The day was set and the finals were again held at BC Place for the High School Championship finals which had young players dreaming of the chance to hit the field.

For some this is a dream come true, while some might make it to the pro level like most recently the Jalen Philpot and Tyson Philpot who are playing for Calgary and Montreal in the CFL respectively. 

For others this will be their level of success, but pro or not they have shown professionalism to the level of football they have played at their respective schools.

Saturday’s championship game was between the Vancouver College Fighting Irish and the G.W. Graham Grizzlies in the Triple A High School Football Provincial final. 

The game saw Vancouver College win by a 13-12 score that saw the Irish sack Grizzlies QB Lucas Feaver while setting up a two-point convert with 33 seconds left in regulation time.

Braeden Macdonald managed a six-yard run putting G.W. Graham was able to pull out the win while setting up a 76-yard run from Feaver who connected to (WR) Christian Beck.

G.W. Graham’s final drive was from their own 10-yard line with 1:02 left in regulation

It did appear that GW Graham was set to take the lead in the third after a 17-yard FG with Vancouver College having 7-6 lead only to have Cole Pryputsch block a kick from Josh Seo having it recovered by Michael Joseph who ran for 90 yards for the major.

Josep was named MVP for the game on his 19-yard TD catch along with an interception and for

Van College this was the only loss this season after going 12-0 with their only loss at the hands to G.W. Graham, who went 11-2 in season play. 

The Fighting Irish pulled out a narrow 28-23 win over the Chilliwack side on Oct. 1 at Vancouver College. 

Last year’s play was changed due to flooding which caused playoff action to be changed from the regular provincial format to a regional format that saw G.W. Graham win the Coastal championship after defeating the Terry Fox Ravens 36-33. 

Vancouver College was among the favorites, but they were upset 27-24 by the Centennial Centaurs of Coquitlam in the quarterfinals.

Chiu said he had his players watch the film from that game, explaining that he wanted them to remember that feeling.

Saturday’s Double A saw Abby’s Robert Bateman Timberwolves drop a narrow 40-38 OT to North Van’s Carson Graham Eagles in last year’s Coastal finale who were unable to finish off a two-point convert.

John Barsby were 7-6 this season who were featuring two brothers on the squad namly Cesare and Kai Rednour-Bruckman who appeared to be the main return go to guy’s. 

The day’s schedule

• 8:30 am: Doors open
• 9:30 am: Vernon vs. Windsor (‘AA’ JV Final)
• 11:45 am: Vancouver College vs. New Westminster (‘AAA’ JV Final)
• 2 pm: Varsity All-Star Game
• 4 pm: Robert Bateman vs. John Barsby (‘AA’ Varsity Final)
• 7 pm: Vancouver College vs. G.W. Graham (‘AAA’ Varsity Final)

The post BC High School Football Provincial Finals first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

If ever a team was in need of a win to keep their season alive it was the Vancouver Whitecaps who of late have been unable to put points on the board.

To the surprise and shock of many in the area the Whitecaps managed to pull out a 3 nil victory over the L.A.Galaxy (11-12-7) in a mid-week matchup at BC Place.

The Cap’s (10-14-7) are sitting six points out of the playoffs with three games remaining in the regular season, but there is still an outside chance, albeit slim.

The Galaxy came close to opening the scoring 20 minutes with Javier “Chicarito” Hernandez managed to get a header from inside the six-yard box, but to the delight of Caps supporters the ball sailed wide.

Whitecaps midfielder Ryan Gauld opened the scoring in the 58th minute that saw a momentum swing for the Cap’s giving them the belief that a win was possible.

As if one wasn’t enough they were driven by their momentum swing that saw their newest member Pedro Vite the Caps second in the 68th which ironically was his first MLS goal. 

As much as the Galaxy pressed the Whitecaps seemed to be driven by the support they were getting from the Southsiders as well as the remaining 16,681 fans in the building.

Changes play a key role with any team and on this night it was Tosaint Ricketts who came off the bench giving the Caps the added punch they needed in the 86th minute.

Control and timely possession in any sport can change the game, but on this night despite the 67.8 % that the Galaxy had failed to guarantee them a win.

