The Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) Elecs are getting ready for a sporting tradition that dates back to the 1930s.
The 85th McLeod Series between the Elecs and their rivals, the Weyburn Comprehensive School Eagles, will take place in February. The best-of-four series begins with two games in Estevan on Feb. 5, with the senior boys teams playing at 5:30 p.m. and the senior girls meeting at 7:30 p.m.
Then the focus will shift to Weyburn for the final two games Feb. 12.
If a team wins three or four of the matches, they win the title. If the two teams split the four games, then the series comes down to point differential.
Weyburn won last year’s series 3-1, and holds a 44-40 edge in the all-time record.
Elecs senior boys head coach Trevor Dutka said they have not played Weyburn this season, but they have seen them play a couple of times.
“We think that we match up pretty good with them. They shoot the ball pretty well. They do have one boy that plays on the provincial team, so he will be key to stop.”
ECS had tournaments in Swift Current and Moose Jaw since the Christmas break, and will be at a tournament in Yorkton this coming weekend that will give them one last chance to prepare for Weyburn.
“Last year we did win the (Yorkton) tournament, and we’re the defending champions,” said Dutka. “The boys definitely want to get back to work and see if they can win the title.”
As for the senior girls, they started off the season strong by winning a couple of tournaments in Regina and placing second at the Notre Dame tournament. Since the Christmas break, they have had a couple of injuries which have set them back because they are not all healthy.
Head coach Jessie Smoliak said they are making some adjustments and hoping that after the break for finals they will be at full strength again.
The senior girls also haven’t had a chance to play Weyburn this year.
“We have attended a couple of the same tournaments as Weyburn,” said Smoliak.
Their final tournament before the McLeod Series will be this weekend in Weyburn, so they might finally meet then.
Smoliak is confident that as long as the senior girls play to the level of basketball that they have been at, they will be fine.
Dutka said the McLeod Series is a big deal for both schools. The fans in both gymnasiums are always boisterous for the Highway 39 rivalry games.
“The Regina officials come down and referee the games for us, and they compare to the … Luther Invitational Tournament, which has been going strong for 58 years, and they say the games, the atmosphere and the fans (at the McLeod Series) are unbelievable,” said Dutka.
And he noted that Weyburn and ECS are both 5A teams this year, so the series will count towards rankings going into regionals, making the showdown even more significant than what it has been in the past few years.
