Varsity Tigers play for Provincial Girls title

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Published on Friday, March 27, 2015

By Eoin Devereux

The Neepawa Banner

The NACI Tigers varsity girls basketball team recently competed in the Provincial “AA” Championship from Mar. 19-21 in Souris. They earned their chance at the provincial title by winning the Zone Seven championship earlier this month.

Tigers coach Darren Roe said going into the provincials, the players knew this improved level of competition would be a daunting challenge.

“Considering the opposition that we played, I felt the team did a very good job. Our goal at the start of the year was to be playing at the provincials and we did achieve that,” said Roe.

The opening game for Neepawa would see them face the Boissevain Broncos. The Tigers were able to win that matchup 57-45, allowing them to advance to the semifinals. Danielle Hanke was the leading scorer for NACI with 27 points. Roe said this was an impressive start for the girls.

“Boissevain was tough. We played them in the regionals. The Broncos had two weeks to prepare for the provincials,” noted Roe. “They have a great team, a great coach [in Keith Forsyth]. They made some adjustments since the last time we played them. It made it tougher, but our girls persevered through it.”

In the next round, the opponent would be the host team, the Souris Sabres. The combination of a talented roster of players and the friendly combines of home, would make Souris a tough matchup. Despite trailing for the majority of the game, Neepawa was able to take the lead in the final minute of regulation and hold on to the 46-45 win. Jayme Kulbacki lead the way with 10 points in the game. Roe said that the Sabres were an extremely difficult team to play and that it was a real character win for NACI.

“Souris was a tough draw. They were ranked second. We were the third ranked team. They came out and had the home crowd. It was the loudest crowd I have ever been a part of. It was a great atmosphere to be a part of, but I think it did rattle us in the first half. We trailed during the entire game. We led for only about 20 seconds of the game. Jayme Kulbacki hit a couple of three pointers late and put us ahead by one. [Souris] had a final opportunity to win it and they missed it and we held on,” said Roe.

“[Our team] did a very good job in the second half. Tightened down the screws defensively. In the fourth quarter, we held Souris to only a few points and we able to climb back into it. Lina Gordon did a great job on [rebounding off] the boards. Everyone settled down and did a great job.”

The late second victory propelled Neepawa into the championship game, where they would play  the Teulon Saints, the defending senior girls “AA” basketball champions. A storybook end to the weekend was not to be for Neepawa, as the Saints proved they were still the top team in Manitoba, with a 94-33 win. Kulbacki lead the Tigers in scoring for the second straight game, with 11 points in the final. Dariane Roe scored 10 for NACI.

Roe noted that he was very impressed with the Teulon Saints level of play.

“Let me just say this about the team from Teulon, in the 26 years I have been doing this, they’re one of the best teams I have ever seen. Well coached and the players have a lot of talent. We knew going in that it was going to be a very tough game. Everything needed to go absolutely right for us to be competitive with them. Unfortunately, it didn’t and they are back to back provincial champions for a reason,” said Roe. 

“However, I’m still very proud of my team and just how well they performed the entire tournament. Overall, it was an excellent season. It was the first time in 15 years that a Neepawa team has made it to the finals.”

After the championship game, a pair of Tigers were named to the provincial tournament’s all-star team, as Lina Gordon and Danielle Hanke were each selected.