The Senior Jags hosted the PHRD Divisional Tournament over the weekend, where both the boys and girls battled for victory.
For the boys, the tournament was an end suited to the success of their year. Having lost only four games all season they went into the tournament with high hopes, and walked out with gold medals around their necks.
The boys started off the tournament on the right foot with a win against Neerlandia. In their second game of the weekend, the boys played R. F. Staples. Coach Colin Erickson said it was a very low scoring game, with the boys playing mostly defensively.
This was the third time the Jags played the Westlock team, and although the boys won all three games, it was only within five points every time.
“This game for us was like playing the final,” said Erickson. “We knew R.F. was going to be our strongest competition.”
With tough competition, Barrhead had difficulty putting the ball in the basket. Jacob Deinum, Riley Lawton, Mathew Li, and Brad Bujold held strong, scoring the only points of the game.
“When games are that close its hard to watch players miss shots that they usually make 90 per cent of the time,” said Erickson.
However the Jags managed to pull through once again by the skin of their teeth with a final score of 22-20.
The second win put the boys in the final, where they would face St. Mary’s. With their opponents having lost some of their top players to injuries and prior arrangements, Erickson said the game was a good opportunity to give everyone lots of playing time.
“Every player on the team scored at least one basket in the finals against St. Mary’s,” said Erickson, reflecting on the accomplishment of the team as a whole.
The boys played a good final game, and defeated St. Mary’s by 20 points to take the championship title.
This year and in the division finals the Jags were lead in scoring by Denium, Lawton, and Li. However, Erickson said scoring was contributed among all players.
“Our future for our high school teams looks promising for at least the next three years,” he said.
Though the girls weren’t able to win gold, they still each left with a bronze medal and a smile.
Friday night the ladies began their tournament with a match against the BCHS junior team. The senior and junior teams were split, and the game was very competitive with gold winning 32-30.
The senior girls played Neerlandia in the semi-final on Saturday. They started off strong, and were up by eight points early in the game.
However Neerlandia began to put on the pressure, and despite a valiant effort from Barrhead, the Jags lost a very close game 20-16.
The loss put the girls in the bronze medal game against Clyde, where the Jags began to shine. Coach Warren Warehime said the girls played better in the final than they did all weekend.
Their hard work paid off, and Barrhead beat Clyde 27-20 to win the bronze.
Warehime said the girls had a successful year, and grew both as individuals and as a team. Though they didn’t win the championship, the coach said the girls made Barrhead proud.
“Whether we won or lost the girls showed class and respect and were excellent ambassadors for this town, which I think is greater than any championship” he said.
The coaches would like to thank Kal Tire for donating the championship banners, and for Subway for donating subs to the referees.
