When Zack Soke of Bredenbury scores a goal for the Yorkton Bulldogs Jr. B lacrosse team, it usually gets counted on the scoreboard-for his team.
Last Thursday night, when Soke and the Bulldogs trekked to Regina to take on the Regina Rifles, he scored one that somehow counted for the other team.
"Yorkton (Soke) scored," says Joe Choptuik, head coach of the Bulldogs, "but Regina got credit (for it)."
As a result, the final results of that lacrosse matchup (a 13-11 Regina victory), are under league protest with the Prairie Gold Lacrosse League.
Choptuik told Yorkton This Week that, other then that, it was a "really good game".
It was fun until the last 52 seconds," he added.
With the score knotted up at 11-11 and time running out in the third period, Soke scored from in close, coach Choptuik told Yorkton This Week.
However, that goal, which would have been Soke's sixth marker of the game, the goal was credited to the home team Rifles, says Choptuik.
"We didn't think anything of it until the game was over," he told the paper.
As a result, the game's final score is currently under review with the PGLL, he said.
Choptuik said the game's final 52.7 seconds should be played over in order to determine a winner.
He also noted that when Soke's goal was scored, Regina pulled their goaltender
"There has to be (some) action. The game is under protest."
The Bulldog coach added that once everybody on the team realized that Yorkton was basically getting a possible victory taken away, fights broke out in the game's final seconds.
There was some obvious confusion on the officials standpoint, too, he says.
"This went on for nearly 30 minutes while the referees made up their minds."
Even though Yorkton hopes to have something done about the Soke goal mishap, it was still quite the game for the sharpshooter from Bredenbury.
He scored his first goal of the game minutes after Regina opened the scoring in the opening period.
He added his second after Regina had jumped out to a 3-1 lead. Teammate Brendon Turberfield was the only other Bulldog goalscorer in the opening period.
At the end of the first, Regina held a 6-3 advantage. Yorkton made their way back into the game in the second as Tyson Haas and Jayden Dozorec each scored unassisted goals less than a minute apart, cutting the Rifles lead to 7-5. At 11:26 of the frame, Taras McEwen tallied to cut the lead to one, 7-6.However three more Rifles' goals put the lead to 10-6 with seven minutes remaining.
Turberfield's second on the night, and Soke's hat-trick goal brought Yorkton to within two goals heading to the dressing room for the intermission.
Both teams tallied three times in the third, including back to back Soke goals, both unassisted, and he added his sixth of the game with 5:48 remaining.
Following the game, Soke said the goal he scored that was credited to the wrong team was a "common mistake" and he said "he didn't think much of it".
Both he and coach Choptuik said it got frustrating by the end of the game because the goal would have given the Bulldogs a one-goal lead with a decent chance to win the game with only 52.7 seconds remaining in regulation time.
"I asked if they could switch the score," insisted Soke, adding that there was a "long discussion" after the game.
Soke said it was disappointing to leave that night with Regina getting credit for the win. The game would have been Yorkton's first win of the season and almost every Bulldog's name is found on the game sheet.
Jerrason Fisher had three assists. Turberfield and Dozorec had two, Tyson Hass had one and Taras McEwen had one.
"We finally came together," said Soke after the game, it's really frustrating to get nothing for it. I hope they (the PGLL) can do something about it."
