Shamrocks Take 9 in Junior Player Draft

The Western Lacrosse Association 2019 draft of graduating Junior lacrosse players was held Thursday night, with the Victoria Shamrocks using all nine of their picks, including an additional 4^th round pick acquired from New Westminster. Additionally, the Shamrocks were able to keep five graduating Victoria Junior A players at home, taking them in the 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th, 7^th, and 8^th rounds.

General Manager Chris Welch was happy with the overall results of the draft: “It was exciting, they’re always exciting. While it was a little bittersweet to see three Victoria guys go right in front of us, but we’re proud of them and happy for them, and we’re happy with the guys we got with our picks.”

• 1^st Round, 6^th Overall – Keegan Bell (New Westminster) – Acquired by New Westminster from Port Coquitlam in 2018, Bell had 67 points in 20 regular season games last year with a 0.279 shooting average.
• 2^nd Round, 13^th Overall – Larson Sundown (Coquitlam) – Acquired by Coquitlam from New Westminster in 2018, Sundown had 41 points in 14 regular season games last year with a 0.328 shooting average, and was part of the Minto Cup-winning playoff roster.
• 3^rd Round, 20^th Overall – Dylan Rehman (Victoria) – A defensive stalwart called up by the Senior Shamrocks in 2018, Rehman gets in his opponent’s faces, tallying 56 penalty minutes in 21 regular season games last year.
• 4^th Round, 27^th Overall – Gabe Harman (Victoria) – Another strong defender who saw time with the Senior squad last summer, Harman is an everyday defensive player.
• 4^th Round, 28^th Overall – Pascal Coombes (Nanaimo) – In his last BC Junior season in 2017, Coombes tallied 33 points in 16 regular season games and an impressive 0.563 shooting average.
• 5^th Round, 34^th Overall – Zack Homer (Victoria) – Another everyday defender who is also a strong face-off man.
• 6^th Round, 41^st Overall – Colton Boomer (Kamloops) – From the Thompson-Okanagan Junior B team, Boomer was credited with 33 points in 12 regular season games last year and a perfect 1.000 shooting average.
• 7^th Round, 48^th Overall – Guy Cullen (Victoria) – Saw action in 11 regular season games last year and added up 20 penalty minutes and a 0.222 shooting average.
• 8^th Round, 55^th Overall – Tyler Mace (Victoria) – On the floor for 6 regular season games last year for the Junior A Victoria team.

Head Coach Bob Heyes was also happy with the results: “The guys we did get we are extremely happy with, in Keegan Bell we got a big right-hander who can step right into the lineup and in Larson Sundown a dynamic left-hander who we think will become a fan favourite.”