Hawks show strong play heading into zones

Justin Seward
Times Reporter

 

The Holy Cross Collegiate Hawks junior A boys basketball continued to show what they’re made of after finishing third overall in the Crowther Memorial Junior High School-hosted February Frenzy tournament on Feb. 26 and 27.
The team has won four tournaments this year and continued their fast-paced style of play, winning their first two games by 20 points.
“We’re a really unselfish team,” said second year player Reid Jensen.
“We spread the ball around a lot. That’s what our team is about is we’re all about pace and getting a jump on teams instead of letting them hang in there.”
However, they pegged their last game as a redemption game against Brooks, who beat them by a mere five points last time they played one another.
“We held with them all the way to the third quarter then we just kind of got in foul trouble and we ended up losing in the fourth quarter,” said Jensen.
“We came focused, we came ready to play. It’s just Brooks outplayed us in the final game. We had starters sitting on the bench for the full second quarter.”
Hawks Head Coach Troy Filipionik said it was great to see them compete against teams that will be at the zones tournament, and weren’t really startled off by what was thrown at them.
“We just played our game,” said Filipionik.
“The biggest part of our success is the group of boys that we have. They really work hard at practice and in the off-season to improve their games. They’re also very coachable and a mature group of young men.”
The team has a 17-3 record and has the desire to win with the goal in mind to win the zone championship at the Strathcona Tweedsmuir this weekend.
Meanwhile, junior A head coach Deanna Sample has seen tremendous upside to come from the tournament and feels the girls held their own against tough competition.
“I was happy with the level of intensity that the girls played with throughout all of the games,” said Sample.
“They worked hard every game from beginning to end and it was exciting to watch. The highlight for me was a buzzer-beater shot from the edge of three point line to finish our second game. Even though we didn’t win, it felt like a victory.”
Despite a seventh place finish in their bracket, Sample mentioned that they saw how to execute a game plan and how everyone can do their part in competing against very good teams heading into zones.
She added that they’ve played some of their best basketball against teams they will compete against at zones, and she is hopeful it will lead to a successful weekend.