Vancouver outshot the Galaxy 6-2 in shots on goal that saw Caps keeper Thomas Hasal make two saves for only his third clean sheet of the season. 

Galaxy keeper Jonathan Bond had three stops but was unable to guarantee the Galaxy a road win as they head home for a game against Colorado Saturday night.

Following the match Whitecaps Head Coach Vanni Sartini mentioned “He’s improved a lot,” that Vite is now training with more intensity. “If you don’t train with intensity you’ll never play with intensity and he looked (like) he finally understood that. … So I hope that this quality and intensity is going to have continuity.”

Following the match Nervinski mentioned “I told the guys that this is a statement win to say that we’re not giving up, we’re not bottling this season.”

Gauld told the media “I think we needed that after the few weeks and the couple of months we’ve had and we needed not just the result, but I think the performance, especially the second half.”

The Whitecaps host the Seattle Sounders in game two of a three-game homestand.

NOTES: (thanks to the Caps)

Vancouver’s leading scorer Lucas Cavallini was out serving the third game of his four-game suspension. 

Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter was shown the yellow card in the 82nd minute and will be suspended for Saturday’s game.

Wednesday marked the first time the Galaxy have played at B.C. Place since April

Scoring Summary

57’ – VAN – Ryan Gauld

68’ – VAN – Pedro Vite (Brian White, Luís Martins)

86’ – VAN – Tosaint Ricketts (Julian Gressel)

Statistics

• Possession: VAN 32.2% – LA 67.8%
• Shots: VAN 11 – LA 12
• Shots on Goal: VAN 6 – LA 2
• Saves: VAN 2 – LA 3
• Fouls: VAN 7 – LA 9
• Offsides: VAN 0 – LA 1
• Corners: VAN 3 – LA 9

Cautions

• 7’ – VAN – Leonard Owusu
• 38’ – VAN – Luís Martins
• 62’ – VAN – Pedro Vite
• 63’ – LA – Víctor Vázquez
• 82’ – VAN – Sebastian Berhalter

The post Whitecaps Shock Galaxy – 3 Nil Win first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

On a hot, 33 degree muggy night the local hometown favorite Vancouver Whitecaps FC played host to the Toronto FC in the Canadian Championship game that has the winner capturing the 2022 Voyageurs Cup. 

To no surprise BC Place saw an enthusiastic crowd of 24,307 fans making their way through the turnstiles letting their voices cheer on their home team.

The Whitecaps came out with an explosive start in the first minute of the match forcing Alexander Bono, Toronto FC Keeper to make a huge save off the foot of Lucas Cavallini.  

Eventually both teams settled into a structured defensive style game with Toronto in possession most of the first half.  

To the surprise of many, it was the Whitecaps who broke through in the 19 minute that saw Brian White (#24) head in a Ryan Gauld cross to go up 1 nil.   

The second half saw Toronto continue to maintain a high level of possession but at times were unable to break through the Whitecaps’ defensive wall. 

It wasn’t until the 75 minute that saw Toronto’s Ferico Bernardeschi (#10) made a world class cross that was headed in by Lukas Macnaughton (#5) to even the score at one.  

Extra time saw 5 minutes of injury time added that amounted to neither team putting points on the score clock, and to the delight of the 24 thousand plus the match would go to penalty kicks.

In a move out of a Hollywood screenplay Vancouver would manage to score on all five penalties, while Toronto nailed three, but missed one.  

Whitecaps’ Tristan Blackmon (#6) hammered home the Whitecaps’ fifth shot, cementing their championship win that put the players and the fans into a frenzy.

This was Vancouver’s second Canadian Championship in club history that now has them advance, moving on to join Mexico’s Atlas, Tigres UANL, Club Leon and Pachuca in next year’s 16-team CCL.

This in addition to Violette following the Haitian club win at the 2022 Concacaf Caribbean Club Championship.

This marks only the third time in club history that the ‘Caps play in the Champions League, after first qualifying for the 2015-16 edition prior to advancing to the semifinals in the 2016-17 tournament.

The post Whitecap’s Canadian Champions first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

Vancouver continued their resurgence in their last eight games (6-1-1) knocking off the first place LAFC at BC Place with the winner in the 89th minute coming off the foot of midfielder Andres Cubas in front of 18,292 fans.  

