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Sam Laskaris – BEHIND THE ACTION – Rivermen Teenagers

August 30, 2023 618 views
By Sam Laskaris Writer Life can indeed be unpredictable. Just ask Winter Rivera and Eric (Hodo) Martin. The two teens, aged 16 and 17, respectively, were hoping to participate in a national lacrosse championship this summer. Rivera and Martin starred with the Six Nations Rebels, the local Junior B squad. They were hoping to compete at the Founders Cup, the national Junior B tournament, held earlier this month in Port Coquitlam, B.C. The pair had led the Rebels to a perfect 20-0-0 record in regular season action this year. Despite missing three games, Rivera still led the Six Nations squad in scoring, racking up 97 points (47 goals and 50 assists) in 17 contests. That’s a whopping average of 5.7 points per outing, indeed an impressive feat considering some of his teammates and league opponents were up to five years older. Martin finished second in the Rebels’ scoring race with 79 points, including a team-high 53 assists, in 19 games. Rivera and Martin and their Rebels’ teammates, however, did not achieve their goal of advancing to the Founders Cup. The squad was beat by the Akwesasne Thunder 3-1 in the Ontario Lacrosse Association’s best-of-five championship series. The Thunder went on to claim the silver medal at the national tournament. Rivera and Martin, however, are still continuing their 2023 box lacrosse seasons. That’s because both teens have been called up by the Six Nations Rivermen, a men’s Senior B club, to play in this week’s Presidents Cup. The seven-squad Presidents Cup is being staged in Oakville and continues until Saturday. Thus, Rivera and Martin are getting to play in a national tourney this year. Just not the one they had originally envisioned. And it’s not as if the Rivermen called up the youngsters to primarily have them gain some experience by sitting on the bench and observing the action. Early on in the tournament both Rivera and Martin were playing some big minutes. Rivera had netted three goals in his first three Presidents Cup matches. Martin had earned an assist in his first three appearances. And it was a fairly crucial assist. His helper on Sunday was on Dalton Sulver’s game-winning goal, which enabled the Rivermen to pull out a 5-4 victory over the Oakville Rock, the host of this year’s national championship. If you thought it was challenging enough for Rivera and Martin playing with and against individuals several years older in the Junior B ranks, stop for a second and consider what they are accomplishing this week. The two youngsters are playing against men. Some of them twice their age. And many of them are professional lacrosse players who also suit up for squads in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). On Sunday the pair were shooting on Oakville goaltender Nick Rose, a 35-year-old netminder who is also a star with the NLL’s Toronto Rock. Then on Monday, in the first of two games for the Rivermen, Rivera and Martin were doing their best to score on Nick Damude, who toils for the Texas-based Panther City Lacrosse Club in the NLL. No matter how the Rivermen fare this week, or what Rivera and Martin go on to accomplish in their own careers, chances are they’ll be talking about their 2023 Presidents Cup appearances for a very long time.

By Sam Laskaris Writer Life can indeed be unpredictable. Just ask Winter Rivera and Eric (Hodo) Martin. The two teens, aged 16 and 17, respectively, were hoping to participate in a national lacrosse championship this summer. Rivera and Martin starred with the Six Nations Rebels, the local Junior B squad. They were hoping to compete at the Founders Cup, the national Junior B tournament, held earlier this month in Port Coquitlam, B.C. The pair had led the Rebels to a perfect 20-0-0 record in regular season action this year. Despite missing three games, Rivera still led the Six Nations squad in scoring, racking up 97 points (47 goals and 50 assists) in 17 contests. That’s a whopping average of 5.7 points per outing, indeed an impressive feat considering some of…

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