SWAN Hill’s junior basketballers have continued their strong tournament form, with a remarkable five junior Flyers sides victorious at last weekend’s tournament in Shepparton.
Four girls sides won their division one competitions, while the boys Under 18 side was victorious and the Under 16 boys were unlucky to lose their grand final in overtime.
This followed a dominant at the Horsham junior basketball tournament last month.
Coach of the Under 16 Girls junior Flyers Sharon Denham said it was “an amazing time for (the) club at the moment”.
“The teams we have at the moment are probably training a little bit harder and are a bit more focused and that’s seeing us achieve these amazing results,” she said.
“Over the last couple of years, we have been entering the division one tournaments, which has pushed our teams to apply themselves to play against the better teams and just get better.
“I think the wins or the results that we are achieving will hopefully encourage everyone to continue that momentum that we’re building, which is, to be honest, player-driven at the moment, which is great.”
The Under 12 girls claimed a narrow victory in their grand final clash, defeating the Bendigo Braves 26 to 25, thanks to an MVP performance from Ivy Patterson and nine points from Mia Hirst.
The Under 14 girls won their division with a 28-25 win against the Wodonga Wolves, with Prue O’Sullivan top scoring with eight points.
Scarlet Grey was named MVP and top scored for the Under 16 girls with nine points, leading the side to a big 29-17 victory against Mansfield.
The Under 18 girls side wrapped up the sweep for the junior Flyers’ girls, just pipping Wangaratta 32 to 31, with Jayda Plant top-scoring with 10 points, and Issy Corrie named MVP.
Swan Hill’s Under 18 boys were the town’s only victorious boys side, defeating BSW 38-33 thanks to Bodhi Kelly top scoring with 11 points and Seamus Doherty’s MVP performance.
The Under 16 boys fell just short of victory in their grand final against the Bendigo Braves, taking the game to overtime before eventually falling to a 36-39 defeat, Julian Muir top-scored with 11.
With both Under 18 sides tasting success in what could be their final junior tournament, Ms Denham said the club was hoping to build on the momentum of their successful junior programs.
“It’s really exciting for the girl’s side of the club, because girls’ participation in sport traditionally falls away in the later years,” she said.
“The girls in the under 16s and under 18s age groups, especially the under 18s group, they’ve been together since the under 12s. It’s the same core group all the way through.
“For them to finish off their basketball on a high like that, it was very rewarding for the girls and our association.
“As much as we all love how strong the girls program is, we still want to encourage the boys program as well.
“It’s their final year for some of those boys, to come out at the end of the junior basketball journey as tournament champions is a wonderful achievement.
“It’s due reward for those kids that have stuck at it. They’ve all shown commitment, pride and respect in everything they do for Swan Hill basketball.”
