The George McDougall Mustangs and the Chestermere Lakers were finally able to complete their semi final match May 31 after a two-week rain delay with George McDougall defeating Chestermere to advance to the gold medal final against Cochrane.
The Mustangs took a 1–0 lead in the first two minutes of the game and survived a last minute push from Chestermere before going on to win 3–2.
Mustangs coach Brian DiGiuseppe credited the early goal by Rahil Gillani with setting the tone of the game and giving the team confidence.
“We started off good and played really well. It got a bit dicey towards the end, but we had some guys in different positions that were a bit uncomfortable. We had to take some time to compose ourselves and (stay) calm,” DiGiuseppe said.
The Mustangs dominated the first half of the game. The Lakers would tie the game just before halftime, but Chris Burton answered back to give George McDougall a 2–1 lead heading into the second half.
The start of the second half was all Chestermere, as they pressed to tie the game again. A slight lapse turned the play back into Chestermere’s end, and Jeff Bell extended George McDougall’s lead to two. The Lakers put the pressure back on George McDougall, which lead to Chestermere’s second goal and a flurry of chances that would’ve tied the game. Their best chance came when a shot from just outside the crease rang off the crossbar. After a short scramble, George McDougall cleared the shot. The Lakers had another chance to tie it up with less than two minutes, but the indirect kick was easily cleared.
Weather had been a factor leading up to the game. The semi final was postponed for two weeks due to rain and while the sun was out for the game, the wind picked up after the second half. Chestermere coach Tanya Evanson said that neither the rain nor the wind had an impact on play, but DiGiuseppe recognized that the rain delay made the game unpredictable.
“I think the rain had a little bit of an impact. We didn’t get to practise much, and it would’ve been better to go last week. With the wind, I think we used it to our advantage,” he said.
Evanson was proud of the Lakers’ effort in the second half of the game and credited Brad Avery’s exceptional play and leadership as a factor in the game.
“They finished solid,” she said. “They played like they wanted it.”
George McDougall moved on to face the Cochrane Cobras for the gold medal and Chestermere will play Bert Church for bronze. Both games will took place June 2 (results too late for press time).
