The Oceanside Sharks midget lacrosse team was in Victoria this past weekend for the 17th annual Matt Underwood tournament, dedicated to the spirit of a young man who lost his battle with cancer.
Matt Underwood was a Peninsula First Nations lacrosse player who was playing at the national level before he lost his battle with cancer.
The tournament honours Underwood and raises money for cancer awareness. Athletes from every team shave their heads in support, which three Sharks did: Isaac Waite, Dawson Fyfe and Roman McKenzie.
The Sharks lost their first three games of the tournament, 5-3 to Juan de Fuca B, 6-4 to Cowichan and 6-2 to Saanich.
Needing a win to earn a spot in the bronze medal game, the Sharks beat Juan de Fuca C 10-0. Finding themselves down 4-3 in the third period of the bronze game, the Sharks scored six unanswered goals against Cowichan to take a 9-4 lead they held onto for a 9-8 win and bronze medal.
“The whole team played their best lacrosse of the year,” coach Cam Miller said. “They deserved to win every game they played but it just didn’t turn out that way. They put in a great team effort to get the bronze medal and they all should be proud of the outcome of this tournament.”