The opening half saw the teams play a cat and mouse style match with few chances in the first 45 plus minutes with no real scoring opportunities. 

LAFC’s Latif Blessing had the best chance early in the match, sending one over the top of the box striking the crossbar in the 11th minute. 

Vancouver did however have chances with some clear passing getting deep into the LA territory creating problems for ex-Whitecaps “tender” Max Crepeau and his defenders. 

The Caps came close in the 39th minute that saw Brian White connect with Ryan Gauld only to have his shot collected by Max Crepeau that saw both clubs taking a scoreless draw to the dressing room after the opening 45. 

The second half saw both clubs make substitutions that impacted the Second half, while Vancouver sent in Cristian Dájome for Lucas Cavallini while LAFC sent in Eddie Segura for Jesus Murillo. 

Brian White had a chance in the 50th when a cross from the left flank was smothered by Crepeau that saw a Yellow Card to Ryan Gauld for a late run in LA’s penalty area.

Vancouver continued to dominate with continued pressure in the second half creating problems for LAFC’s back four forcing them to clear away some dangerous crosses. 

Vancouver continued to pressure LA which resulted in several corner kicks awarded to the home team frustrating LAFC defenders. 

A late goal in the 89th minute following a mistake by the LA “Keeper” Max Crepeau who was pressed while attempting to clear the ball, only to have it go off a defender and from 25 yards. 

The ensuing kick sent it in the top left corner delivering a blow to the visitors from south of the 49th in what proved to be the game winning goal.

Vancouver now improves to 7-8-3, knocking off the top team in the west getting 3 huge points in the standings.

It was interesting to see the interaction between some of the Cap’s players and former Whitecaps Head Coach Marc Dos Santos and twice as nice to see the interaction with both coaches after the match.

The win for the Caps gave first place LAFC their 4th loss of the year through 18 game’s while Vancouver moved into 8th place in the West on the outside in goal differential. 

Vancouver’s next match in this homestand continues when they take on Minnesota United FC on July 8th kickoff time set for 7:30pm at BC Place tickets are available by visiting whitecapsfc.com/tickets. 

MATCH DETAILS

Player of Quality: Andrés Cubas 

Attendance: 18,292 Referee: Guido Gonzales Jr 

Scoring Summary 89’ – VAN – Andrés Cubas 

Statistics Possession: VAN 42.3% – LAFC 57.7% 

Shots: VAN 10 – LAFC 7 ,  Shots on Goal: VAN 2 – LAFC 0 ,  

Saves: VAN 0 – LAFC 1 ,   Fouls: VAN 14 – LAFC 12 

Offsides: VAN 2 – LAFC,    Corners: VAN 12 – LAFC 0 

The post Cubas 1st MLS Goal Gives Whitecaps Win Over Leading LAFC first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

Skateboarding is a sport that has taken various areas of the world by storm and while some think it’s dangerous, it’s only as dangerous as one allows it to be.

The first weekend in June saw the Langley Event Centre host the 7 Generations Cup event saw the Indigenous-hosted pro skateboarding event was organized by the Generations Skateboard Society.

The event drew competitors from across North America, as well as from Europe, Australia and Japan, who were competing for a total prize pool of $30,000 US.

Andy Anderson (26) calls White Rock home and was one who competed with the event being held much closer to home held at the Langley Events Centre from June 10th-12th.

Anderson said. “I feel blessed. I leave for Copenhagen tomorrow and then Paris and Rome for the street qualifiers for the Olympics and this is the best preparation I could have asked for, getting a local blessing … I just have to take a breath and appreciate this because this doesn’t happen and I hopefully it will happen more,” 

He continued “It is just unbelievable. The meaning that this kind of event carries, it is just so much more than what you can see on the surface, and I think everyone here feels it.” 

Anderson finished first in the freestyle and second in the men’s all-terrain competitions and also received the John Edward Ptucha Memorial Award, presented to the top overall skateboarder. 

At the height of the sport, the award was presented to the top overall skater of the Canadian amateur skateboard championships. 

The overall skateboarder hasn’t really been recognized or awarded or sought after for a long time and that is always what I aimed at but there really wasn’t an award for that until recently,” he said. 

