Football champions crowned

Oak Park has another championship banner.

The Winnipeg High School Football League’s AAAA Tier 1 final between the Dakota Lancers and Oak Park Raiders was held on Nov. 6 at Princess Auto Stadium, with Oak Park earning the championship banner with a 22-17 win over Dakota.

The victory was Oak Park’s first championship in 11 years and stymied Dakota’s attempt to three-peat. Earlier in the week, Oak Park also won the junior varsity 12-man crown with a 48-21 decision over Dakota.

St. Norbert defeated Dryden 10-0 to win the AAA division crown, also on Nov. 6 at Princess Auto Stadium. In the AAAA Tier 2 final, Elmwood Giants defeated the West Kildonan Wolverines 35-6.

Meet an up-and-coming rugby star

Tylie Fraser is an 18-year-old rugby player who graduated from Collège Jeanne-Sauvé in June.

Tylie played hockey in high school, but she absolutely loves rugby and even helped revitalize and recruit a team at CJS, leading the Olympiens to a second-place finish in the Winnipeg High School Rugby development league.

“I love rugby because the moment I step onto the field, everything else fades away… the stress, the noise, the chaos of everyday life. It’s just me, my teammates, and the game,” she explained.

“There’s something special about the rugby community, it’s more than a sport, it’s a family,” she said. “No matter where you go, there’s always someone ready to back you up, cheer you on, or just share a laugh after the game.”

Giants called to hall

Two giants of the Elmwood baseball world are being recognized for their contributions to the sport.

Ed Kulyk and Al Kinley are among the list of 2026 inductees to the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame. Both have been involved with the Elmwood Giants organization for many years. Kulyk is being inducted as an individual, Kinley as an honorary life member.

“(It’s) pretty shocking. It caught me completely off-guard,” said Kulyk, a longtime coach and manager of the Giants junior baseball team, who has also served on the club’s board of directors. “Going in with Al is pretty special. It’s exciting.”

Kulyk has coached the Elmwood Giants 22U AAA team for over a decade. Between 2016 and 2025, with Kulyk as manager, the Giants were Manitoba Junior Baseball League finalists for 10 consecutive seasons, winning the league championship six times. In 2023, the team won the national 22U championship, and in 2024 the Giants won the Western Canada Baseball Association championship. He has twice been named manager of the year in the Manitoba Junior League and twice named Baseball Manitoba’s high performance coach of the year.

Miles Mac Buckeyes win JV championship

The Winnipeg High School Football League season has wrapped up.

The Miles Macdonell Buckeyes won the nine-player junior varsity championship on Nov. 5, defeating the Grant Park Pirates 18-13 at Princess Auto Stadium to cap off an undefeated season. The AAAA Tier 1 final between the Dakota Lancers and Oak Park Raiders took place Nov. 6, with Oak Park earning the championship banner with a 22-17 win over Dakota. The Tier 2 final between the West Kildonan Wolverines and the Elmwood Giants was scheduled for Nov. 10. The result was not available at press time.

Winnipeg teams fare well at soccer nationals

A number of youth Winnipeg soccer teams performed well at the business end of Canada Soccer’s 2025 national championships last month.

At the girls U-17 Cup, held in Kamloops, B.C., A.K. Soccer Academy finished in third place after beating Inter Halifax FC 2-0. In the boys U-17 Cup, also in Kamloops, Winnipeg South End United placed sixth in the fifth-place match after losing 3-2 to Edmonton Juventus FC.

At the girls U-15 Cup, held in Charlottetown, P.E.I., Winnipeg Phoenix FC made it to the final before falling 3-0 to CS Optimum Victoriaville. Bonivital U-15 girls finished in 11th. The boys U-15 Cup was also held in Charlottetown, where A.K. Soccer Academy finished third with a 4-2 victory over Edmonton Northside United FC. Winnipeg 1v1 Futbol Dreams finished in sixth.

Winnipeg to host fifth Grey Cup game Nov. 16

The 112th Grey Cup will be held at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg on Sunday, Nov. 16, marking the second time the CFL championship game will be played at the stadium located at the University of Manitoba. In 2015, before 36,634 fans at the complex then known as Investors Group Field, the Edmonton Eskimos (now Elks) beat the Ottawa Redblacks 26-20.

Ottawa led early in the first quarter on touchdown passes by quarterback Henry Burris to Patrick Lavoie and Ernest Jackson. A field goal by Sean Whyte and a touchdown pass from Mike Reilly to Adarius Bowman made it 13-10 Ottawa at the end of the quarter. At the half, the score was 17-16 Edmonton after Chris Milo kicked a Redblacks field goal and Akeem Shavers scored on a pass from Reilly.

