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Lady Luck beats Lakers
Tom Berridge, sports editor
There was no fairy tale ending to the Burnaby Lakers' horror show of a Western Lacrosse Association season.
The Lakers' worst-case scenario came true Sunday, when the Maple Ridge Burrards defeated New Westminster 15-13 in overtime in their final regular season game to cling to the fourth and final playoff spot.
Burnaby did all it could to salvage a season that started out on the wrong foot with the first pre-season training camp in April.
The senior A Lakers completely dominated the Burrards Friday, doubling the visitors 13-6 at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre and winning the all-important final game to take the season series between the two teams.
But New Westminster, which had already clinched third place Thursday with a rare 21-21 overtime tie with Coquitlam, appeared to be in no mood to do Burnaby any favours three nights later.
Up 6-3 in the middle frame, New West gave up five unanswered goals to close the period and were then outscored 4-2 in the final 10 minutes of the game as Maple Ridge pressed for overtime.
The Burrards outscored the Salmonbellies 3-1 in the 10-minute extra time.
Burnaby finished the season with a record of 8-9-1 and 217 goals for and 213 against, while Maple Ridge was 9-8-1, with its goals for and against in negative numbers.
After a dismal 2-7 start, Burnaby finished well despite a 16-12 setback in Langley in July, winning six games, losing two and tying one down the stretch.
But it wasn't enough. Jayme Bryde lifted the Burrard past the 'Bellies with an eight-point outing Sunday, including five goals. Travis Holloway, the backup to Maple Ridge starting keeper Nick Patterson, who is lost for the remainder of the season following knee surgery, was the game's third star.
"We're raring to go. We are a playoff-calibre team right now. I just hope we get a chance to show it," said Burnaby's Matt Dwane. Unfortunately the Lakers won't get that chance.
Burnaby coach Dave Evans said his boys did what they had to do when faced with a do-or-die situation. "I think we deserve a lot of credit. We put a lot of pressure on them and they were responding poorly. Everything they tried to do we responded to pretty well," said Evans.
published on 08/03/2005
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