The South Okanagan Flames junior B lacrosse team knows what they want to accomplish this season.
“I want to win our league,” said Flames coach Kevin Thompson, whose squad is now 2-0 in the Thompson Okanagan Junior Lacrosse League after Monday’s 20-13 win over the Armstrong Shamrocks. “We want to go to provincials. We know where we’re going. We know where we got to last year. We want to surpass that.”
After finishing 10-6 for second place, the Flames were knocked out in the first round by the Kamloops Venom, who went on to win the league championship. While the Flames no longer have Chris Pond and Dean Grimm, who aged out, Cooper Holick, Mitch Brodt and Isaiah Kozak will be joining the team. Kozak played in the National Collegiate Athletic Association with the Lindenwood Lions. In four games he had one goal.
Thompson said his group is gong to pick each other up and they learned from Pond and Grimm.
“We’re doing nothing but getting stronger. This team is ramped up,” he said. “Were going to get better every game.”
Kaid MacLeod, the Flames captain, believes the team can with the TOJLL championship if they work hard and play as a team.
“We have the talent for it,” he said.
Thompson doesn’t believe his group has weaknesses, except with the coaches, he joked. He talked about the young players who are inexperienced, but added they possess a desire to learn and work hard. Thompson can’t consider that an area of weakness.
“I can’t pick a weakness,” he said.
The Flames are back in action tonight in Armstrong with their next home game on May 2 against the Vernon Tigers.
