This week the IGA Blazers showed they were no flash in the pan and held on to their top spot in the women's league with a 4-2 win over Marshall Mayhem. Astrid Bradbury put two behind bars for the Blazers, with singles from Ashley Moore and Jackie Moran. Mayhem's Corrina Kowalewski sailed in a 20-yarder over the keeper, with Trina Geisbrecht breaking in for the second.
Xenichen Ya Yas edged Fusion 2-1 in a match enjoyed by all, with Ya Yas' new player Lauren Smith putting two behind bars and Chara Krangle hitting the net for Fusion.
In the men's league, Halfmoon Bay Sea Kayaks managed to hold on to first place for another week with a 5-1 win over Gibsons Pigs. Marcel Van Der Stedlt was firing on all four cylinders and put four away, with the fifth coming from fellow Dutchman Adam Vanderloop. Pigs' Ken Campbell looked up at 20 yards out to see four defenders lined up against him, so he just sailed the ball into the top corner from where he stood.
Gibsons United seems to have had the right guys on the front line as both forwards Pat Taylor and Sean Whalen posted hat tricks in their 6-2 win over IGA Selects. Selects' goals came from Lorne Mackey and Peter Brampton, with Billy Davis looming large in the midfield.
At Ted Dixon Memorial, it was the battle of the Sechelt Indian Band teams. With both teams' rosters full of prolific scorers, the match was surprisingly a low scoring event that ended in a 2-2 tie. The game's highlight came when Kevin August, no spring chicken himself, went up for a bicycle kick and hammered a ball over his head into the top of the net.
Pender Harbour Bananas split points in their 2-2 tie with CPU. Returning fullback Brent Fitzsimmons came out scoring for CPU, while Rich Massullo put two away for Pender. The Bananas had the win in the bag until the last two minutes, when Ted Chisholm hit the mesh and thus positioned CPU for a first place showdown with Halfmoon Bay this Sunday at 10 a.m. at Hackett Park.
On a final note, I'd like to thank Mike Cowie and Maria Melia-Budd for their help getting together all the information the past few weeks. With their help, I was able to paste together the last two stories through email in Chihuahua, Mexico and Cheyenne, Wyoming.
