Dave Leaderhouse
Special to the Herald
The level of excellence Prince Albert lacrosse players have grown accustomed to was front and centre this weekend.
The Junior Predators formally celebrated a pair of titles won last year and two of the three championships up for grabs at the annual Bolt Supply House Classic went to local entries.
“It was a nice way to celebrate the past and it reminds us of our goal for this season,” commented Predators coach and general manager Lucas Wells following the unveiling of the Prairie Gold Lacrosse League and MacDonald Cup banners prior to the club’s regular-season game against the Moose Jaw Mustangs on Saturday at the Kinsmen Arena.
The Predators are actually shooting for a fourth straight league title this year along with going for a three-peat as winners of the MacDonald Cup. The club will be the host team for the latter championship this time around, but to maintain their top billing in league play they will need to overcome a slow start – for them at least – to the current regular season.
“A win is a win, but I don’t think it was fantastic by any means,” said Wells after his club scraped out a 15-13 decision over Moose Jaw on Saturday to improve to 3-1 on the season. “I thought our transition game was very bad and lacrosse is a game of transition. We are going to have to work on that.”
Despite outshooting the Mustangs 67-33 the Predators needed a five-goal third period to overcome a one-goal deficit after 40 minutes of play to secure the win.
Matthew Cudmore was the offensive star for the Predators scoring three times and setting up five others while Cole Barmby also had a hat-trick along with one assist. Logan Rieger, Chase Lehner and Talon Sandry had two goals each while singles were added by Ryley Prediger, Braden Shewchuk and Sam Cooper.
The Predators conclude the home-portion of their schedule on Saturday when they will welcome the Weyburn Razorbacks for a twinbill at the Kinsmen Arena. The games will be played at 1 and 7 p.m. with the Predators not returning home until the end of June as their next six games will all be on the road.
Prince Albert teams put in strong showing at Bolt Supply House Classic
The PGLL game was surrounded by a busy tournament schedule with 14 teams competing for three Bolt Supply House Classic divisional championships.
In the U11 division it was Regina outscoring the Prince Albert Trappers 8-2 in the gold-medal final with Nolan Walter notching both of the Trappers goals. The Trappers were 2-1 in preliminary round-robin play and advanced to the championship final by virtue of a 6-2 triumph over the Shellbrook Swarm in the semifinals. Prince Albert’s other entry in the U11 division were the Fort, but they were winless in four outings. The Swarm would eventually capture the bronze medal with a 9-7 verdict over the Fort.
The U13 championship game had Charlie Morgan score twice and set up four others to lead the Prince Albert Giants to a 7-2 win over the Swarm. The Giants were undefeated on the weekend winning all four round-robin games in addition to posting a 9-4 victory over Regina Green in semifinal action. Prince Albert 82s were also entered in the U13 division and after going 2-1-1 in preliminary play their quest for gold was stopped when they fell 8-5 to the Swarm in the other semifinal contest. The 82s did, however, rebound to claim the bronze medal when they outlasted Regina Green 8-3.
Lastly, the U15 gold-medal game was an all-Prince Albert affair with the 82s hanging on for an 11-8 decision over the Fury to claim top spot. Evan Morrison paced the 82s attack with four goals and two assists and the 82s, like the U13 Giants, were perfect for the weekend having won all six games they played. After going 4-0 in the round-robin the 82s edged Regina 9-7 in semifinal play to move onto the gold-medal game while the Fury also had a nailbiter in the other semifinal tilt when they hung on to get past the Swarm by a 5-4 margin. The Swarm then doubled Regina 6-3 to take home the bronze medal.
“It was great competition; there were no issues at all,” said Wells, who is also a board member with the Prince Albert Lacrosse Association in addition to his dual roles with the Predators. “The kids are smiling and having fun and that is what this is all about.”
