After an epic, emotion-filled physical seven-game series there’s a new king of Junior A lacrosse in Alberta.
The Okotoks Jr. Raiders were defeated 16-11 in Game 7 of the Alberta Jr. A Lacrosse League final by the Calgary Mountaineers in Indus on Aug. 14, ending the back-to-back run of provincial titles held by Okotoks since 2010.
“It’s the worst feeling in the world,” said veteran Raider Aaron Tackaberry on seeing the gold medals wrapped around the Mountaineers. “But kudos to them, they played hard in the series and they deserved it.”
The Mountaineers’ first Alberta title in franchise history earned them a berth in the Junior A championship, the Minto Cup, held in Whitby, ON from Aug. 18-26. They will face the Coquitlam Adanacs, Orangeville Northmen and host Whitby Warriors.
The Raiders’ core of leaders, captain Brett Baron and alternates Tackaberry and Cam Copland, made two straight trips to the Minto Cup. Failing to make good on the third consecutive appearance at the national tournament was a tough pill to swallow, Copland said.
“We put in a great effort, but we’ve been to the Minto the past two years,” Copland said. “That was tough looking at them hooting and hollering, but I think we handled
it pretty well.”
It was an auspicious opening for a three-peat performance for the host Raiders in the win or go home Game 7 in front of a standing-room-only crowd at the Indus Regional Arena.
The Raiders jumped out to a 5-3 lead in the first period with a pair of goals from Jordan Getz and Brett Baron and a single from James Delaney before Calgary took the game over in the final 40 minutes.
The Mountaineers held a modest 9-7 lead going into the third stanza before putting the game out of reach with a 7-4 period.
Raiders head coach Daryl Haynes said though most of the damage was done by Calgary in the third, the Mountaineers actually took control of the game in the middle frame.
“We did not do too badly in the third, we broke down in the second period,” Haynes said. “We got away from our systems. We knew what they were going to try and do and just didn’t adapt as well as we would have hoped.”
A myriad of factors were working against the defending champions in the series-clinching game.
The Raiders were unable to play Game 7 at the Okotoks Centennial Arena, their home rink where they posted an undefeated record in the playoffs, due to the ice being put in at the venue.
Raiders Kyle Dexter and Ethan Trotter were ineligible to play after the team was ruled to have violated the maximum of two import players on the roster, further compounding Okotoks’ disadvantage. The Raiders are appealing that decision.
The Raiders’ coach said it would have been a different series had his full lineup been available.
“They would have helped with some size at the back and Dexter, being a 21-year-old, he would have helped in the leadership department on the bench,” Haynes said. “It’s always tough going into a Game 7 you never know what’s going to happen, had we had those other guys I think we might have been able to hold them off.”
Tackaberry said the sidelined duo would have certainly made their mark on the defensive end.
“Losing them was huge, it would have been a big help to our defence and Trotter being a physical force he would have made it a little more intimidating for them,” Tackaberry said. “It would have made a huge impact.”
The league final could hardly have been more tightly contested. Through the seven games, both the Raiders and Mounties tallied 76 goals and won all three of their matches at their home rinks.
“It stings, it hurts, it never goes away,” Haynes said of the agony of a Game 7 defeat. “You try and tell the kids to not forget what this feels like and try and use it as a learning experience.”
Tackaberry said all the Raiders can do at this point is get over the defeat and prepare for next season with the majority of the regulars set to return, save for Junior graduates Delaney, Dexter and Jordan Daradick.
“Right now we’re just licking up our wounds,” Tackaberry said. “We’ll be going into next season with a lot of motivation with everything that happened off the floor and we’re bringing back most of our guys.
“We’re going to have a good year.”
