Brent Dunlop, Communications, 2017 CCAA Men's Soccer National Championships
The hometown VIU Mariners claimed the 2017 CCAA Men's Soccer National Championship with a narrow 1-0 victory over the Douglas Royals.
For just the second time in CCAA men's soccer history, two teams from the same conference played for gold, and it was definitely a solid game between two rivals for the full 90 minutes.
Stefan Cukovic capitalized on a miscue by the Royals back line as he chipped one over the outstretched hands of Ryo Mizuno to take the lead.
David Turkstra made two key saves in the first half, punching away a couple of crosses which could have been dangerous chances.
There weren't too many opportunities created by the Royals in the second half, as VIU defenders Jeff Travis and Ryan McCurdy kept their end of the field clear. Douglas appeared to tie the game at one point but their attacker was called for being offside. The Mariners then shut the door and held onto their slim lead to claim the gold medals.
Mariners Player of the Game was Colin Knight, while Tetsuya Yoshinaga was named Player of the Game for Douglas.