The joint Lacombe-Ponoka junior lacrosse team Locos completed their season over the weekend with one home and one road game, with their head coach expressing satisfaction with the improvement during the season despite the lack of memorable scoring successes.
In their last home game on Saturday, July 4, Locos lost to conference leaders Medicine Hat Sun Devils with a score of 15-7 with the hosts challenging the visitors’ domination for most of the game.
Locos opened scoring early in the first period with Carson Barnes, but the lead did not stay with the hosts with Devils scoring two in quick succession, and responded again with two goals in response to two additional goals from Locos boys, Braeden Grant and Tyler Bell, ending the first period 4-3.
The second period was the time when Locos really lost the game. Inefficient passing and ineffective control of the ball on the part of Locos were in stark contrast with visitors’ ability to stage well-coordinated attacks and score almost regularly in three to four minute intervals. When the second period ended the scoreboard showed 11-4 for the visitors with Dustin Bell having scored the only point for Locos.
The third period started with Grant scoring his second from a distant shot just 25 seconds into the play. Although this fired up Locos boys, Devils did not take long to restore their domination of the rink and scored four more in the third period, but not before Grant completing a hat trick and Brodie Thomas putting a number on the scoreboard.
Head coach Mike Wood said after the game that he was not disappointed at the result. “They beat us 21-4 in our last game,” Wood said comparing the performance of his team with the previous game vs. Devils. “The boys contributed to the game and they had fun,” he said.
Wood said he felt it was important that the Locos were not finishing the season at the last place.
“I said at the beginning of the season, we had too much to build on and I am extremely happy with the progress of the team,” he concluded.