The Whitehorse Bantam Mustangs claimed an historic gold medal victory at the B.C. provincial hockey championships yesterday.

The team battled back from an early 1-0 deficit to Dawson Creek to win the Bantam Tier 3 tournament final by a score of 3-1 in Port Hardy, B.C.

The win capped a tournament that saw the Whitehorse club go 6-0.

Mack Benn-Wipp and captain Joe Stokes scored two quick goals late in the first period, erasing a goal by Dawson Creek’s Brennan Palfi and giving the Mustangs a lead they would not relinquish at Don Cruickshank Memorial Arena.

Bryce Anderson, who picked up primary assists on the first two Mustangs goals, added a third period insurance goal to put the game out of reach.

The championship is the first of its kind for the northern territory, said head coach Martin Lawrie.

“As far as I know, it is a first,” he said today. “I’m incredibly proud of these kids. They’ve worked so hard and kept focused on this goal from November – which was to win this tournament.

“We definitely thought we could do this,” he said. “The kids are pretty confident based on what they’ve done this year.”

The championship game was reportedly a back-and-forth affair, with one major difference between the clubs.

“When you compare our roster to theirs, we had finishers,” said Lawrie. “And our defence kept them to the outside for the most part.

“This group of kids won’t quit. They were confident despite being down early.”

As the seconds ticked down on the scoreclock last night, the Mustangs began a celebration that was years in the making.

When the buzzer sounded, gloves and sticks went flying as the team piled on goalie Ethan Vanderkley.

“There was helmets and sticks all over the place, followed by the typical dressing room celebration minus the beer,” said Lawrie.

Lawrie’s son said the moment was “pretty cool.”

“It’s a pretty cool feeling,” said 14-year-old defenceman Niall Lawrie, who picked up an assist on Stokes’ game-winner.

“This has been our goal for a whole year and there was a lot of work put into it. ... We’ve been playing together for years, which makes it even more special.”

The Mustangs started their provincial tournament with a bang Sunday, shutting out Semiahmoo 12-0.

On Monday, they beat Dawson Creek 2-0, then shut out host Tri Port 11-0 with backup goalie Cole Smith between the pipes.

On Wednesday, the club hammered Quesnel 8-1, setting up a semifinal clash with Terrace.

The team continued to roll yesterday, winning their semifinal matchup 3-1 to earn a rematch with Dawson Creek in the final.

The championship win was the result of the whole team buying in to Coach Lawrie’s system, with players performing their respective roles to the best of their ability.

“We definitely had a supporting cast,” the coach said. “On a whole, the kids raised their game, right to a man.

“One thing we did this year was have kids accept different roles. ”

The provincial championship caps an outstanding season that saw the Bantam Mustangs win a slew of events, including a Tier 2 tournament in Seafair, B.C. in November, and a Tier 1 tournament on Vancouver Island in December.

Many of the team’s top players also suited up for Team Yukon at last month’s Canada Winter Games in Prince George, B.C.

“The kids that are here were a year or two younger than everyone at the Canada Games, and they were facing the best players in Canada and the world,” Coach Lawrie said. “I think it had a big impact, especially on a couple of our high-end guys.”

Members of the gold-medal winning roster include: Anderson, Benn-Wipp, Oscar Burgess, Dylan Cozens, Johnny Elias, Lochlann Fraser, Payton Fobe, Cameron Gingell, Cruz Goodman, Dylan Kindervater, Haiden Kremer, Niall Lawrie, Kailem Letto, Joe Stokes, Wyatt Peterson, Smith, Vanderkley, Brett Walchuk and Isaac Williamson.

Coach Lawrie was joined behind the bench by assistant Carl Burgess and manager Rob Williamson, while WMHA coach Derek Klassen was the team’s skills instructor this season.

The team was sponsored by Mic Mac Toyota.

Coach Lawrie said he hopes his team’s championship banner will be hung in a place of prominence at Takhini Arena.

He also said the tournament was heavily scouted, and expects many of his players to garner attention from junior hockey clubs.