Mariners Kick-Off Nationals

VIU Mariners vs. Conestoga Condors – Wednesday November 8, 7:00am PST | WATCH HERE

The VIU Mariners open the CCAA national championship with an early start in Windsor Ontario kicking off at 7:00am PST as they meet the OCAA champion Conestoga Condors.

The Mariners who finished as the #3 seed in the PACWEST beat the Langara Falcons in the semi-final which gave them a berth into this national championship. Prior to the PACWEST season, the teams knew there was an extra wildcard berth up for grabs.

They fell in penalty kicks in the PACWEST gold medal game against the top seeded Douglas Royals.

They will be in tough against the Condors who won Ontario gold for the first time since 1979 dethroning the four-time champion Humber Hawks, shutting them out 3-0. During the regular season the Condors were undefeated at 10-0 and scored 36 goals and only gave up five. Offensively they are led by Ricardo Alvarado who had a team high eight goals, but they have a balanced attack with several players able to score.

Keeper Mike D’Angelo recorded six clean sheets.

Despite their ability to score a good backline could slow them down. The Mariners are solid in front of keeper Ben Chamberlin and have the ability to shutdown highflying offences, like they did to the Falcons in the PACWEST semi-final.

The Mariners last won a national medal in 2019 when they won silver. They won gold in 2017 when they hosted the tournament.