The Athabasca Hawks have ended their eight-year provincials dry spell after the Atom ‘A’ Hawks battled through provincials and came out as the Atom ‘B’ champions.
Brad Sakowich, Hawks head coach, said he’s very excited for the kids, who worked really hard for their championship 6-2 win against La Crete.
“We have a group of 11 that are very special kids, and they just stepped up and played well all year. (This is) very much deserved for them,” he said.
The Hawks played five games from March 16 and 19, against Battle River, Fairview, Coaldale and Rimbey, notching win after win to put them into the championship game against the La Crete Lumberjacks.
“A few more bounces went our way so we were able to win 6-2,” Sakowich said.
He also said that throughout the whole season the team had a short bench of 11, so the team was conditioned for hard competition.
“They’re like thoroughbred horses – they just keep going and going,” he said. “Our players were conditioned, and when other teams were running out of gas, we were actually picking up speed.”
Many teams dream of making it to provincials, but Sakowitch said the Atom ‘A’s made it their goal after the New Year to make it. Once they did, the players wanted to win the tournament.
“They stepped up and did it, so I’m very proud of them.”
