The Comox Valley Lightning are Island champions, and the lone local in the lineup certainly looked to be in her element at Oceanside Place.
Two weeks ago Oceanside’s Shayna Twamley was in Vernon refereeing girls hockey at the BC Winter Games, and last weekend she was patrolling the blue line for the Lightning.
In action at the VIAHA’s Female Midget C year-end tournament, the Lightning, who had already locked up the League Championship with a record of 13-1, opened with a 4-0 win over Cowichan Valley on Saturday.
In the playoff final on Sunday against the Alberni Valley Thunder, Twamley assisted on a goal and scored her third of the season — a heavy wrister from well out — and the Lightning looked impressive in a 6-0 win to clinch the playoff banner.
“It was lots of fun — we played really well as a team,” Twamley said. “We didn’t know each other very well at the beginning but we’re all friends now.”
This is her fourth year playing hockey — all four on D. The hockey season started last October, and it isn’t over yet. Twamley, who pulls double duty as one of this area’s top young referees, was selected to officiate girls hockey at the BC Winter Games which just wrapped up.
“It was so much fun,” said Twamley, 16 and a student at Ballenas Secondary, when asked what it was like working the whistle as such a big event. She wore the stripes for seven games in all — four of them as ref, three as linesman.
“It was really good, we had mentors that talked to us after the game, gave us pep talks before the game ...”
“I think it does,” she said when asked if learning the ropes as a ref helps her hockey game.
Besides reffing and playing for the Lightning, Twamley also played on the Oceanside Panthers Midget C boys team this season.
GAMES ON
Twamley did such a good job at the BC Winter games in Vernon, she’s been invited to officiate at the Bantam A provincial finals in Victoria next week.