Assiniboine Community College women's hockey team wins ACHA championship

The Assiniboine Community College women's hockey team is returning home to Brandon from their nationals in Texas with some shiny new hardware.

The Cougars beat the Minot State University Beavers 1-0 in the final Sunday afternoon to take top spot at the American Collegiate Hockey Association Women's Division 2 Championships.

This was the first time the Cougars reached the finals and comes after a season that saw the team "gel" right from the start, says defender Simone Turner-Cummer.

"Our coaches, they stressed respect, hard work and team work right from the get-go, and even today, that is what we lived by," Turner-Cummer said over the phone from Texas after the game.

"We went out there, we worked hard … and it obviously helped us win today."

The Cougars bettered the two-time defending champion Lakehead Thunderwolves Saturday to make it into the finals.

Sunday's championship game was held at Comerica Centre, just outside of Dallas, the 6,000-seat practice arena of the NHL Dallas Stars.

Both the Cougars and Beavers came into the final game undefeated in the tournament, and Simone Turner-Cummer was named tournament MVP after picking up the team's last three goals of the tournament — including the game winner Sunday.

She said she couldn't have done it without the hard work of her teammates.

"We accomplished our goal and just to be able to do that is a surreal feeling," she said.

Turner-Cummer is one of five Indigenous players on the team, and she hopes the win will encourage other young Indigenous female players to follow their dreams.

"They can achieve their goals if they work hard and believe," she said.

The ACC women's hockey team will fly back to Manitoba with the ACHA Women's Division 2 Championship trophy Monday.

More from CBC Manitoba: