The West Kelowna Warriors were back at Royal LePage Place this weekend as they took on the Vernon Vipers in a home-and-home series.
The series got underway on Friday as the Warriors enjoyed playing on home ice and defeated the Vipers 2-1.
Both teams then travelled to Vernon on Saturday and West Kelowna survived the Vipers comeback attempt to take the 4-3 win in overtime.
Friday's match saw the Vipers score first after Lucas Brennan notched his second goal of the season near the halfway mark of the opening frame.
With the clock winding down in the first period and on the penalty kill, Carter Oakenfold intercepted the puck and drove to the net, tying the game 1-1.
Jack Pridham put the Warriors ahead early in the second frame after sending a wrist shot through Colin Reay’s five-hole to take a 2-1 lead.
The Warriors managed to hold on for the win as Ayo Ogini made all but one stop on the 22 shots he faced in the net.
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Both teams then made their way north on Hwy 97 on Saturday for the finale of the home-and-home series.
Following the trend from the night before, the road team got the scoring started with the Warriors finding the back of the net just before the five-minute mark of the first period courtesy of Dylan Krayer.
Less than four minutes later, Krayer had his second goal of the evening as he gave the Warriors an early 2-0 lead.
After Vernon cut the lead in half in the first period, Callum Hughes scored his second goal of the season to restore West Kelowna’s two-goal cushion.
The Warriors maintained their lead until the final minutes of the second period when Georgios Stavrianeas managed a shorthanded goal.
The Vipers continued to attack the net in the third period, breaking through at the 6:12 mark to even the score and eventually force overtime.
Carter Oakenfold was the hero of the day after he capitalized on a breakaway to snag the win for West Kelowna and place the Warriors at .500 on the season for the first time.
Carter Oakenfold fires home the overtime winner on the two-on-one!šÆ
— BCHL (@BCHockeyLeague) September 29, 2024
šļø @_JoeyPitt #BCHL | @BCHLWarriors pic.twitter.com/aFdXc1W33u
The Warriors have a few days off before they face the Trail Smoke Eaters this Friday and Saturday.
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