Sharing in the Fraser Valley hardware for the first-time champion Heritage Woods Kodiaks are co-coach Cathy Pham, second from left, and captains Mercedes Hamilton, Paige Hamilton and Miranda Venos.
Photograph by: Submitted photo , NOW
In a major twist, the Fraser Valley senior girls AAA field hockey championship is now property of School District 43.
Even more surprising, the champ is not the district's longtime powerhouse.
The Heritage Woods Kodiaks exacted some revenge for last week's loss in the district final by clobbering the Gleneagle Talons 6-1 on Tuesday to capture the Valley title.
First, they bumped perennial Valley finalist South Delta 1-0 to advance to the final.
Against the Talons, the Port Moody squad jumped out to an early lead on Libby Riedl's first of two. It was followed by markers by Makenna Crawford and Alyssa Nonis to give the underdogs a 3-0 lead at halftime.
Mercedes Hamilton and Riedl rounded out the scoring.
"Our focus was to use the whole field and play a passing game with our midfield and defenders distributing the ball wide," wrote Kodiaks co-coach Jen Crawford in an e-mail. "We also wanted to be aggressive in the circle, knowing [Gleneagle] has an excellent goalie."
Heritage Woods' netminder, Alycia Gray, made a series of clutch saves at the appropriate time to douse the Talons' rally cries.
The rivalry has been a healthy one over the years, but seemed to climb another notch this year after their zone playoff battle.
"Our team certainly pulled together after losing the districts, and we were extremely motivated to prove ourselves," noted Crawford, who works the sidelines with Cathy Pham.
"Our captains - Paige Hamilton, Mercedes Hamilton and Miranda Venos - have done a fantastic job of leading our younger players with their positive attitudes, dedication and drive."
The last local team to top the Valleys was Centennial in 1988.
From Gleneagle's point of view, the Kodiaks' hungry approach wasn't totally surprising.
"It wasn't that we played poorly, it was that [Heritage Woods] really brought their best game to the table," remarked Talons co-coach Carol Coulson. "All of the [Kodiaks] - and they were loaded with very skilled players - brought their A-game and were quite unstoppable."
With the Valley No. 1-berth locked up, Heritage Woods will lead a large local contingent into next week's provincial championship at Coquitlam Town Centre Park.
Along with the Kodiaks and Talons, Port Moody, who placed fourth, and Dr. Charles Best, who finished fifth, will also participate in the B.C. AAA championship tournament.
Sharing in the Fraser Valley hardware for the first-time champion Heritage Woods Kodiaks are co-coach Cathy Pham, second from left, and captains Mercedes Hamilton, Paige Hamilton and Miranda Venos.
Photograph by: Submitted photo , NOW
