Delta athletes helped Fraser Valley Water Polo Club teams reach the podium at the U15 Canadian Championships in Calgary.
The boys went undefeated (6-0) and finished the tournament with a whopping +90 goal differential.
Their closest game was a 13-7 victory over Calgary in the gold medal game.
A 12-5 win against Montreal in the semi-final was the most physical game, but the speed and team play of the Fraser Valley Club was too much for the Quebec club that is traditionally one of the best in the nation year after year.
Surrey/Delta athletes on the boys roster include Austin Hexter, Ryder Coughlin, Adam Rashed, Heath Martin Barnes and Matthew Royer.
The girls team did a great job of rebounding from its 12-10 loss in the semi-final to Saskatchewan to beat Montreal in the bronze medal game. The girls finished the tournament with a 6-1 record and outscored their opponents by 43 goals in the process.
On the girls roster, Surrey/Delta Athletes include Sara Burns, Cierra Furneaux, Sophia Howie, Ava Finley, Hana Khan, Jamie Luo, Isabella Mady, Kriya Vohra and Vonzelle Venter.
This was the first national tournament in two years and both the boys and girls teams have been training for the unknown during for the past 24 months.
The mentorship coach Michel Roy, current national team coach, Georgiy Belyaev and Terril Ashton have given the athletes has clearly paid off.
The club is now preparing for U17 national league games in January against teams from across Western Canada.
The sport of water polo combines the skill of swimming, the throwing of baseball and the team strategies of soccer. This Olympic sport continues to grow across Canada and the Fraser Valley is establishing itself as the new home of Canada’s water polo future.
