Players may not like it, but Westshore Bears coach Ryan Alexander attributes a portion of the team’s success to a regular excercise implemented by trainers.
“They’ve been doing inch worms … They may hate it but it’s paying off,” he laughed.
An inch worm is a stretch that begins with players getting into a pushup position before walking their hands back towards their feet.
Whatever the reason – Alexander added that the players have shown tremendous dedication and focus all year – the Bears are off to provincials after rolling through the British Columbia Junior B Lacrosse League’s Island playoffs, dropping just a single game over two rounds against the Nanaimo Timbermen and the Saanich Tigers.
The playoff success comes after an impressive 13-4-1 regular season mark.
“We always have good teams and good young athletes … but this year just happens to have a lot of young guys with quite a bit of talent,” said the seventh year coach.
Runners Rylee Marsh, Jesse Gough and Chase Oickle will be counted on to produce the bulk of the offense for the high-flying Bears. Marsh led all Island scorers with 30 goals and 47 assists over the regular season, while Gough and Oicle finished fifth and sixth respectively. The Bears scored 244 goals in the 18-game regular season, more than any other team in the province.
Off the floor, Alexander was keen to point out the hard work of volunteers and his parents, team owners Robyn and Ken Alexander - better known within the organization as Mama and Papa Bear.
The Coquitlam Adanacs, Kamloops Venom and the host Vernon Tigers round out the field at provincials, which starts Friday.