It may not be a championship, but one could argue it feels like one for the Prince George Youth Soccer Association (PGYSA).
The Under-18 Impact didn’t reach the gold medal game in a chance to compete for B.C. Soccer’s Les Sinnott Memorial Cup, but they ended the 2019 campaign on home soil with two straight victories, getting them to a bronze medal at the Provincial ‘B’ tournament.
Bronze for the boys 🥉 @PGYSA U18 Impact defeat Guildford (Surrey) 2-1 in the 3rd place match on their home pitch at the 2019 Provincial ‘B’ Cup ⚽️ | #CityOfPG @1BCSoccer @PGMatters pic.twitter.com/zNMeMKK6bH
— Kyle Balzer (@KyleBalzer) July 7, 2019
They defeated the Guildford Athletic Club (Surrey) by a score of 2-1 at the PGYSA Fields yesterday afternoon (July 7), completing another comeback that saw them down 1-0 early in the contest.
The Impact later tied it up at 1-1 and then, in the dying minutes of the second half, UNBC men’s soccer commit Julian Daduica potted the winning goal to lift his team to victory and claim third place in their division.
Daduica is one of seven graduating players from the Under-18 team coached by Rob Lewis, who is an assistant coach with UNBC as well.
“I hope they keep playing the game,” Lewis said in an earlier interview with PrinceGeorgeMatters. “I hope others get to keep playing and enjoy the game, and I tell them that it’s been a really fun ride with this group. I’ve been with these guys a long time and I just enjoy it. You know, these times are special times when you’re with your team, remember them, take that with them, and hopefully involved in the sport in the future.”
Big congrats to @UNBCMSoccer commits Demian Dron & Julian Daduica who, along with their @PGYSA teammates, earned bronze at @1BCSoccer Provincials! Julian even scored the GWG in the 2-1 victory! Shoutout to Coach Rob Lewis, who also serves as @UNBC Assistant Coach! pic.twitter.com/BKIwOoG1mg
— UNBC Athletics (@UNBCATHLETICS) July 7, 2019
The Under-18s finished the tournament with a record of 2-0-2.
Their first two matches against Kamloops and Langley both ended in 2-2 draws before winning their final group stage match 2-1 over Coquitlam.
Coquitlam won the Les Sinnott Memorial Cup over Prospect Lake/Peninsula; they reached the Under-18 final after finishing top of their pool with a 2-1 record, relegating Prince George to the bronze medal match by a single point.
A second Prince George team was also in medal contention as the Under-13 'A' squad competed for a bronze medal.
However, they would go on to lose 2-1 to Kamloops in the third-place match of their division, finishing the weekend with a 2-2 record.
"We feel it gave us the opportunity to showcase to the rest of the province our wonderful northern hospitality and our beautiful city," said PGYSA spokesperson Allison Bogle in an email to PrinceGeorgeMatters with respect to hosting the four-day provincials. "It also enabled our four PGYSA Impact Teams to showcase their soccer skills in front of their home crowd on our wonderful Rotary Soccer Fields."
She adds the tournament was a team effort, thanking the City of Prince George, UNBC, and Tourism Prince George for their help in making things go as smoothly as possible for the visiting clubs.
