Jaden Patterson wearing ‘C’ for Junior B Athletics

Being named captain of the St. Catharines Junior B Athletics lacrosse team last week seems to have lit a spark under Jaden Patterson. 

The 19-year-old from Niagara-on-the-Lake scored the team’s first goal of the season six minutes into the first period and added two more for the hat trick in Friday night’s 8-7 home victory over the Cambridge Highlanders.

Patterson followed that opening game performance with two more goals and three assists in a 14-13 win on the road in London Sunday.

“We got the win, that’s the most important thing obviously,” he told The Local Friday night following the home opener. “More than the personal stats. I’m definitely pleased with my performance, though. I was locked in 100 per cent. I like to control the game, I like to see two plays ahead all the time.”

Patterson was shocked when head coach Alec Tamas took him aside last week to tell him he would be wearing the ‘C’ on his jersey. 

“I didn’t expect it,” he said. “I’m definitely honoured and thankful for the trust that my coaches have put in me.”

It’s Patterson’s second year with the Athletics, enough time for him to have made an impression on Tamas, who also coached Patterson on the Brock Badgers varsity team that placed second in the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association Baggataway Cup championship in November 2022.

“He leads by example,” says Tamas. “It was awesome to see him come out and score the first goal and get the hat trick. He did all the little things right. He was picking up loose balls and setting good picks. He has a ton of confidence and a super high IQ for the game.”

This is also the second season for the St. Catharines Junior B team wearing the double blue of the Athletics. Formerly called the Spartans, the Junior B organization merged with the Junior A Athletics, the oldest sports franchise in Niagara, following the 2021 season.

The Junior B team actually has its roots in NOTL, where they were founded as the Warriors in 1979, winning the national championship just three years later. In 1996, as the Niagara Spartan Warriors, they defeated the Orillia Rama Kings to win their second national title. After the 2001 season they became the St. Catharines Spartans.  

With the Athletics name comes a rich lacrosse history and an Old Boys network that raises funds for the organization and comes out to games to cheer each successive generation on. And wearing the captain’s ‘C’ comes with some big responsibilities.

“There’s definitely a little bit of pressure,” said Patterson. “But I think the pressure comes more from having to be a leader for the rest of the team. I’m honoured to be a part of the tradition, but I’m more focused on being a good role model for the younger players.”

Three of those younger players, fellow offensive players Jack Parker and Ethan Williams as well as transition man Liam Dietsch, are also from Niagara-on-the-Lake.

“I’ve known those guys my whole life,” Patterson said. “It’s cool to be able to play with them. I’m a bit older than them, and I’m looking forward to introducing them to junior lacrosse, guiding them through and giving them advice. Playing with them is a lot of fun.”

Parker, who was called up for a few games last year, scored the Athletics’ winning goal Friday night and added his own hat trick Sunday in London.

“He’s been a real pleasant surprise,” says Tamas. “The amount of progress we’ve seen out of him has been off the charts. We’ve been looking for left O (offence) guys to step up and contribute. He’s a real grinder out there, and he has that same lacrosse IQ as Patterson.”

Dietsch was on Tamas’ radar as an offensive player at first, but he moved him into the transition team because of his equally effective defensive skills. 

“He reads the play on defence and plays the passing lanes really well,” Tamas says of the 18-year-old Holy Cross Catholic Secondary School student. “He knows when to slide and when to hold. He’s been playing really well for us.”

And the coach says that Williams, who was also called up to the Athletics for a few games last year, is a clutch player “with a great goal scoring ability. He seems to score the most important goals at the most important times. All those Niagara-on-the-Lake guys all have an incredible IQ for the game.”

The Athletics won’t have another home game at Canada Games Park until May 19, when they host the Wallaceburg Red Devils. Their next four games will see them travelling to Six Nations, Owen Sound, Point Edward and Cambridge over the next two weeks.

“That’s going to be huge for us,” Patterson predicted, “we’ll be able to gel on the road trip, and get closer. I feel that will really translate to our game. I’m especially looking forward to next week’s game at Six Nations (Friday, May 5), that will be a big test for us.”

According to Tamas, last year’s Athletics exceeded expectations. They finished the season in fourth place in the Ontario Junior B Lacrosse League’s Western Conference (OJBLL). They went on to knock out Guelph 3-2 in the first round of the playoffs but were swept in three straight by Elora in the second round. With Patterson leading the charge he’s hoping for even more for 2023.

“I expect us to build on the progress we established last year,” says Tamas. “Between the Junior A and Junior B teams, I see us starting a two to three year window where we can win a lot of games and win some championships as well.”

Patterson, who will begin his third year as a kinesiology student at Brock in September, hopes to get an opportunity to prove himself with the Athletics at the Junior A level. It would be the next step toward his ultimate goal to catch on in the National Lacrosse League, like Tamas and his assistant coaches Jeff Wittig, Sam Leclair and Alex Pace. 

“I play the game for fun, for the love of it,” insisted Patterson, “but I play because I love to challenge myself. I want to play at the highest level for as long as I can. Having those guys on the coaching staff is definitely motivating, too.”

And Tamas, for one, wouldn’t be surprised to see him get there. 

“He has all the skills and all the tools to make it,” Tamas says. “If he keeps working at it, keeps grinding like he’s been, 100 per cent he has the potential to move up to Junior A and to play pro as well.”