The Vernon Vipers Bantams won the Greater Trail Minor Hockey Association’s Bantam Tier 2 tournament on the weekend, with an exciting 3-2 overtime win against the Penticton Vees on Sunday.
The Greater Trail Bantam Smoke Eaters came up a little short in the round robin but finished with a strong 7-2 victory over Salmon Arm in the consolation final Sunday morning.
Despite a number of injuries, the Bantam Smoke Eaters had a good tournament, losing to the eventual winners Vernon in a close 2-1 game Friday night.
The Vipers team that attended was reportedly a Tier 1 team so the Smokies could take some satisfaction from the close result.
Trail then took on the Cranbrook Hornets, dropping another close match, 3-2, before routing Calgary’s Lake Bona Vista Breakers 11-3 on Saturday.
In the final, Vernon and the Penticton Bantam Tier 2 Vees were tied 1-1 with five minutes remaining when Vernon netted what looked to be the winner. But Penticton replied with two minutes left in regulation to make it 2-2 to send it to OT.
In the extra period both teams missed sparkling opportunities and the game looked to be headed to a shoot out when the Vipers struck, scoring with two seconds left on the clock to win the tournament title.
