Brayden Zunti was caught by surprise last Wednesday when he found out he had been picked as the best midget lacrosse player on Vancouver Island.
Usually, the awards — a jacket and $500 toward post-secondary education — are handed out at the provincial midget championships. However, Zunti’s Cowichan Valley Thunder team didn’t qualify for the provincials this year, and his family had other plans for the championship weekend, so a more low-key presentation was held outside the Island Savings Centre last Thursday, where B.C. Lacrosse Association Zone 6 rep Gina Jung bestowed the honour on Zunti.
“It means a lot to be considered one of the better guys on the Island,” he said, still recovering from the surprise.
In addition to playing for the midget A Thunder, Zunti also got several calls to play with the intermediate B team. The midget As played well during the regular season, but were eliminated early in the postseason.
“We had a very good year,” Zunti said. “I thought our team was very strong, but we fell apart in the playoffs.”
On an individual level, Zunti was pleased with his performance.
“I felt I had a really good season,” he said. “It was one of my better seasons in the last few years.”
Zunti is going into Grade 11 at Ladysmith Secondary this fall. Come February, he will be keeping an eye on the BC Junior A Lacrosse League draft, which he is eligible for this year. He also hopes to secure a field lacrosse scholarship sometime over the next couple of years.
