Dan Bird
The Muskie junior girls’ basketball squad captured the ‘B’ Division Provincial Manitoba Club Championship in Winnipeg over the weekend, beating the Dorian Junior Bisons 35-17 for the championship.
Alanna Walsh scored 12 points in the final while Adriane Gurski led the team in scoring over the weekend.
The Muskies opened up the tournament Saturday morning against Waverley Heights (Winnipeg).
Despite being their first game together, the black-and-gold jumped out to a 12-1 first-quarter lead and never looked back in dumping Waverley Heights 34-18.
Their second game was against a younger squad of the Junior Bison program.
This time, defence led the way to a 41-11 win.
A win on Sunday against Anishanabe Pride, the winners last year, would mean a bye to the championship game.
Some sloppy play and missed opportunities led to a seven-point deficit at the half. But going back to our game plan in the second half led to 17 points and a 23-17 victory.
The Manitoba Club Championships is a great opportunity to have some Grade 8 players come out to make the team and practice for next September’s tryouts.
It also gives the Grade 9 players a chance to take over a leadership and starting role.
I certainly saw some players evolve over the weekend, and willing to fill the shoes of some fine players who are moving up to the senior squad.
Wynona Kavanaugh, Tara Grant, Destiny Woolsey, and Jalena Strom all are vying for the starting guard position.
Celia Berry, a Grade 8 player, had a good weekend offensively and defensively.
Jessica Robinson, Jessica Ash, and Courtney Bethune played strong on both boards and chipped in when needed.
Myan Miller, an import from Stratton, and Sarah Bagacki played well off the bench.
Meanwhile, Gurski and Walsh showed good leadership on and off the floor, and I will be looking for that same leadership this fall.
Just like any junior program, every player has skills to work on and improve, and we still won’t have enough time next season to cover all that I would like.
But this is a great starting point.
