The Tier II Island Field Hockey Championships took place Oct. 22 at Shawnigan Lake School with four Cowichan Valley teams making it to the top four.
"It was a very good sign of the growth and continuing strength of field hockey in the Cowichan Valley," said tournament spokesperson Julie Robb. "The Islands were a fantastic day of hockey — 13 teams from the South Island, Cowichan Valley and Alberni District participated and all games finished quite close."
Queen Margaret's School, Quamichan School, Brentwood College School, Shawnigan Lake School, and Frances Kelsey all took part. Joining the Cowichan schools were Claremont, Glenlyon Norfolk School, Mount Douglas, St. Michael's University School, Reynolds, Lambrick Park and Alberni District Secondary School.
In the end it came down to a battle between the host Shawnigan Lake team and Frances Kelsey.
Kelsey came out on top with Shawnigan the runners-up.
Kelsey won their pool by beating Claremont 3-0, Quamichan 2-1, Alberni 2-0, tying Glenlyon Norfolk 1-1 and falling to Oak Bay 1-0.
Shawnigan advanced to the gold medal game beating St. Micheals 2-0, Brentwood College School 2-0, and Mt. Doug 4-0, and tying Reynolds 1-1 and QMS 0-0.
QMS placed third.
"Our QMS Royals truly showcased their growth as a team this season," said school spokesperson Hayley Picard.
After defeating Brentwood 4-0 with a hat trick by Isabella Dale, the Royals continued with a 5-0 win against St. Michael’s University School. Game three against Mt. Doug High was another win 4-0.
"Our Royals then played a tough Reynolds Secondary who held them to a 0-0 draw," Picard recalled.
Shawnigan Lake School also played QMS to a scoreless draw.
"These two pointless ties unfortunately led to the team placing second in their pool, and relegating them to a third-fourth place playoff against Quamichan," Picard explained.
It was a tough pill to swallow given the team hadn't conceded a single goal in pool play.
Against Quamichan, QMS dug deep, working the ball up the field with several striking opportunities and showing outstanding defensive play. Malia Sandhu finally found the back of the net and the team held the lead to win 1-0 giving QMS the bronze and Quamichan fourth overall.
