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Westcoast
Roller Hockey in Langley, BC, sent five youth teams to Phoenix,
Arizona to compete in the prestigious NARCh Winterationals,
January 12-16, 2006. The WC Warriors took part in the Atom
(8&under), Mite (10&under), Squirt (12&under)
and Peewee (14&under) Divisions against teams from Oregon,
California, Nevada, Texas and Arizona.
Atoms
(8&under)
The
WC Warriors 98's skated out against teams mainly made up
of kids a year older. Despite the size disadvantage, the
98's went out hard every game and were extremely competitive
with each game. Two close losses, 4-2 against the MPC Bulls
(California) and 4-1 Mission Warriors 97 (California), left
the team in a must-win situation entering their final two
games if the hoped to come home with a medal.
The
team came out strong in Game 3 with a convincing 10-2 win
over the Arizona Stars and needed a win in their final game
to get the Bronze Medal. They faced the undefeated Colorado
Kodiaks, who had previously won their first 3 games handily.
The Warriors played hard and gave the Kodiaks everything
they could handle, keeping the game close throughout. A
couple late goals for the Kodiaks made the final score a
10-5 loss for the Warriors.
The
Atom Warriors are: Cole Gaytmenn, Dennis Cholowski, Kaelen
Anderson, Luke Gingras, Baylee Wright, Brady Morton, Dawson
Brown, Hamish McKay, Andrew McKay, Christopher Lowe, Ryan
Klimek Coaches: Jonn Gaytmenn, Craig Lowe, Chris Morton
Mites
(10&under) - BRONZE MEDAL!
After
a very successful 2005 season, the WC Warriors 96's moved
up an age group and as a team of mainly 9 year olds, were
ready to take on the 10 year olds.
The
first game was a strong 6-2 win over the Adidas Selects
(Oregon). The road to the playoffs got tougher from there
as the 96's battled hard but struggled to find consistency
in their next two games, 8-3 loss to AKS Mission 95 (California)
and 9-4 loss to MPC Bulls (California).
Entering
their final game, the Warriors needed a win to claim the
Bronze Medal. Knowing what was on the line, the boys came
out and left everything on the rink as they skated to a
5-3 victory over the Thousand Oaks Team Warrior (California).
This
was the third major NARCh event for this team, and their
third consecutive medal. The 96's won Gold at the 2005 Winternationals
in Reno and the Bronze at the 2005 NARCh Finals in Florida.
The
Mite Warriors are: Quinncy Leroux, Kellan Lavallee, Ryan
Furby, Lucas Vampa, Jordan McKay, JJ Virtanen, Nick Guiney,
Dallas Gaytmenn, Alexandra Frisk, Ayden MacDonald, Coaches:
Ron Leroux, Brian Lavallee, Jonn Gaytmenn
Squirts
(12&under) - GOLD MEDAL!
This
division featured 8 teams with the top 4 moving on to the
semifinals. Late news for the Squirt Warriors found them
short a player for the first game. The rest of the team
stepped up and came away with a hard-fought
1-1
tie versus Team Excalibur 93 (Arizona). Game 2 saw the team
field a full roster and the extra legs helped the team to
a 6-3 win over Corona Lucky Charms (California). Game 3
was a come-from-behind 3-3 tie with MPC Bulls (California)
and left the team with a must-win 4th game to reach the
semifinals.
A
hard skating, 5-1 victory over AKS Mission 93 (California),
gave the Warriors the #3 seed in the playoffs. Despite an
early morning start, the team came out with their best effort
of the tournament and a dominating 10-5 victory over Arizona
Stars and a place in the Championship Final.
The
Final was a rematch of game 1 against Team Excalibur. With
a full lineup for the rematch, the Warriors controlled play
for 2/3 of the game but couldn't get a goal until the final
6 minutes of play. Two quick Warrior goals, a late rally
by Excalibur and the game ended 2-1 with the Warriors claiming
the Gold Medal.
The
Squirt Warriors are: Nic Calla, Eric Rossi, Ryan Douglas,
Curtis Cowx, Jordan Lingel, Alexandra Frisk, Dixon Leroux,
Joel McGuire, Gerry Vale, Ayden MacDonald. Coaches: Scott
Hill, Ron Leroux, Scott Douglas
Peewee
(14&under) - SILVER MEDAL!
The
Peewee Division had 15 teams including two from Langley,
the WC Warriors 91 and WC Warriors 92.
The
92's were up against teams a year older, but didn't let
this change their focus or intimidate them. Opening the
tournament with a 2-2 tie with the Silicon Valley Quakes
91 (California) and a 5-3 loss to AKS Mission 91 (California),
gave the team respect from the older teams, but in tough
to make the playoffs heading to day two.
The
91's opened the tournament with a convincing 6-0 victory
of the Silicon Valley Quakes 92 (California) and a disappointing
4-2 loss to the AKS Mission 92 (California). This loss seemed
to motivate the 91 Warriors and bring them closer as a team
heading into day 2.
The
91's came out and crushed the Rollerplex Panthers (Arizona)
10-2 and then defeated the MPC Bulls (California) 5-3 to
earn the #3 seed for the quarterfinals.
The
92's opened the second day with another tie, 1-1 versus
the Arizona Stars, and needed a win in game 4 to move on.
Despite an early lead, the team couldn't hang on and lost
8-4 to the Huntington Beach Vipers (California) and would
be spectators for the rest of the event.
The
91's played smart team hockey in the quarters to come away
with a 6-5 win over the Norcal Extreme (California) and
moved on to the semis. The Warriors got some revenge for
the 92's by knocking off the AKS Mission 91's 5-3 in the
semifinals and a Gold Medal matchup with the Silicon Valley
Quakes 91.
A
close game from start to finish, saw the Warriors fall behind
4-2 with a minute left. A late goal got the team to within
1, but that was as close as they could get and had to settle
for the Silver Medal.
The
91 Warriors are: Kyle Baxter, Sam Peacock, Lucas Douglas,
Ryan Douglas, Jamie Leibel, Mike Cooper, Alex Tremblay,
Scott Rossi, Alex Nixon Coaches: David Peacock and Scott
Douglas
The
92 Warriors are: Andy Evans, Connor Cullen, Brett Bulmer,
Jake Furby, Curtis Lee, Tyler Harriott, Jayme Wright, Matt
Garb, Ewen MacPherson, Brandon Jury. Coaches: Scott Hill
and Rod Wright
Five Westcoast Warrior teams headed to Phoenix and 3 brought
home medals. Westcoast Roller Hockey is extremely proud
of this group of primarily roller hockey only players. Most
of these players are the product of our Warriors Winter
Development Program. This program started in November 2002
and has focused on developing the roller hockey player's
skills and understanding of the game. Many of these players
have started playing ice hockey in the past few years and
are making an impact on the ice as well.
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