Cudas 14Us swim to gold

By Lethbridge Herald on July 11, 2022.

photo CoURTESY CODY FIRTH The Lethbridge Cudas 14Us were crowned 2022 Provincials champions over the weekend in Cold Lake.

By Justin Seward

Lethbridge Herald

The Lethbridge Cudas 14U lacrosse team went 5-0 at Provincials in Cold Lake over the weekend to take home the gold medal.

Lethbridge defeated Lloydminster in the final 17-3.

“Like I said, we began the season with the end in mind,” said Cudas head coach Cody Firth.

“And there was some speed bumps along the way, but all of our preparation really guided us to the easy victory. At the end of the season here at Provincials, we played against all these north teams and you could tell right from the start of the game that they haven’t played anything like that system wise or skill wise.”

Firth said system and role players all bought into the team by the end of the season.

The Provincials win capped off a 23-1 season.

“It’s really impactful I think for the  younger guys” said Firth.

“Like there’s no way this group will ever forget this moment. We’ve probably got  lacrosse players for life out of everybody in here. I hope we do anyways.”

Firth was a first year  coach and he could not ask for much more with that win.

“One-for-one looks pretty good on a resume,” he said.

“But I came into the season with a pretty structured plan. I don’t think a lot of coaches have that. So I knew what I was getting into and I was just flying by the seam of my pants. I really worked hard with these kids, the parent group and everybody involved to try to make the best out the situation coming out of COVID.”

The Cudas opened Provincials with a 15-3 win over Lakeland, followed by an 11-5 win over against Westlock , a 10-3 victory over Red Deer and a  13-4 win against Sylvan Lake.