The third-seed Vancouver Whitecaps Academy won it from the spot Saturday at B.C. Place Stadium in a penalty kicks victory over the top-seed Victoria Highlanders in the League1 BC men’s championship soccer game.
Michael Henman, the Canada West MVP who set the conference scoring record last season with the University of Northern B.C. Timberwolves, gave his hometown Highlanders a 1-0 lead before Whitecaps Academy equalized through Sydney Wathuta to send the game to kicks.
The Highlanders were the League1 BC regular-season champions. With the regular-season crown came a berth against a Canadian team in Major League Soccer, or a team in the Canadian Premier League such as Pacific FC, in the 2024 Canadian Championship tournament for the Voyageurs Cup, this nation’s answer to the FA Cup in England.
Meanwhile, Unity FC of Langley defeated Whitecaps Academy 3-1 in the League1 BC women’s championship game.