The Indigenous-hosted pro skateboarding event was organized by the Generations Skateboard Society and drew competitors from across North America, as well as from Europe, Australia and Japan, who were competing for a total prize pool of $30,000 US. 

Taking inspiration from the Kwantlen First Nations’ seven laws of life – health, happiness, humbleness, generations, generosity, forgiveness and understanding. 

The 7 Generations Cup featured a variety of events across its three-day span, including an all-terrain contest, a freestyle cup, trick battles, and a competition marking the 35th anniversary of the historic Mini Ramp Challenge, a first-of-its-kind event that took place in Richmond in 1987. 

There were also Pow Wow dancers, Indigenous drummers and singers, a Basket Repatriation Ceremony, Indigenous vendors and more. 

Jay Balmer, the Chair of the Board for the Generations Skateboard Society mentioned “We have a deep history of skateboarding around the Lower Mainland and bringing a major event back allows us to gather and celebrate skateboarding together and I don’t think there has ever been an event this size since Slam City Jam, and I didn’t even go that because I was so young,” 

The signature event was last held in Vancouver in the mid-2000s and having this event back) means a lot for the community; it is unbelievable what it does for skateboarding.

 How many of the people who are skating here who were inspired by those earlier contests and just of the drought for support for skateboarding in this area were … it is so nice the drought is over.” 

Having skateboarding in the Olympics – it was added in 2020 – has helped bring the sport legitimacy. 

“I don’t think people ever thought of skateboarding other than an illegal activity until it was in the Olympics and now people that were criminals are considered professional athletes,” Anderson said. “It is really nice to feel appreciated by the general population.” 

Winners All Terrain Competition (first place to third place)

Men’s: Jake Wooten, Andy Anderson, Caden Smith Women’s: Fay Ebert, Samantha Secours. Alexandra Kolebniak

Freestyle: Andy Anderson, Nick Beaulieu, Guenter Mokulys Mini-Ramp:

Men’s: Jake Wooten. Adam Hopkins, James Clarke Women’s: Fay Ebert Legends: Rob Sluggo Boyce, Alex Chalmers, Britain Bigginbotham Pylon Death Races

Results Caleb Nichols, Dylan’s Righand Krooked Hippy Jump Results Jake Wooten, Riley Clerihue Allen

The post 7 Generations Cup first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

Locally the relocated Fraser Valley Bandits are beginning to attract record numbers through the turnstiles playing out of the Langley Events Centre.

It should be noted that it clearly wasn’t the three-point shot that carried the Bandits but rather the 13 schools that they hosted which was part of the School Day Game they hosted for the very first time.

Let’s be clear this isn’t the first ever school day game in the area, but rather the second with the first being hosted by the AHL Abbotsford Heat February 5th, 2013 when they played host to the Rochester Americans. 

It was however the first hosted by any of its 10 teams in the Canadian Elite Basketball League noting that the game was sold-out with schools attending from Abbotsford, Mission, Surrey and Township of Langley. 

As well as an entertaining game adding to the enjoyment for the students saw the Bandits place a complimentary co-branded drawstring bag on the seats which was supplied by Sentinel Storage. 

The first part of the game was scoreless until the 33:13 mark that saw the Bandits sink 14 of 31 attempts shooting 45.2 % while Murphy Burnatowski sank five triples, while Alex Campbell and Shane Gibson each hit four.

Burnatowski opened with his sixth three-pointer, pulling them within one (68-69), but they missed their four shots, three from beyond the arc that saw Hamilton score the final 11 pulling out a 80-68 win.

Bandits’ Coach Mike Taylor told the media “As the game went on, you could see the physicality from Hamilton become a factor. At the end of it, they did a great job defensively, making us work for scores and we got out-played in Elam Ending, but you really have to give a lot of credit to the way Hamilton played today.”

The Bandits took a 9-0 lead going up 17-8 midway through in the first quarter  then Hamilton exploded cutting the deficit to 21-20 after one quarter. 

The second quarter saw Hamilton take a 36-33 lead at the half only to have the Bandits take a 55-52 through the first 30 minutes, but Hamilton pulled ahead 69-65 with 3:13 remaining.

