The Mount Baker Secondary Girls basketball team is on a mission to prove that the Kootenays can compete with the best of them.
Competing at the 2018 Junior Girls Basketball Provincial Invitational tournament at the Langley Events Centre, the Wild have won three games in the past two days and have booked a ticket into the semifinals.
On Wednesday, coming in as the 12th seed in B.C., the MBSS Girls doubled up on 21st seed Okanagan Mission Secondary Huskies with a 64-32 victory. They then advanced to play the fifth-place Riverside Secondary Rapids from Port Coquitlam and won 53-44.
In the quarterfinals on Thursday, the Wild matched up with fellow underdogs, the North Surrey Spartans, who were the 13th seed and beat the fourth seed team in qualification. North Surrey challenged Baker, but the Cranbrook girls managed to pull off an important 63-45 win.
Competing in a semifinal game on Friday evening, the Wild will play the winner of a game between Walnut Grove and Kelowna Secondary. Walnut Grove was the top-ranked team heading into the tournament, while Kelowna was ninth and lost to the Mount Baker 44-33 during a previous game this year.
To follow the MBSS Junior Girls’ progress, visit the tournament website: http://www.bchighschoolbasketballchampionships.com/JRGirls/