In the third, Milo kicked another field goal and Edmonton scored a single point on a Whyte three-point attempt. Entering the final quarter, Ottawa led 19-18. In the fourth, Milo punted for a single to make it 20-18. The Eskimos fought back and with 3:22 left in the game, Jordan Lynch scored from the one-yard line and a two-point conversion made the score 26-20. The victory was Edmonton’s 10th in a row that season and brought them their first Grey Cup victory since 2005. Reilly was the game’s most-valuable player.

Winnipeg had hosted the Grey Cup three times previously.

Honouring our Stanley Cup champs

People making their way north on Main Street in the past couple of weeks may have noticed a new addition to the south side of the building housing the Palomino Club – a four-storey mural depicting the Winnipeg Victorias, the city’s local hockey team at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, which won the Stanley Cup three times.

The Victorias were formed in 1889 and were active during the first 10 years of the Stanley Cup competition — from 1893 to 1903. They took home the cup in 1896, 1901 and 1902, the last of which was their final championship appearance.

The mural was designed and painted by muralist and visual artist Jen Mosienko, who is also known for her work on the Pray for Ukraine mural, which decorates the Main Street skyline; the mural depicting local hockey legend Billy Mosienko on the side of Billy Mosienko Lanes; and the mural decorating Brathwaite’s Pharmacy in St. James, done to commemorate the building’s 100th anniversary. She has painted many other murals in and around the city.

The newest piece was done with the help of Mosienko’s assistant, Emmit McGregor, and in partnership with the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame. It was installed on the morning of Oct. 24.

Dedication to getting better

Kalani Fuentes is a 14-year-old Grade 9 student attending Collège Jeanne-Sauvé in St. Vital.

“School is fun, I am really enjoying high school,” he said. “My favourite class is éducation physique, because we learn about physical literacy and new sports and games.”

Kalani loves sports and he loves playing all sports. At the moment he plays basketball in the Elite Empire program and soccer with Bonivital.

“I am focusing on basketball and soccer right now,” he said. “I enjoy both sports because the of the physical challenges and competition. In basketball, I am a guard/small forward (I’m smaller than other forwards ,too), and in soccer I play as a central defensive midfielder.

Inducting the class of ’25

The Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame will induct its class of 2025 on Thursday, Nov. 6 at the Victoria Inn in Winnipeg. Two athletes, two builders, one athlete/builder and one team representing football, softball, volleyball, soccer, multi-sport and sport medicine make up the class.

Record-setting Winnipeg Blue Bomber Troy Westwood is the football inductee. The kicker, who was born in Dauphin and grew up in Winnipeg, played 18 seasons in the CFL. He became the team’s all-time leading scorer with 2,741 points and holds multiple Bomber and CFL kicking records. Westwood was twice nominated as the CFL’s outstanding Canadian player, and was inducted into the Winnipeg Football Club Hall of Fame in 2011. He also writes a column on unsung young sports heroes every other week in the Free Press Community Review.

Softball is represented by pitcher Ashley Lanz, who began her softball journey in Winnipeg at age six. She pitched for Minot State and Simon Fraser universities from 2003 to 2005, earning NAIA All-American and pitcher of the year honours in 2005. She also made her mark in international competition, playing for Canada’s national team from 2005 to 2012, winning gold at the 2007 FISU (International University Sports Federation) championships in Bangkok, Thailand. Lanz also pitched in the Netherlands, Czech Republic and in the Italian Professional League. At the Canadian championships, playing with Manitoba’s formidable Smitty’s club, she was named top pitcher in 2008 and 2009. Lanz was inducted into the Manitoba Softball HOF in 2018.

Russ Paddock, who was born in Oak River, is being recognized for his success on the volleyball court and for his coaching resumé. He played for Canada at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona and was the captain of the national team in the 1994 world championships. Paddock (whose older brother John was general manager and coach of the Winnipeg Jets in the 1990s) coached the men’s volleyball team at Brandon University from 2005-2012. The team won Canada West silver and CIS (now USports) bronze in 2009 and silver in both in 2011. He was inducted into the Volleyball Manitoba HOF in 2007 as an athlete-builder.

Top judo athletes square off at Manitoba Open

Some of the top judokas in Canada will soon be competing in Winnipeg at the 2025 Manitoba Open.

