Ontario Junior C Lacrosse League
|
OJCLL | |
| Sport | Box lacrosse |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2008 |
| Commissioner | Lisa Cartman |
| No. of teams | 16 |
| Country |
 Canada |
| Most recent champion(s) | Clarington Shamrox (2016) |
| Most titles | Clarington Shamrox (4) |
The Ontario Junior C Lacrosse League (OJCLL) is a box lacrosse league sanctioned by the Ontario Lacrosse Association in Canada. The league features teams split into two regional divisions. OJCLL annually play a 16-game schedule and playoffs for the Meredith Cup league championship.
History
Junior C lacrosse was first sanctioned in Ontario in 1972. A seven-team league played a 20-game schedule and playoffs. After peaking in 1975 with 18 teams and three divisions, Junior C lacrosse dissolved after the 1979 season.
A new OJCLL began operation in 2008 with five teams (Caledon Bandits, Center Wellington Warlords, Innisfil Wolfpack, Shelburne Vets, West Durham Patriots). Caledon Bandits won that first 2008 title over Center Wellington. In 2009 the league added 3 more teams in Kingston, Peterboro and Clarington. The Caledon Bandits would defend their title defeating Peterboro 3-1 in the final best of five. While 2010 saw the same teams in the league however the West Durham team would relocate to Whitby plus we would see a new champion in the Clarington Shamrox which would be their first of three titles in a row as they took out Center Wellington 3-0 in the final. The 2011 season saw a huge change in the league as it expanded from 8 teams with the addition of Mimico, Halton Hills, Hamilton, Wilmot while eastern teams also came in with Cornwall, Brockville, Kahnawake, Nepean and Gloucester. The Huntsville Hawks would also drop down from Jr "B" to join the league with the Center Wellington Warlords switching owners and names and becoming the Fergus Thistles. Clarington Shamrox would take their second title with a win over Peterboro Lakers. The 2012 campaign saw the league lose two east clubs after just one year as Nepean and Kahnawake did not return. The Clarington would take their third title in a row over Halton Hills in the final. In 2013 the league would stay the same in the number of teams at 16 however there would be a new champion crowned as the Halton Hills Bulldogs took the title in an overtime thriller in Cornwall defeating the three time champs from Clarington 11-10. It was the last year of the tournament format to crown a champion. In 2014 the league lost 1 more east team as Brockville Ballistic stopped operations while the Oakville Hawks and the Six Nations Warriors came in. The league switched back to an East-West division format which saw the Cornwall Celtics defeat the defending champions from Halton Hills 3-0 to win their first title. The 2015 season saw the Kingston Kings and Hamilton Bengals stop operations while one of the original franchises the Innisfil Wolfpack would see them move next door to become the Barrie Bombers. The Peterboro Lakers would take their first championship as they swept the Six Nations Warriors 3-0 to the league final. Steady growth over the years has seen the league grow in number of teams to the current 16. I
In 2015, the Six Nations Warriors finished with 16 wins and no losses to close out the regular season. It was soon brought to the attention of the Ontario Lacrosse Association that the Warriors had multiple roster violations. In turn, the Warriors forfeited 13 of their wins and dropped from first place in the West Division to seventh.[1] The Warriors would sweep the first two rounds of the playoffs and would not lose a game on the floor until Game 3 of the West Division Finals against the Fergus Thistles.[2] In the 2015 Meredith Cup Finals, the Six Nations Warriors would meet East Division champion Peterborough Lakers, who swept the series in three game (10-7, 10-3, 9-4).
Teams
| West Division | East Division |
|---|---|
| Brantford Warriors | Barrie Bombers |
| Caledon Bandits | Clarington Shamrox |
| Fergus Thistles | Cornwall Celtics |
| Halton Hills Bulldogs | Gloucester Griffins |
| Mimico Mountaineers | Huntsville Hawks |
| Oakville Buzz | Peterborough Lakers |
| Shelburne Vets | Whitby Warriors |
| Six Nations Warriors | |
| Wilmot Wild |
Former Member Teams
- Brockville Ballistic (Folded in 2014)
- Hamilton Bengals (On hiatus during 2015 and moved to Brantford in 2016)
- Kahnawake Hunters (Folded in 2012)
- Kingston Kings (Sat out 2015 and folded in 2016)
- Nepean Knights (Folded in 2012)
- West Durham (Relocated to Whitby in 2010)
- Innisfil Saints (Relocated to Barrie in 2015)
Champions
| Season | Winner | Runner-up | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| President's Cup | |||||
| 1972 | Windsor Jr. Warlocks | Etobicoke PCO's | 18-15[3] | ||
| 1973 | Windsor AKO Fratmen | Brockville Magedommas | 2-0 (best-of 3)[4] | ||
| 1974 | Nepean PCO's | Bolton Wanderers | 2-0 (best-of 3) | ||
| 1975 | Mississauga Medics | Point Edward Easy Movers | 10-5 | ||
| 1976 | Orangeville Stingers | Owen Sound Satellites | 4-0 (best-of 7) | ||
| 1977 | Owen Sound Satellites | Orangeville Stingers | 4-0 (best-of 7) | ||
| 1978 | Owen Sound Forsythes | Orillia Lions | 4-0 (best-of 7) | ||
| 1979 | Owen Sound Signmen | Orillia Lions | |||
| Meredith Cup | |||||
| 2008 | Caledon Bandits | Centre Wellington Warlords | 4-2 (best-of 7) | ||
| 2009 | Caledon Bandits | Peterborough Lakers | 3-1 (best-of 5) | ||
| 2010 | Clarington Shamrox | Centre Wellington Warlords | 3-0 (best-of 5) | ||
| 2011 | Clarington Shamrox | Peterborough Lakers | 3-1 (best-of 5) | ||
| 2012 | Clarington Shamrox | Halton Hills Bulldogs | 8-6 | ||
| 2013 | Halton Hills Bulldogs | Clarington Shamrox | 11-10, OT[5] | ||
| 2014 | Cornwall Celtics | Halton Hills Bulldogs | 3-0 (best-of 5)[6] | ||
| 2015 | Peterborough Lakers | Six Nations Warriors | 3-0 (best-of 5)[7][8] | ||
| 2016 | Clarington Shamrox | Wilmot Wild | 4-0 (best-of 7) | ||
References
- ↑ "Bulldogs begin series in Akwesasne". TheIFP.ca. 8 July 2015.
- ↑ "Fergus Thistles win Game 3 over Six Nations". CTV Kitchener News. 28 July 2015.
- ↑ Jr. Warlocks Reign. Windsor Star. Pg 20. September 11, 1972.
- ↑ AKO wears another crown. Windsor Star. Pg 21. September 4, 1973.
- ↑ "OJCLL Schedule". OJCLL Pointstreak. 18 August 2013.
- ↑ "OJCLL Playoff Bracket". OJCLL Pointstreak. 15 August 2014.
- ↑ "Peterborough Jr. C Lakers win first Meredith Cup provincial championship with sweep of Six Nations Warriors". Peterborough Examiner. 6 August 2015.
- ↑ "Jr. C Lakers win Meredith Cup". MyKawartha.com. 6 August 2015.