Second place for girls hockey

A date with destiny left Shawnigan's girls a mere heartbeat away from a championship.

After finishing second in the regular season, five points behind Delta Hockey Academy and 20 points ahead of third-place Okanagan Hockey Academy, the School's inaugural girls hockey team ventured to Calgary last week for the CSSHL female playoffs.

After comfortable wins over Okanagan and Coeur D'Alene on Wednesday and Thursday respectively, the girls faced Delta on Friday, falling to their season-long rivals after conceding a powerplay goal with just three seconds remaining in the third period.

The loss to Delta set up a final round robin matchup against Banff Hockey Academy – with the winner set to advance to Sunday's final. Leading 1-0 after the second period, Shawnigan poured it on in the third period, striking four more times to seal a 5-0 victory.

"I think we came out a little flat," Shawnigan Coach Carly Haggard said. "In the third period, the girls realized that if we lose, we're done, and they really turned it on."

The victory moved Shawnigan into the final, setting up a showdown with Delta that had seemed likely all season long.

A back-and-forth game, Sunday's final was a close-fought affair. Trailing 1-0 after 40 minutes, Shawnigan was able to tie the game up on a short-handed marker by Delaney A. early in the third. Delta pushed back in front with 4:31 remaining, with a quick equalizer from Shawnigan negated after officials ruled the puck had been kicked in. A frantic push from Shawnigan couldn't break through, and an empty-net goal with six seconds left clinched Delta's win.

"Emotions ran pretty high in our dressing room afterwards," Haggard said.

The girls were particularly upset for Ashley M. and Delaney A., the team's two graduating players, she said. However, she insists the two girls have set the bar high for seniors to come.

"I couldn't be more proud of what the girls accomplished," Haggard said. "I hope they can look back and be proud, too."