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| SPORTS - March 9, 2010 |
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| Jaguars roar to gold medal glory at home |
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Ian Kucerak
Leader Staff
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Both of Barrhead’s Senior Jaguars basketball teams were beaming this weekend after they won their last local tournament, securing the top divisional spots heading into the zone championships in Athabasca.
The boys pulled together a close upset, downing the top-seeded Westlock Thunderbirds 40-31.
While the boys had to take the tournament one game at a time, they knew their objective from the outset, said coach Dave Mueller. They wanted a shot at beating Westlock.
To get to the final they needed to beat the Clyde Dragons and the Neerlandia Eagles.
Barrhead started by facing down the boys’ team from Eleanor Hall school in Clyde.
The Dragons came out quick on offense, taking the Jaguars by surprise with their press. After the first quarter, however, the Jaguars started to play their game and took control. They went on to down the Dragons by a total of 61-15.
Brian Vader led the team with 14 points followed by Koletyn Mueller, who earned 11.
Their second game of the tournament was against the Eagles from Neerlandia. The boys had faced the Eagles during the regular season in several close games.
The game on Saturday would be no different. The Jaguars kept ahead by a slim margin most of the game and pulled out in the end to finish with a 46-38 score in their favour.
The high scorer was Brian Vader with 12, followed by Koletyn Mueller and Cole Knudson, with eight each.
Wanting to face Westlock in the final for the hardware, the Boys got their wish. In the past games they learnt a lot by playing the Thunderbirds, Mueller said. The Jaguars knew they had to be aggressive on defence and assert themselves when on offence, Mueller added.
The Jaguars kept to the game plan and executed both offensively and defensively.
"It was a foul-filled game, which we knew it was going to be if the boys were going to match Westlock’s intense play," Mueller said.
Two Jaguars and one T-Bird were fouled out of the game in the fourth quarter. Two technical fouls were called, which showed the emotion involved on both sides, Mueller reported.
The Jaguars kept the gas on for the whole game, maintaining a lead through four quarters, ending up with the gold medal after a 40-31 win.
"It was a total team effort, (as) everyone came through at opportune times," Mueller said.
Thijs Dewildt and Vader lead the team with eight points each, followed by the Jaguars’ most improved player, Liam Holman, with six points.
The tournament Most Valuable Player awards from the Senior Jaguars were Sam Nanninga, Koletyn Mueller, and Vader. Coach Mueller said the team’s sportsmanship was apparent throughout the tournament as they maintained an aggressive pace of play.
The Senior Girls also shone brightly over the weekend after they ramped up their game over the two days to beat their rivals, the Neerlandia Eagles.
First up, however, was an eked out win in their opening game as they took on the Clyde Dragons. Coach Lorna Hiemstra characterized the game as the "closest game of the tournament."
Clyde played their best game of the year, she said, and the Jags suffered a low shooting percentage. The local girls managed to net some points and they squeaked by 28-22 with Kaitlind Mast as the top scorer with six points.
The semi-final game versus Jarvie was also very close but just to halftime. The girls trailed at the half, behind 13-16.
Hiemstra rallied the troops by focusing their halftime talk around one theme: Defense.
"Defense wins games," she said.
The girls responded by not allowing a single basket the rest of the game.
On the strength of their defensive play, they won by a handy 31-16. Krysta Schaffrick dominated with 10 rebounds, five steals and seven points. Karissa Ternan continued to show great leadership as she controlled on offense and threw in six points.
The girls moved on to face the Neerlandia Eagles in the finals. They roared out of the gates to an 18-0 lead, finishing 52-26 when the final buzzer sounded. Schaffrick and Ternan led the team in steals, rebounds and assists. Gina Schulz led all scorers with 11 points.
Many people contributed to the success of the Jaguars season, both coaches said. They wish to thank the tireless parents, referees and staff at Barrhead Composite High School for the time and effort spent in supporting the Jaguars.
The teams will go into action next at the Zone Championship in Athabasca on the weekend of March 20. |
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