JUNIOR LAKERS BASKETBALL SUCCESSES CONTINUE
Eight Junior Lakers Basketball teams travelled to Portland this weekend to compete in the Junior South West Classic.
Six of the eight Lakers teams played off in grand finals and four were successful.
Those making the title games were the Under 12 Boys and Girls each in Division 1, Under 14 Boys Division 1, Under 16 Girls Div. 1 and 2 and Under 18 Men Div.2.
The four successful Lakers were Under 12 Girls Div.1, coached by Peter Duncan, Under 16 Girls Div.1 with Sharon Adams in charge, Under 16 Girls Div.2 under the guidance of Liz Markiewicz and Under 18 Men Div.2 coached by Pioneers’ star Tommy Daly.
These successes follow on from the results of the recent Hamilton Junior Tournament when the Lakers Under 14 Boys Division 1 and Under 18 Women both played off in their respective grand finals. The under 14 Boys scored a solid win over Warrnambool in the final while the Under 18 Women finished up runner-up to Millicent.
The Lakers Under 14 Girls Div.1 team finished third in their 5 team competition and Under 16 Boys won three games and lost two in the Division 2 competition.
Under 12 Girls’ Coach, Peter Duncan, is pleased with the progress his players are making as shown by their 29-15 Grand Final against Hamilton. In this polished win, Ellie Bouchier, Evany Rex and Rory Perryman led the scoring.
The Lakers Under 16 Girls, with care-taker Coach Sharon Adams, was the class side of this Division 1 competition and comfortably accounted for Warrnambool, 39-22 in the Final.
Molly Watson scored a game high 13 points, well supported by Olivia Patzel and Eliza Hunter each on 7.
The Lakers Under 16 Girls’ Division 2 side featured in a thrilling one point Final win against Camperdown, 27-26. Manon Finch led the scoring for the Lakers while Hannah Nulty and Hannah Witherow contributed at crucial times.
Tommy Daly guided the Under 18 Lakers’ Division 2 Men to a nine point Final win over Terang White, 37-28, after the team had drawn with this side earlier in the weekend. Top scorers for the Lakers were Mason Hein with 14 points and Jack Wirth on 11 points.
They won the semi-final 47-27 against Koroit on the way to the final.
The Under 12 Boys, after a bold four point loss to the classy Warrnambool on Saturday, struggled against the side in the opening 5 minutes of the Final. From here on the Lakers stayed in touch but could not close the margin of around 20 points.
The Lakers’ Under 14 Boys turned in a strong performance against a talented Portland side in the Final to go down by just 5 points. Josh McGregor and Ollie Thomson were consistent contributors over the weekend. This was a pleasing result after the Lakers lost to Portland 45-30 in a minor round game.
Six Junior Lakers teams will head off to Naracoorte over the weekend of February 19th and 20th for the annual Tournament. They are the Under 12 Boys and Girls, Under 14 Boys, Girls and Under 16 Girls Division 2 teams, and Under 16 Boys.
Fifty teams have nominated from the Limestone Coast and Western Victorian regions for this annual two day event.
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