cardinal Carter. The game was tied 2–2 until late in the second half. Coach Lola and Ms. Marentette gave a shout-out to graduating players Harman Gill, Jeshan Khosa, Quinn Burke, Sawyer Whalen, Kaiden Cecile, Jugaad Basra, Jaxon Fick and Riley Sheehy for their strong performances and leadership.

Senior girls soccer
The senior girls soccer team won their first playoff game 2–1 over Brennan on May 14 after a 5–1 regular season. Samantha Tucker opened the scoring, and Nicolina Dimovski drilled a shot under the crossbar from 25 yards out. Season scoring leaders were Dimovski, Ava Roznawski, Payge Brochu, Katie Crew and Tucker. The team heads to Tecumseh Vista for the semifinals.

Ultimate frisbee
BRDHS fielded its first-ever ultimate frisbee team this season, playing seven games over three weeks. Despite the short season, the Nobles won two regular season games against established programs. Coach Walsh said: “We are incredibly proud of this season’s successes, and look forward to building off of this strong start in the future.”