Brent Mutis
CapU sport info

The Douglas College Royals were a puzzle for the Capilano Blues all through the PACWEST regular season and proved again to be unsolvable on Sunday in the provincial championship game.

Douglas took a 3-1 victory Sunday afternoon over the No. 1-seed Blues in the gold-medal game hosted by Vancouver Island University (VIU). The Royals were responsible for all three losses on the Blues season.

On Sunday, having eked out a 2-0 win in the PACWEST semifinal against VIU, Douglas took an early lead on a penalty kick goal by Pak Tung Tsang. The kick was awarded after Blues keeper Megan Thitchener collided with a Royals player in the area as both were pursuing a loose ball. 

The early goal gave the Royals a lift and their energy never flagged despite having played the day before. They also got near-flawless goalkeeping from eventual tournament MVP Vanessa Chung. The Royals' backstop made multiple goal-line saves and executed a diving save on a Mya Fraser shot in the first half. Chung tipped a long drive from Julia Peyton over the bar in the second half that looked like a sure goal and, after Douglas had gone up 3-0, made a save on a penalty kick that was given to Alanah Dulong. It was the only time this season Dulong was stopped on a penalty kick.

It is the third year in a row the Blues and Royals have met in an elimination game at the PACWEST tournament. The Blues won gold in 2021 but lost to the Royals in the 2022 semifinals. 

After the game, Peyton was given the Player of the Game award for CapU while Aynsley Hurtado was named the tournament's Top Midfielder.

Douglas is qualified for the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) national championship happening Nov. 8 to 11 at Holland College in Charlottetown, P.E.I.