Cornwall Collegiate football season ends with EOSSAA medal

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Not all feel-good football seasons end with a trip to provincials.

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The Cornwall Collegiate Golden Raiders will look back fondly on this year’s senior boys AA campaign, one that saw them play – very unexpectedly – ​​in a regional championship game, and get an idea of ​​what it will take to achieve the goal in 2025 to advance. at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) provincials.

“That’s what we’re going to strive for, to play OFSAA all-Ontario,” said Ian Wilson, head coach of a CCVS Cinderella team that matched up well with the golden slippers all the way to the Eastern Ontario (EOSSAA) final. week in Pembroke as a depleted Golden Raiders team suffered its first loss of 2024, a 5-0 setback, to a strong and deep Thousand Island Secondary School (Brockville) Pirates team that it stunned earlier in the stretch twice. day event.

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Wilson, who coached the team with Nick Efthimiou, said not many words needed to be said after the disappointing loss, but reminded the troops that the group of senior boys is leading a resurgence of the school’s soccer program and upstart team. he is poised to accomplish even more next spring.

“I told them they exceeded expectations,” Wilson recounted. “We were ranked sixth (last in the EOSSAA) and nobody expected us to do what we did. We went there thinking, let’s aim to win a game and see where we are at EOSSAA and build on it.”

With about 80 percent of the roster eligible to suit up again next year, the 2024 edition of the Golden Raiders did a lot more in Pembroke than simply survey the landscape, starting with a 2-1 win over top-seeded TISS , the defense. EOSSAA Champions.

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The Golden Raiders, with seven wins and one tie, all against Class AA competition in SDG action this spring, got a huge jump on the Pirates thanks to a pair of goals from Zayden St. Germain, during the event. at Bishop Smith School.

At the end of Day 1, CCVS punched its ticket to the playoff round and won first in its group, beating Regiopolis-Notre Dame (Kingston) 1-0, the goal scored on a perfect shot by Jacob Marleau.

The Golden Raiders had a late night trip to Cornwall and an early morning trip to Pembroke the next day, but still had enough in the tank to earn a 1-0 double overtime win against St. Russell’s Thomas Aquinas. in crossover semifinal action.

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Simon Cornelisse was the scoring hero, connecting with four minutes remaining in the second 10-minute extra-time session to avoid going to a penalty shoot-out.

With a short return before the final – and the rematch against a TISS team with a good memory – the Golden Raiders did everything they could to stay in the game, but the Pirates took a 1-0 lead in about 15 minutes and continued to a 5-0 decision.

“Our guys gave it 100 percent,” Wilson said. “But the defending champions were not willing to give up (the title). . . I think we learned a lot and we can aim to add more depth next year.”

In SDG playoff action preceding EOSSAA, the host Golden Raiders eliminated St. Lawrence Saints 4-1 in the semi-final, then faced Jack Chisholm’s St. Joseph’s Panthers, who advanced with a shootout win over Holy Trinity.

The Golden Raiders posted a 2-1 win over the St. Joe’s, getting both goals from Simon Eichler.

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