Jaffray Secondary School Rebels Junior Girls basketball team is now ranked among the top 10 in B.C, after a hard-fought battle at provincials in Surrey from Feb. 23 to 25.
The team clinched three of their five games, but were ultimately eliminated from the championship bracket and ended up in 10th place.
“They had put everything they had into their games. They fought hard, showed team spirit and above all, demonstrated sportsmanship, coming home 10th overall in the tournament, proving that they were a small school with big game,” stated coach Kevin French in an e-mail.
The Rebels had only qualified for provincials twice before in the past 30 years, with the previous game in 2007, so this was a special occasion for them.
They made a strong start to the tournament with a 58-50 lead over the Centennial Centaurs from Coquitlam, but plummeted in their second game, with a 10 point loss to G.W Graham Grizzlies from Chilliwack. The Grizzlies were ranked as the number two team earlier in the month, but sustained a hit the week before provincials which dropped them down to seventh place.
The Rebels fell out of the running for the championship bracket and into the showcase bracket after their initial games, but played a few more exciting matches. They had a sizable 53-43 win against the St. Patrick Celtics from Vancouver and advanced to play the Isfeld Ice from Courtenay in a hair-raising game that went into overtime following a fourth quarter tie of 31-31.
The Rebels took a foul with only seconds left to the game, which gave the Ice an upper hand, but the Ice missed two shots and the game went into overtime. The teams fought hard and the Rebels emerged the winner with a score of 40 to 33.
The team faced off against the St. Michael’s Jaguars for the final game of the tournament and lost by four points, which placed them in 10th position.
“This was a game of a lifetime and no matter the outcome of the next game, they would leave the tournament proud of all they had accomplished,” wrote French.