PoCo Saints captured the hotly contested 12-team Midget division as Tri-City teams dominated the Trevor Wingrove Memorial minor lacrosse tournament last weekend at Poirier Sports Complex.
The Mike Kuppan-coached Saints beat the Ridge Meadows Burrards in the final, as 24 teams featuring 500 participants from as far as Calgary and Vancouver Island gathered to compete in three divisions at the 28-year tournament, hosted by the Coquitlam Minor Lacrosse Association and formerly dubbed the Dogwood tournament.
In the Midget (15-16) consolation final, the New Westminster Salmonbellies edged the Coquitlam Adanacs.
The Adanacs proved unstoppable In the Peewee division (11-12), winning gold after defeating the Westshore Whalers from Victoria in the championship game. The Adanacs were coached by Sr. 'A' Adanac Tim Campeau, while the Burnaby Lakers earned the bronze medal.
A near identical outcome occurred in the Bantam division (13-14) final, where the Adanacs also bounced Westshore in the final. The A's were coached by former Jr. Adanacs player Lance Hofseth, while the Whalers were mentored by former Victoria Shamrock standout Grant Hamilton. The Saanich Tigers, meanwhile. collected the bronze medal.
Trevor Wingrove Inspirational Awards for quality of play, sportsmanship and assistance to their teammates were presented in each of the three divisions, with the winners being Peyton Avigdor of the Peewee Adanacs, Reid Bowering of the Bantam Adanacs and Sam Degroot of the PoCo Midget Saints.
Items from the National Lacrosse League's Washington Stealth and the Colorado Mammoth were raffled off, with proceeds going to a scholarship fund to aid male or female lacrosse players in their pursuit of post-secondary education in memory of Trevor Wingrove, who played all his minor lacrosse in Coquitlam and went on to star with the Coquitlam Jr. Adanacs and, later, the Coquitlam Adanacs of the Western Lacrosse Association. Also a high-ranking city manager with the city of Coquitlam, Wingrove passed away after a courageous battle with cancer almost two years ago.
