Year in Review: May 2016

May was an exciting month in Chatham-Kent sports, including the introduction of a new, and soon to be thriving organization in CK Pickleball. Below are the top stories from sports in Chatham-Kent during May 2016.

CK Pickleball Organization Forms – After two successful pickleball clinics in March and April, local organizers launched a Chatham-Kent pickleball organization. The non-profit organization, which calls the St. Clair HealthPlex home, immediately stole the heart of Chatham-Kent’s sports community.

Maroons Staff Resigns, Verbeek Named New Coach – The Chatham Maroons saw their entire coaching staff resign following a conflict with owners Bill and Karen Szekesy. The team replaced head coach Tyler Roeszler, and assistants Jeff MacDougald and Bino Pereira with new head coach Brian Verbeek . For some deja vu, jump ahead to our December highlights and you’ll see Verbeek had some all to familiar issues.

Woodman Selected In CFL Draft – Chatham’s Josh Woodman was drafted by the Edmonton Eskimos in the 2016 CFL Draft. Woodman, 24, was selected in the 5th round, 44th overall in Tuesday’s CFL Draft, after completing his playing career with the Western University Mustangs.

More LKSSAA Wins – More warm weather sports started wrapping up at the high school level, with Chatham-Kent Secondary School taking wins during the track and field championships, and in senior girls soccer. ESPC also won a senior girls soccer title. In rugby, the UCC Lancers girls team advanced to OFSAA, as did the WDSS Tartans.

Wild Ride Begins For Griffith – Following a season where he emerged as an elite AHL scorer, Wallaceburg’s Seth Griffith would embark on a wild 6 months, which would include visits to multiple NHL cities. First stop, resigning with the Boston Bruins.