The national A-level circuit competition, which runs Nov. 1 and 2 at the Dakota Community Centre fieldhouse (1188 Dakota St.), is expected to feature hundreds of top judo students (judokas) from across the country, including many Manitobans looking to prove themselves. This is the fourth time Judo Manitoba has hosted the tournament.

“It puts us on the map, with the judo community,” said Milton Good, president of Judo Manitoba and tournament director of the Manitoba Open. “It brings a lot of people in and lets us showcase what we can do. We get good feedback on the tournament that we run. We’re one of the premier tournaments of the year.”

Competitors range in age from 10 year olds to veterans (i.e., 30 or older). The tournament includes kata (technical demonstration), ne-waza (fighting on the ground), and tachi-waza (fighting standing up). Medalling at tournaments such as this is what determines which competitors make the national judo team to represent Canada internationally, such as at the upcoming Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028. At last year’s Manitoba Open, which drew over 350 competitors, Manitobans won 20 gold, 21 silver, and 12 bronze medals.

High school football playoffs heat up

The Winnipeg High School Football League regular season wrapped up with a handful of junior varsity games on Oct. 21, and playoffs are underway.

In the AAAA/Tier 1 Potter Division, perennial powerhouses the Oak Park Raiders and Dakota Lancers both finished with 6-1 records and 12 points. The Raiders finished with 281 points scored and only 62 against, while the Lancers scored 253 and allowed just 41.

In the AAAA/Tier 1 Vidruk Division, the St. Paul’s Crusaders and Vincent Massey Trojans each finished with 6-1 records and 12 points, with St. Paul’s scoring 199 points and allowing 61, while Vincent Massey scored 256 and allowed only 45.

On the A-side of the AAAA Tier 1 playoffs, St. Paul’s took on Brandon’s Vincent Massey Vikings, Dakota battled the Grant Park Pirates, Oak Park faced the Miles Macdonell Buckeyes, and the Trojans faced the Steinbach Sabres on Oct. 24. Results were not available at press time. Semifinals will be played on Oct. 31.

New clubhouse construction begins at Wildewood Golf Club

Construction has officially begun on a new clubhouse at Wildewood Golf Club (781 North Dr.), which was celebrated at an event by folks involved with the club and the City of Winnipeg on Oct. 14.

According to a release, the City is contributing a capital grant of $1 million for construction of the 2,300-square-foot clubhouse. The club leases the golf course from the City of Winnipeg, and has led planning and fundraising for the new structure.

The project broke ground in late July and is due to be completed in the spring of 2026. Features of the new clubhouse will include a full-service restaurant, an outdoor patio facing the ninth fairway, and a full pro shop, officials say.

Young football star leads by example

Brian Courchene is a 13-year-old Grade 8 student at St. John’s High School.

“My favourite subjects are social studies and gym. The reason is because I like history and geography – it’s something that clicked for me ever since I was around eight or nine years old,” he says.

“With gym, well, I like sports. I like competition. I’m a very competitive kid. The love of competing, it’s just in me,” he explains.

Brian really, really enjoys playing sports.

Puck drops on 2025-26 WHSHL season

Competition is already heating up in the Winnipeg High School Hockey League’s 2025-26 season.

“We’re underway, and hopefully Mother Nature will be nice to us and we won’t have to cancel many games,” WHSHL president Dana Gordon said.

The Vincent Massey Trojans will be looking to defend the title in the league’s Platinum Promotions Division, as well as the AAAA provincial championship. But the Trojans will face tough competition from perennial powerhouse schools such as Oak Park, River East, Selkirk, St. Paul’s, Sturgeon Heights, and hungry squads from Miles Macdonell, Steinbach, Collège Jeanne-Sauvé, Garden City, Westwood, Béliveau, and Shaftesbury (which moves up to the league’s top rung after winning the Winnipeg Free Press Division championship last season).

“We’ve seen some shifts, some schools from Winnipeg Free Press Division have moved up, and some from Platinum down to Price,” Gordon said. “You can have really strong team one year, but if you’re starting from scratch, with graduations and all that, then you’ve got a rebuild.”

New MWHSHL season underway

The puck has dropped on the 2025-26 Manitoba Women’s High School League season, and the annual excitement generated by a fresh new chapter is in the air.

The year’s edition of the league features 29 teams — the largest number in the league’s history — as well as a structural change. This season, the MWHSHL will feature a Division 1/2 East, a Division 1/2 West, and a Division 3.

Brad Nechwediuk, the league’s president, explained the change was brought about by “the amount of teams that requested each division.”

The leagues will divide into Divisions 1 and 2 for playoffs later in the season, he said.