All good things must come to an end, and it is no different for this year’s Mens Lacrosse club. With only 7 returning players from last year’s roster, this year’s Provincial championship that concluded this Easter Weekend could not have been farther away than this past offseason. But with strong recruitment and the eventual formation of a very talented roster, the Men’s Lacrosse was able to place 3rd in Tier 1 Provincials, it’s best ever finish in program history.
Day 1 of provincials saw the team go 2-0 with two commanding wins over Abbotsford and New Westminster. Day 2 featured a loss in the morning — to the eventual provincial champions — Whalley, but an afternoon win against Coquitlam kept our gold-medal game hopes alive. In a winner-goes-to-the-finals game during the morning on Day 3, the team couldn’t pull through and lost to a tough Beer Hunters opponent.
Lorenzo Malana, Connor Frost, Ryan Fitzgerald, Tom Syskakis and Matt Lattimer each took home a game MVP award in their respective order.
On March 31st, the team handed out this season’s individual team awards. As a recap, they go as follows:
Most Valuable Player: Tom Syskakis
Top Offensive Player: Connor Frost
Top Defensive Player: Matt Lattimer
Most Improved Player: Jeff Koster
Most Dedicated Player: Lorenzo Malana
Unsung Hero Award: Ryan Wilkinson
Rookie of the Year: Ryan Fitzgerald
Finally, we would like to congratulate our outstanding seniors that will be graduating this year and moving on from our club. Tom Syskakis, Jamie Gill and Matt Lattimer have been instrumental parts of this program, in varying roles, and their on-field commitment and presence will be truly missed. As well, head coach Kyle Robinson, who has been with the program since inception and has helped build this program to where it is today, has an uncertain future with the club as he finished his PhD this summer. We wish all 4 of these fine young men all the best in whatever the future holds. All 4 futures are oh-so bright!
Fans, throughout the summer expect updates on program future and what is in store for the 2019-2020 season. There are good things ahead for this program, both on and off the field, and our club can’t wait to be back on the field in the fall. Don’t forget to check out our sponsors! Without their support this year would not have been the success it was!
Birds on 3, 1-2-3-BIRDS.