NEW WATERFORD, Nova Scotia — A high school basketball team including seven LDS young men blew past opponents from throughout Canada en route to the championship of a nationwide tournament here.

Playing for the Nechako Valley Secondary School Vikings of Vanderhoof, British Columbia, the young men — Ezra and Aaron Gwilliam, Jonathan Whidden, Chad Johnson, Keaton Hutchins, Spencer Passowisty and Michael Stanley — joined teammates Brad Van Doolah, Tyler Hynd, Brandon Senner and Jared Fawcett to win "The Coal Bowl" tournament Feb. 5-10. The bowl is sponsored by the town of New Waterford, Nova Scotia, in honor of the town's mining history, according to correspondence sent from Cliff Mader, whose wife, Millie, is a member of the Sydney Branch, New Glasgow District, Canada Halifax Mission.

When they entered the contest, the Nechako Vikings had previously won 26 games and had only two losses against them. In the first three games of the tournament, they handily defeated their opponents and in the final game, the Vikings defeated the Dartmouth Spartans of Nova Scotia, 99-77. Coaching the Vikings was Gary Simrose, who is not LDS, and assistant coach, Baugn Muller of the Vanderhoof Ward, Prince George British Columbia Stake. (Ezra, Aaron, Jonathan, Chad and Keaton are members of the Blue Mountain Ward, Prince George stake, while Spencer and Michael are in the Vanderhoof Ward.)

Among the half dozen supporters who came east for the tournament team was Bishop Allan Roy Whidden of the Blue Mountain Ward; the ward shares meetinghouse facilities with the Vanderhoof Ward. He said during a telephone interview that all the LDS young men are priests and are planning on serving missions. "In fact, we went to the Sydney Ward [in Nova Scotia]. Three of the boys stood and bore their testimonies and talked about their mission plans. One is raising calves for his mission fund. The members were really pleased to hear from the boys."

Bishop Whidden also reported the good sportsmanship of the young men. He said some of the boys stood at the end of the tournament and publicly thanked the some 400 volunteers for their time and energy. Although the Dartmouth Spartans were crowd favorites for the championship game, the Nechako Vikings received a standing ovation when the trophy was presented to co-captains Brad and Ezra. There were autograph signings, some hugs and handshakes, a few tears and some promises to come back, not as ball players but as missionaries.

This was the 20th year of "The Coal Bowl," Bishop Whidden said, and the third time Nechako has been invited. The last time the Vikings were here was in 1996, when some four or five players were Church members. "This is a community where less than 10 percent of us are LDS," Bishop Whidden added.