The Mission Mud Dawgs Under 15 team took home gold at the 2022 BC Youth Field Lacrosse Provincials over the weekend, a first in the city’s history.
The Tier 2 team went 4-1 during the tournament, which was held from March 11 to 13 at Langley’s Willoughby Community Park.
“This is the first U15 Gold in Mission’s history,” said Kyle Mooney, the team’s assistant coach. “It’s a pretty big deal.”
Mission’s team bested New West by a score of 7-5 on March 11; beat Kamloops 11-3, and suffered their only defeat to Juan De Fuca, on March 12; then edged out Oceanside 7-6 in the semi-finals to get a shot at the championship on March 13.
Mooney said one of their biggest moments came in the final minute of the Oceanside game when their goalie stopped a breakaway with 30 seconds left.
The Richmond/Vancouver team they faced in the finals was the top ranked team in the Lower Mainland, and the only team to defeat the Mud Dawgs during their 12-1 regular season, Mooney said.
“That was our comeback game. That’s the game we really wanted to play them in.”
They won by a score of 10-4.
The 20-man team consisted of 11 players from Mission, 4 from Abbotsford, and five U13 call ups.