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Cowichan's Sun Bowl final an international showdown

The two teams who travelled the farthest to attend Sun Bowl XXX last weekend ended up in the Top Flight Division final, with the Dallas, Texas-based Adrenaline prevailing 35-0 over Team Mexico.

"It was a fast-paced game, and the fans got the game they wanted, but the score doesn't tell the whole story," Sun Bowl organizer Chris Mann said.

Dominant at both end of the field, the Adrenaline didn't surrender a single point all weekend as they captured their third Pacific Northwest Women's Football Championship. The team loaded up for Sun Bowl, bringing in players from Toronto, Denver and Puerto Rico - many of whom hadn't played together before - to round out their roster.

Team Mexico, meanwhile, consisted of young players recruited from Mexico City, Cancun and other smaller cities, who trained together three days a week for the month leading up to Sun Bowl. The Mexicans, competing at Sun Bowl for the first time, quickly established themselves as fan favourites at the tournament.

The Adrenaline downed the Cowichan Women's Football League champions, the Crew, 27-0 in one semifinal, while Mexico dispatched the defending Sun Bowl champs, the Vancouver Chargers, 24-13.

Both of the finalists have voiced their intentions to return to Duncan in 2016. Mann was thrilled to have teams from three different countries in attendance at the 30th edition of Sun Bowl.

"The field of teams this year made it a truly international event with Canada, the U.S. and Mexico vying for top prize," he said.

The Almost Top Flight Division was won by the CWFL's own Ravens (masquerading for the weekend as the "Shehawks") who beat the Victoria Xtreme in their final. The Grounded Division came down to a pair of Vancouver teams, with the Socialites topping the Blowfish.

Adrenaline quarterback Vanita Krouch was named tournament MVP. The Best Defensive Player award was shared by Maggie Owino of the Panthers, Sam Molina of Mexico and Teresa Melchior of the CWFL's Wild. The Best Offensive Player honours went to Krouch, Alyssa Neal of the Dragons and Rikki Wylie of the Ravens/Shehawks. The Wild were named the Most Sportsmanlike Team, and the Spirit Award went to another CWFL entry, the Sirens.

Mann, who made room in his own home for Team Mexico, thanked Val and Ken Chambers for putting up the Adrenaline and the Storm for providing transportation. He also expressed gratitude to the City of Duncan maintenance crew for preparing the McAdam and Rotary Park fields, the concession operators, Thrifty Foods, Save-On-Foods, Clark's Trophies, Heritage House Trophies, Mark's, and the referee crew.



Kevin Rothbauer

About the Author: Kevin Rothbauer

Kevin Rothbauer is the sports reporter for the Cowichan Valley Citizen
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