The Bandits hit 41.7 % from beyond the arc and attempted only 23 shots from inside the arc going to the foul line five times.

Taylor mentioned “We did not attack and pressure the rim enough; we did not get enough paint touches to really pressure their defence and create those easy shots and our guys did a fantastic job hitting some of those tough shots.” 

He continued “Again our offence, we want to pressure the rim a little bit more, get that ball into the paint a little bit more, create more advantages, whether it is out of pick and rolls or drives, penetration or paint touches.”

Hamilton outscored the Bandits 32-16 in the paint, and also rebounding (46-30) which included 16 offensive rebounds. 

Gibson led the Bandits with 22 points, Burnatowski had 18 while Campbell had 12, while Hamilton Caleb Agada managed 17 points that saw Christian Vital score seven of his 13 points.

For the game, Hamilton forced 18 turnovers, converting those takeaways into 26 points.

Hamilton coach Ryan Schmidt mentioned “Our defensive effort was amazing. We talk about that is where our identity is going to be at and proud of the effort we got.”“

He continued “Defensively, that is where we are going to win games. We have a very versatile group, multiple guys that can get up and pressure the ball. 

“It is a very team-oriented defence, we are not relying on just one guy to stop them. Again, getting in the passing lanes, forcing them to make tough decisions, resulted in forcing 18 turnovers.”

Hamilton sits in first place at 4-1 while the Bandits drop to a three-way tie for third place at 3-2.

Bandits Kadre Gray managed only two points not coming close to his season average of 10.3 and mentioned “We are just building trust every game … it comes the more you play,” “Situations like this where you have a bad loss, you have to figure out how to reunite and come together. I have all the faith in the guys that we are going to figure it out. It is about being ready for playoff time.”

Game notes

The game was a special early start as students from Langley, Surrey, Abbotsford and Mission were in attendance, adding a raucous atmosphere to the contest.

The Bandits hit the hardwood in Alberta playing the Edmonton Stingers, June 15th then return home to face the Scarborough Shooting Stars as part of the BC Basketball Festival continues.

The post Bandits Host School Day Game first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

The relocated Fraser Valley Bandits came out strong in their home opener Saturday with an pulling off a solid 90-78 win over the Saskatchewan Rattlers.

The win see’s them get revenge for their road loss to even their record at .500 in CEBL play in front of the sellout crowd at the Langley Event Center. 

The Bandits opened the game taking a 8-3 lead before the Rattlers went on a 16-8 run romp taking a 21-16 lead before the Bandits went on a 9-3 run ending the quarter taking a 25-24 lead.

The second quarter saw the Rattlers and the Bandits combine for 48 points with the Bandits outsourcing the Rattlers 26-22 taking a 51-46 at the half.

The Bandits were led by Murphy Burnatowski with 12, Thomas Kennedy with 11 and Shane Gibson managing 10 points 

The Rattlers leaders at the half were led by Scottie Lindsey with 12, while Tony Carr and Sebastian Aris both managed ten.

Late in the third quarter the game became somewhat physical as both teams were playing an aggressive style which resulted in disqualification fouls on both sides. 

Saskatchewan managed to hit a pair of three pointers as well as a free throw taking a 61-56 lead with less than a minute left, but the Bandits cut the lead to 65–63 with under a minute left. 

Rattlers scored a bucket to take a 67-63 but the Bandits came back on a run hitting a pair of 3 pointers retaking the lead after three quarters by a 69-67 margin.  

The fourth quarter saw the Bandits extend their lead with an 8 point run jumping out to a 75-67 margin with 6:53 remaining that saw the Rattlers shooters having difficulty converting their shots.

The Rattlers had a run scoring five straight points cutting the deficit to 3 making it a 75-72 game but the Bandits countered with six straight points restoring their lead to 9 points grabbing a 81-72 lead being up by seven. 

They managed to extend their lead to 87-73 finishing the game on a three pointer and completed a 9-6 run late to make the final 90-78. 

The win has the Bandits with a 1-1  record which is equal to the Rattlers in CEBL play with as the Bandits set to host the Edmonton Stingers with an 11 AM tip-off that has them hosting local Langley schools.

