Powell River Predators U13 girls’ rep soccer team travelled to Chilliwack to take part in the Provincial Championships earlier this month. The girls represented Vancouver Island and were coming off an extremely good season.
Their last match had been played in early April and since then the team had spent time preparing for the provincials by practicing and being trained by Deb Duyvestyn from Coast Fitness. This long layoff without matches meant the girls had to work extra hard to be prepared.
Predators started their action at provincials by playing Bulkley Valley Rapids from Smithers. The girls carried the play throughout the match and won 4-0.
The next day, Predators played North Shore Pegasus from North Vancouver. The girls had the better scoring chances but late in the game Pegasus was awarded a penalty shot and converted it to walk away with a 1-0 victory.
Despite this very disappointing loss the girls regrouped against a feisty team from Nelson. Strong second half play lead the girls to a 2-0 victory.
This win left Predators in second place in their pool meaning they would play for the bronze medal.
The matchup was against Vernon, a high scoring team. The girls focused their energy and again scored two goals in the second half to defeat Vernon and bring the bronze medal home to Powell River.
Many people and businesses in the community supported the Predators in their bid to take part in provincials and the whole team is very grateful for this experience.
Now focused on next year, the Powell River Predators team includes Claire Mavin, Ella Vallance, Taylor Kinley, Alex DePape, Carmen Miller, Ailisan Wrotny, Morgan Labree, Melaina Mastrodonato, Brynn Phyall, Colleen Maguire, Ashley Duyvestyn, Mia Mayenburg, Ally Carpendale, Willamijn Poelen, Lauren English, Abby Head, Amanda Butler and Katie Trevisanutto. Team manager is Laurie Vallance, and coaches are Greg Mayenburg, Martijn Poelen and Cam Miller.
