Echuca Basketball Association held its Annual Junior Basketball Tournament over the weekend, where a multitude of Pirates sides walked away victorious.
The competition, sponsored by Moama Bowling Club, was held from Friday, September 27, to Sunday, September 29, across three venues in Echuca, Rochester and Kyabram.
With more than 125 teams from around country Victoria competing, there were roughly 1000 players in the tournament and including families, spectators and coaches the total of number of people involved was roughly 4000.
Of the 18 divisions across four age groups, the Echuca Pirates made eight grand finals and won four in the under-12 girls’ division one, under-14 boys’ division one, under-14 girls division one and under-16 boys’ division two.
The under-12 girls’ division one narrowly bested Wodonga Wolves by two points 28-26 with Denny Moon leading the charge with 10 points.
The under-14 boys’ division one beat Wodonga Wolves by four points 33-37 where Jaxon Key stood up for his side when it needed him, leading all players with 13 points.
The under-14 girls’ division one demolished Wodonga Wolves by 22 points 39-17 with Violet Agg and Pippa Leeds leading the way, scoring 14 and 13 points respectively.
The under-16 boys’ division two had a day out against Mansfield in their grand final, easily defeating the Eagles by 17 points, the final score was 55-38. The dynamic scoring duo of Charlie Flanigan and Oliver Spring was unstoppable, tallying 14 points each.
The Pirates were runners-up in the under-12 boys’ division one, under-14 boys’ division three, under-14 girls’ division two and under-16 boys’ division one.
The under-12 boys’ division one fell to the Wangaratta Warriors by 12 points despite a standout performance by Archie Flanagan who scored 17 points. The final score was 34-46.
The Benalla Breakers were too much to handle for the under-14 boys’ division three Pirates, who were downed by 15 points. The final score was 44-29.
The same could be said for the under-14 girls’ division two who wasn't able to top the Killer Cobras, and the final score was 27-16.
Wodonga Wolves got the best of the under-16 boys’ division one Pirates by seven points among a strong performance by Arli Walker who led all scorers with 13 points. The final score was 39-32.
Echuca Basketball Association president Lisa Baker reflected on how seamlessly the event ran and was thrilled with the results from her Pirates sides.
“I am pleased with how the tournament went; it was one of the smoothest events we’ve had, and we always get such positive feedback from other associations and spectators which is great and always nice to hear,” she said.
“Everything ran according to plan, and we had some very competitive and great games of basketball.
“It’s very exciting that so many of our teams perform well, in last year’s tournament we didn’t have as many teams make grand finals, so this year is a massive improvement.”