Catch some of the exciting Fraser Valley Bandits hoop action at the new home of the Bandits – the Langley Events Centre.

The post Bandits Win Home Opener first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.

The Vancouver Giants introduced their top Bantam picks in the recent WHL draft which included three (3) first round picks and second round selections which has not happened since 2005.

Giants GM Barclay Parneta announced the signing of their first four picks from the 2022 WHL Prospects Draft. 

Earlier in the day they welcomed forwards Cameron Schmidt (Prince George), Aaron Obobaifo (Calgary), Jakob Oreskovic (Langley) along with Victoria’s D-man Colton Alain.

Cameron Schmidt – Round 1, 7^th Overall

Cameron Schmidt was selected seventh overall by the Vancouver Giants in the 2022 WHL Prospects Draft. 

The 5’8” right-shot forward spent last season with the Rink Academy Kelowna U15 program. 

In 13 games, the Prince George, B.C. native recorded 25 goals and added 16 assists for 41 points, and added 38 penalty minutes. 

He also appeared in one game for the U16 team and three games with the U18 team, recording two goals with each team.

Cameron Schmidt mentioned “It’s an incredible honour to sign with the Vancouver Giants and to start this new chapter of my hockey career and I’m looking forward to meeting my new teammates and taking part in my first WHL Training Camp.”

Parneta added “We are ecstatic to have Cameron join our organization to further his hockey development. He is a dynamic, offensive player with a great shot and his exciting skill set will bring fans out of their seats.”

Aaron Obobaifo – Round 1, 19^th Overall

Aaron Obobaifo, a 5’10” left-shot forward appeared in 52 games with Shattuck St. Mary’s 14U AAA team. 

He recorded 44 goals, 47 assists for 91 points along with 36 penalty minutes and also played six games the previous season with Calgary’s Edge Hockey Academy posting six goals and five assists for 11 points. 

In order to select Obobaifo with pick #19, the Giants traded up two spots in the draft trading the 21^st and 70^th overall picks to the Saskatoon Blades.

Obobaifo mentioned “It’s very exciting to sign today with the Vancouver Giants and a lot of great players have come through this organization and I can’t wait to get started. My family and I are grateful for the opportunity.”

Parneta mentioned “Aaron’s competitiveness and work-ethic is off the charts. He’s an excellent two-way player with great offensive upside and skating ability. We were thrilled to be able to trade up in the draft to select him.”

Jakob Oreskovic – Round 1, 22^nd Overall

Jakob Oreskovic ( 5’11” LHS) spent last season with the U-15 Delta Hockey Academy Prep Green program. 

In 28 games, he managed 19 goals, 27 assists along with 8 PIM’s and dressed in five playoff games recording one goal and two assists.

Oreskovic mentioned “I’m very excited to sign with my hometown WHL team,” “I’ve grown up watching the Vancouver Giants play, and I’m honoured to have the opportunity to put on a Giants jersey and begin the next step of my hockey career.”

Parneta added “Jacob brings a solid mix of size and skill to the table and we scouted him closely this season, and really like his character, work ethic and on ice leadership and were thrilled he was still available to us at #22.”

Colton Alain – Round 3, 54^th Overall

Colton Alain (6’2” RH D-man) who recorded 16 goals, 16 assists (32 points) in 30 games for the Pacific Coast Academy’s U15 Prep Program last season, along with 40 penalty minutes. 

He also played in five games with the U16 team collecting one goal and one assist and was the first D-man selected by the Giants in the 2022 Prospects Draft.

Alain mentioned “I’m grateful to the Vancouver Giants organization for the opportunity, and I’m excited to officially commit to the Vancouver Giants today and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to take the ice for Training Camp with my new teammates in the fall.”

Parneta added “Colton is a big-bodied, versatile, mobile defenceman who can contribute in all areas of the ice. He’s got strong character and a bomb of a shot from the point. He’s going to fit in very well on our blueline in the seasons to come.”

As under-age players all four are eligible to play in up to five games next season with the Giants until their respective regular seasons come to an end with their CSSHL teams.

Thanks to the Vancouver Giants and Dan O’Connor for the invite to the press event

The post Giants Draft Selections first appeared on SportsWave Broadcasting.