For a season that many predicted would be a rebuild, or at least retool, the St. Catharines Jr. A Athletics have surprised many.
Over 20 players graduated from the 2025 Athletics who of course hosted the Minto Cup.
This year the A’s have a chance to get back to the Canadian Junior A Lacrosse Championship after finishing the regular season in first place with a (15-3) record and playoff series wins over both Burlington and Orangeville.
“We’re proud of finishing at the top of the table in the regular season, and the work we’ve put in so far in the first two rounds of the playoffs,” explained head coach Dan Coates.
“We know we have a long way to go to reach our ultimate goal but we will continue to take it one game at a time.”
Coates, a first year bench boss, was joined by Associate Head Coach Randy Mearns and Assistants Ian Llord and Corey Small.
The Whitby Warriors (9-1 in the postseason) will provide the opposition for the A’s in the Ontario Finals.
Max Wetherup leads the Warriors in playoff goals (22), assists (43) and points (65).
Jameson Bucktooth tops St. Catharines with 48 postseason points.
One intriguing matchup sees the battle of brothers in goal as Ty Wilson will get the nod in net for the Athletics, younger brother Cooper Wilson for Whitby.
“Our boys have put in a lot of work this summer and we want to continue this journey in the finals. We want to compete against the best so we’re looking forward to this opportunity,” Coates said.
The best of seven series begins Friday night at Canada Games Park in Thorold.
Here’s a look at the schedule:
Friday July 31st at St. Catharines 8 pm
Monday August 3rd at Whitby 7 pm
Tuesday August 4th at St. Catharines 8 pm.
Thursday August 6th at Whitby 8 pm.
Saturday August 8th at St. Catharines 7 pm *
Sunday August 9th at Whitby 7 pm *
Tuesday August 11th at St. Catharines 8 pm *
* Denotes if necessary.
“We love seeing our community getting behind this team. We’re hoping to inspire the next generation of lacrosse players in St. Catharines and Niagara,” added Coates.
The Victoria Shamrocks and Coquitlam Adanacs in British Columbia, and the Calgary Jr. A Mounties and Raiders Jr. A Lacrosse clubs are the finalists in Alberta.
The Minto Cup begins August 16 in Calgary with the Mounties as hosts.
Rod Mawhood is a lifelong Niagara native who has had the pleasure of working in all three mediums – Radio, Print and TV – for over 20 years. His first announcing gig was with the then St. Catharines Stompers. Since then he’s worked in radio and TV in Toronto, and currently is the announcer for the Niagara IceDogs and Niagara River Lions.
Rod also covers the Buffalo Bills for FOX Sports and the Buffalo Sabres for NBC Sports.
