Coming within a goal of knocking off the five-time defending champion in the deciding game of a championship series is nothing to hang your head about. It still couldn't erase the bitter taste left in the mouths of the Ladner Pioneers.
The senior "B" lacrosse club roared back from a 5-1 deficit to take a third period lead against the Tri-City Bandits, only to fall 9-8 on Sunday night at Sungod Arena. The loss was the first for the home team in the best-of-five series as Ladner had taken a 2-1 advantage with an 8-6 win on Thursday, only to see the Bandits respond on Saturday with a 12-6 triumph in Port Coquitlam.
The Pioneers looked poised to win their first B.C. title since 2007 when they came out storming to open the third on a pair of goals from Cam Taylor and another from Scott Boyle to take their first lead with the period not even four minutes old. However, the Bandits answered with a two of their own and would eventually score a shorthanded breakaway goal with just over three minutes remaining which ended up being the difference.
"The way the games had gone all week, we knew it wasn't over," said Pioneers head coach Bob Taylor of the Bandits late surge. "That's where we really missed some of our seasoned veterans."
Even with a championship on the line, the Pioneers struggled to fill their roster. Injuries, work commitments and even other activities left the club no choice but to dress goalie Nathan Wilson as a runner. Jared Wheatley broke his jaw in game three and Mike Vincent was sidelined early in game five. Perhaps the greatest loss was captain David Yee whose work schedule was shifted to afternoons, making his availability limited the entire series.
"We were missing four regulars tonight including our captain who brings a lot of heart and soul to this team," said Taylor. "I don't care about losing to them. What really hurts is losing because we didn't have our best team on the floor tonight. It's just really tough to win with such limited roster spots."
The Pioneers were the best team during the West Coast Senior Lacrosse Association regular season and hoped to be even better at the July 1 league roster deadline but a couple of potential senior "A" player signings fell through. Meanwhile, the Bandits did add some talent which helped close the gap on Ladner and second place Nanaimo.
It leaves a relatively young team with some unfinished business heading into 2014 when Tri-City is guaranteed a berth in the President's Cup national championships as the host team, meaning two B.C. clubs will be in the tournament.
"Right now we can't sit back and say we completed the job," Taylor added. "Our business isn't finished until we have a (provincial) banner and we're bringing the President's Cup back to Ladner. I know some guys have already looked past this year and say we have to be there next year."
Boxla bits... Pioneers president John Burr is already guaranteeing the club will participate in the 2015 President's Cup back east should it be fortunate enough to earn a berth. Both the Pioneers and Bandits informed the league it would not be going back to to Quebec to participate in this year's tournament. The only WCSLA to do so was Nanaimo. The trip is estimated to cost over $40,000 with the players asked to pick up almost the entire bill.
"We will never turn down a chance to play in the President's Cup again," said Burr. "We have two years to get it done and we will be doing a lot of fund raising and getting some sponsors on board. We have some ideas.
"These guys need the experience to see what the rest of Canada has to offer (for senior B lacrosse) and just how B.C. teams stack up against them."
Photos By Mark Booth / Ladner Pioneers Baun Adlington and Clay Collison team up on Tri-City Bandits Anthio Yuen during game five of the provincial senior B lacrosse championship series on Sunday at Sungod Arena. The Bandits won their sixth straight title with a 9-8 victory.; / Ladner Pioneers Travis St. Germain looks for an open teammate.;
