The two-time defending B.C. Sevens Series champion Burnaby Lake Rugby Club won the first leg of the provincial circuit in Vancouver on Saturday.
Burnaby Lake was undefeated in the elite men's division, including a resounding 42-0 victory over Bayside in the championship final at the Vancouver Rugby Sevens tournament.
Tournament MVP and Burnaby Central Secondary grad Admir Cejvanovic led the blue-on-blue Lakers with two tries and stellar showing of tackling in the final match.
Burnaby Lake was a perfect 3-0 in pool play, winning 19-5 over host Meraloma, 12-5 over the Youngbucks and 28-5 over Seattle.
The Lakers then went on to edge the 'Lomas 12-5 in the semifinals.
"We came out slow, and the heavy rain didn't help us much in the first two games, but in the third against Seattle we really backed ourselves and hit our stride," said Cejvanovic, in a B.C. Rugby release. "It was great to beat Bayside in the final as we have a strong rivalry against those guys. Hopefully, we can keep the momentum going in the series, when we host our tournament in a few weeks' time."
The defending champion Burnaby Lake women did not fare as well, winning just once in three starts at the Vancouver tourney.
That win was against the eventual champions the Mudhens from Seattle in preliminary play.
Burnaby Lake defeated the Mudhens 22-5 but dropped its other two matches 5-0 to eventual finalists Abbotsford in the tournament opener and 127 to host Meralomas.
The Mudhens blanked Abby 22-0 in the tournament final.
The next stop on the sevens circuit is the Burnaby Lake Lighthouse Sevens on July 7 at Burnaby Lake sports Complex-East.
The three-event series winds up in Abbotsford on July 28.
-tberridge@burnabynow. com
