The Estevan Comprehensive School Elecs senior girls basketball team came up just one win short of qualifying for the 4A girls competition at Hoopla.
Estevan went 1-1 at the regional tournament in Wilcox on the weekend. They opened with an 84-62 victory over LP Miller Comprehensive School out of Nipawin, but lost 48-41 to the host Notre Dame Hounds in the game to determine who would claim the region’s lone birth for Hoopla.
Coach Jessie Smoliak said they came out strong against Nipawin and tried to have as much fast-break offence as possible.
“We missed some lay-ups, but the team made up for it on creating turnovers on the defence,” said Smoliak. “A great effort by everyone on the team with everyone scoring. We knew we had to focus on this game first and then focus on the final next.”
Sarah Dacuycuy had 14 points, three rebounds and three assists, while Charlotte Andrist had 12 points, and Kishi Rioferio and Haylee Jones each had 10 points.
Estevan had a narrow lead for much of the game against Notre Dame, as they led 18-15 after the first quarter, 31-30 at half-time and 38-37 after three.
But the Hounds outscored Estevan 11-3 in the fourth quarter.
Smoliak said they put up the right shots in the final frame, but the shots didn’t fall. ECS had the lead until the final four minutes.
“We had a couple bad turnovers which gave ND some points,” she said. “Our girls played with heart and wanted to win. I was really proud of our team for the effort they put in during the week and throughout the season.”
For a rebuilding year, being ranked fifth out of 17 teams in 4A was a great accomplishment, she said.
“To only lose by seven to ND, who beat us by 20 every time we played in regular season, was something to be very proud of and to also realize what kind of team we will have next year moving forward,” she said.
The Elecs executed the game plan they worked on in practice during the week and discussed before the game. Jones and Shanelle Rioux did an excellent job of shutting down ND’s best player, Sydney Milum, holding her to seven points.
Rioux was Estevan’s top scorer against Notre Dame with 12 points.
“We knew we had to break ND’s pressure and get quick shots up to try to tire them out,” said Smoliak. “We made a lot of great shots in the first three quarters but then nothing seemed to fall for us in the fourth.”
Smoliak hopes they will learn a lot from this defeat. They are excited to play U17 club basketball and stay together as a team to try to get to the 5A Hoopla next year.
The Elecs won’t have any graduating players this year, and Smoliak is looking forward to seeing how those in Grades 9 and 10 develop next year.
“They are a lot of fun to coach but also great kids to be around. They just don’t stop wanting to be better, to improve.”
She also applauded the efforts of Ashleigh Dzuba, Larissa Smeltzer, Bridget Bjorndalen and Rob Andrist as assistant coaches this season.
