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ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Two Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy teams made it to district competition this season, with one set to play this weekend before heading to postseason play in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League next week.

Wenatchee's 14-and-under team traveled to Seattle to take part in USA Hockey's Pacific District tournament this past weekend, taking one game to overtime before bowing out of the tournament against stiff West Coast competition. The Los Angeles Jr. Kings fell behind 1-0 after a first-period goal from Mathieu Bowerman before taking a 3-1 win last Thursday. The Wild charged back from a 4-1 deficit in last Friday's game against the California Bears, before falling 5-4 in overtime - Bowerman had two goals in the game, as did Bryden Wagner, who tied it with two minutes left in the third on a penalty shot. A 4-1 loss to the Anaheim Jr. Ducks early Saturday ended Wenatchee's run at the tournament - Bowerman had the only goal of the game, on a second-period power play.

"We had three really good games," said Wenatchee Wild Hockey Academy director Troy Mick. "I was really impressed with our team - it was great to see in evaluating for next year. Some guys will stay at 14U, but some want to try for the CSSHL or, hopefully, a 15O national-bound Tier I program next year. Unfortunately, Team Alaska ended up being the California Bears on that Saturday morning, or else we would have gone on to the semifinals. That was a goal for them, and they fell a little short, but they played their best hockey all season."

The 18-and-under team has a busy stretch ahead, starting Thursday in the Pacific District tourney in Anchorage against the San Jose Jr. Sharks. Team Alaska faces Wenatchee on Friday, followed by the Anaheim Jr. Ducks on Saturday. The top four teams in the six-team bracket will advance to the semifinals, which will be contested Saturday evening.

The Wild Hockey Academy's U17 group has stayed especially busy after winning its home tournament on February 11 - Wenatchee took a pair of losses against the Burnaby Winter Club and a shootout loss last Tuesday at Coeur d'Alene Academy, but picked up a pair of wins against North Shore Academy this past Saturday and Sunday. Brayden Barker had two goals in last Saturday's 3-2 win over North Shore, while Braden Boman notched a goal and two assists. Sunday's 5-2 game included three assists for Barker, and two goals and an assist for Boman.

"It was our last two regular season games, so it's always nice to get a couple of wins and taste victory going into the playoffs," said Mick. "Saturday, the guys were okay, and they played better Sunday. We out-shot them and had a lot more opportunities, but at this stage of the game, it's about finishing strong, and the 17s finished the season strong."

Wenatchee's U17 team will begin its first postseason in the CSSHL this coming week, with the league's Tier II playoff in Penticton, British Columbia. The first game of the postseason for the Wild Hockey Academy is set for Monday, but exact game times and opponents remain to be announced.