The North Island Eagles atom development team did not pick up a win during the Comox Holiday Tournament Dec.27-29, but they did reverse an early season trend by battling from behind to forge a 4-4 tie with Campbell River.
The atoms have set a trend this season of running out to early leads and then struggling to hold on. On three occasions, they've watched opponents charge back to tie.
"We were trailing them 4-2 and ended up tying the game 4-4," atoms coach Marty Gage said. "That was the highlight for me. Finally, a tie game where we feel like the winners."
Otherwise, the tournament fell into the category of a "positive learning experience" for the team, said Gage.
The atoms dropped a 9-2 decision to Cowichan Valley in their opening game, then, after the tie with Campbell River, fell 8-3 to host Comox.
"Those two games were against teams from our division, but they had our number this week," said Gage. "Our final game against Alberni found us a little outmatched, but the kids showed a lot of heart and competed right to the end. For that, I'm proud of them."
Alberni Valley, competing one division higher than the Eagles in Tier 3, scored an 8-1 win over the atoms in their final tourney game.
The atoms will be right back in Comox this weekend to resume Division 4 league play against the Chiefs. The Eagles play their next home contest the following weekend against Peninsula.
"We're looking forward to working on a couple of things this week and preparing to get back into our league games," Gage said.