The Battlefords Sharks look forward to the rest of the season after coming in third place at the Mandi Schwartz Memorial Tournament. (Submitted photo/Nolan Horbach)

By Ryan Lambert

Mandi Schwartz Memorial Tournament

Battlefords WPD Ambulance Sharks place third at Mandi Schwartz Memorial Tournament

Dec 17, 2025 | 2:51 PM

The Mandi Schwartz Memorial Tournament, the biggest girls U18 hockey tournament in Western Canada took place this past weekend in Wilcox, Saskatchewan. In the end, the Battlefords WPD Ambulance Sharks finished in third place after winning the third-place game, 3-1 over the Calgary Fire AAA Red.

The Sharks began the tournament with a 2-0 win over the Sutter Fund Chiefs with goals from Danika Dureau and Julia Poole. They beat the Eastman Selects 4-3, before falling 2-1 to Shawnigan Lake School to end round robin play. Sharks head coach Nolan Horbach described the early stages of the tournament as a “slow start” for the team.

“I don’t know if it was complacency or what the case was, but it ultimately caught up with us. So, it was a bit of a reflection moment for us as a group.”

Along with Shawnigan and Eastman, the Sharks finished with a 2-1 record in a tie for first in the division. The Sharks drew the short straw and with the tiebreaker rules, finished in third place in the division and advanced to the consolation playoffs.

In the third-place semifinal game, the Sharks faced off with the Saskatoon Stars. Led by a Charleigh Johnston hat trick, the Sharks took down the Stars 7-3. Having league experience against the Stars prior to the tournament may have helped the Sharks. Battlefords have gone 2-0-0-1 (W-L-OTW-OTL) against the Stars so far this year in the SFU18AAAHL.

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The win advanced the Sharks to the third-place game against the Calgary Fire AAA Red. In that game, the Sharks went down 1-0 in the first period before a scoreless second. The team increased the pace in the third period, scoring three goals in the third to win 3-1 and taking third place.

Despite not winning the tournament, Horbach thinks there’s a lot from the tournament the team can take away from and move forward with.

“The way the girls responded, I’m hopeful and confident in our leadership and the kids that we’ve got that, that was maybe the loss and defining point that really kind of brings everything together and helps us move forward,” Horbach said.

The Sharks will continue their season on Dec. 20 against the Northway Northern Bears in Prince Albert.

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Ryan.Lambert@pattisonmedia.com