Sunday was a banner day for Okotoks AA hockey.
The Okotoks U15 AA and U16 AA Oilers advanced to the South Central Alberta Hockey League finals with playoff tournament victories on March 2 in Medicine Hat and Lethbridge, respectively.
The U15 AA Oilers earned the SCAHL South Division banner with a 5-3 win over the rival Wheatland Warriors on Sunday in the Hat.
In the final, Okotoks stormed out the gates with first period goals from Cooper Farion, Lincoln Schultz and Grayson Juba. Schultz added his second in the second period with Lucas Derdall notching an important insurance marker in the third. Quinn Esler made 35 saves in goal.
Earlier in the tournament, Okotoks doubled up Medicine Hat 4-2, eclipsed the Golden Suns 6-3 and blanked the Lethbridge Hurricanes 5-0 with Matthew McCallum posting a 35-save shutout.
In the semifinal, Okotoks edged Lethbridge once again in a 3-2 nailbiter.
The Oilers finished with the best record in the regular season, four points ahead of Red Deer.
Okotoks will now play the North Division champion Olds Grizzlys in a best-of-three final to determine the league’s representative at the Hockey Alberta U15 AA Provincial Championships. Game 1 is March 8 at 6:45 p.m. at Okotoks Centennial Arenas Gold.
In Lethbridge, the U16 AA Oilers repeated the feat.
Okotoks bested Red Deer 3-2 in the final with Damon Hayes scoring twice, including the game winner, with Jake Brennan also lighting the lamp.
At the other end of the ice, Talyn Matthews had a 34-save performance.
In round robin, Okotoks took out Medicine Hat 7-3 with Brady Murphy notching a hat trick, followed by a 3-1 triumph over West Central and 5-3 win over Red Deer. The Oilers overpowered Lethbridge 7-1, with Jaxon Sims posting five assists, in the semifinal.
The Oilers will host Airdrie in the best-of-three U16 AA league final with a spot at provincials on the line. Game 1 is March 7, a 6:45 p.m. puck drop at Centennial Arenas Gold.
The U16 AA is not broken down into south and north divisions, rather two separate playoff semifinal tournaments were held.
Okotoks teams will look to add to the haul this weekend when the SCAHL U18 AA and U13 AA division playoffs tip off.
The Okotoks U18 AA Oilers go into the event, held March 7-10 in Medicine Hat, with the best record in the South.
For more information, visit scahl.com.
