Saturday saw the girls travel to Havergal College in Toronto for two OBL games. Possibly inspired by the great gym on an awesome campus the Spirits major midget girls racked up two more wins, bringing their OBL total to six. The early morning start against Ottawa Next Level proved no deterrent as the team came out early and strong with a full court press, good rebounding, and quick transition. With Spirits leading 30 – 18 at the half, Ottawa was unable to match the ongoing pace and pressure. Final score was 57 – 31 with Lou getting 18 points, Avery and Mak with 12 each.

The afternoon game, against Niagra Red Raiders, was more tenacious, especially at the start. We are trying to implement different defensive and press strategies as well as diversify our offensive options. Certainly some confusion but, as we get it figured out, our game will certainly grow stronger. After a 31 – 17 half time lead the Spirits finished strong, winning 51 – 33. A very balanced scoring game; Emery leading with 10 points.

Defense, rebounding, and transition continue to influence every game we play. Shoutout to Grace for ‘ never quit’ ball pressure defense, to all the girls who are, with time, figuring out how to secure rebounds for us. Our transition offense – and defense – continues to get quicker, stronger, smarter. Thank you girls for doing the hard work required to get better.

Finally, many parents at the games. Awesome to see. Many thanks.

Next event is March 4/5 tournament in Newmarket.

 

Posted in OBL, U16 and tagged , , ,

By BROCK ORMOND, from InQuinte.ca

The U14 Belleville Spirits basketball team took the mantle of ‘golden girls’ on the weekend.

The Spirits clinched the Division 3 gold medal at the Mike O’Connor Memorial Tournament in Orleans (near Ottawa) on Sunday with a 35-14 victory over the Kanata Selects.

That win capped off a 4-0 weekend for the Spirits after they defeated a pair of teams from Nepean by scores of 40-20 and 63-18 and knocked off a Brockville Blazers squad 36-19 to book their ticket to the Gold Medal game.

Team members are as follows: #3 Scarlet Clarke, #4 Madilyn Whiten, #5 Alexa Drumm, #6 Logan Potts, #10 Sofia Edgett, #11 Hadley Rozema, #20 Whitney Milne, #25 Paige McGrath, #33 Rylee Baldini-Lazier, #40 Tess Shakell, #42 Julia Smith

Head Coach- Darrell McGrath, Assistant Coaches- Darrell Edgett, Justin Shakell, Manager- Sara Rozema

Visit the Spirits website or Facebook page to keep track of the organization through the rest of the season.

 

  

Posted in OBL, Tournaments, U14 and tagged , , , , , , ,