The Armstrong senior Shamrocks went undefeated at the Owen Siddall Memorial Ice Breaker Lacrosse Jamboree at Nor-Val Sports Centre.
The Shamrocks started the tournament with a 6-1 win over the Prince George Bandits. Captain Chad Pounder supplied 2+1.
It was an intense start to the season as the Shamrocks had no rest following their battle with the Bandits.
Despite playing back-to-back games, the Shamrocks out-ran the Spruce Grove Tomahawks 7-4. Kyle Versteeg had three goals and two assists for the ‘Rocks. Former Edmonton Rush pro player Shaun Wilhelm had 2+1 for Spruce Grove.
The Shamrocks opened up Saturday with a 2-2 tie against the Tomahawks. Armstrong led most of the game, but a few late penalties allowed Spruce Grove to tie it up. Jamie Cockrill and Carston Schlaak were the goal scorers for Armstrong. A NHL-style shootout solved nothing as the game was called due to time restraints.
The second game of the day between the Bandits and Tomahawks resulted in a 4-4 tie. Damon Calfa had two for the Bandits, while Wilhelm earned 3+1 for the Tomahawks.
In the third game of the afternoon, the Shamrocks toppled the Tomahawks 3-1. Scoring for the Irish was Sheldon Nelson, Shaun Koenig and Cockrill.
Teams had a five-hour break in between afternoon and evening games. Both Prince George and Spruce Grove had short benches so they combined as one to take on Armstrong in the final game.
The Shamrocks earned an 8-2 victory over the conjoined squad. The highlight of the game came when teams were playing 3-on-3; Pat Nelson got to play on a line alongside his two sons, Sheldon and Cam.
Head coach Glenn (Stumpy) Mitchell was pleased with his team’s performance but still thinks there are areas to improve on.
The Shamrocks open up their Thompson Okanagan Senior Lacrosse League season on the road Friday against the defending league champion Kelowna Raiders April 25.
The Shamrocks’ home-opener will go Saturday, April 26, at 7 p.m. as they take on the Kamloops Rattlers.
In the junior ranks, the Vernon Tigers also had a successful weekend at the Archie Jack Memorial Ice Breaker tournament in Armstrong.
The Tigers went 2-0 with a 7-4 win against the host Armstrong Shamrocks and a 8-5 victory against the South Okanagan Flames.
Mitchell Anderson and Quintin Harrish both had a pair of goals against Armstrong.
Daryl Landels scored three goals with one assist gainst the South Okanagan Flames. Braden Barr chipped in with a goal and two assists.
“It was a good tournament. The pace was fast enough we could knock some rust off,” said Tigers’ head coach Myles Brumpton. “I don’t really emphasize wins and losses at these things, mostly just how guys look in our system. I thought it looked pretty good.”
The Tigers open their Thompson Okanagan Junior Lacrosse League season April 26 on the road against the Kamloops Venom. Their home opener goes Saturday, May 31, versus the Shamrocks.
The junior Shamrocks dropped their only other match this weekend, 3-2, to the Kelowna Raiders.
