The 38th Mini-Invitational Basketball Tournament, held March 27-28 at Mount Allison, turned out to be a great success, with a championship victory for both home teams.
Josette MacIsaac and Lindsey Keirstead coached the mini-girls Titans to a 30-22 victory over the Miramichi Pulamoo. The Titans had lost to Miramichi twice during the regular season, so this victory was especially sweet. Third place went to Cumberland North, with a win over Spring Street. To get to the final game, the Titan girls beat the Riverview Royals, Spring Street Springers and Cumberland North Hawks. The Titans’ players of the game were Grace Snowdon, Hannah Beland, Emma Burns and Natalie McAllister. High scorer for the weekend was Hannah Beland with 40 points. Overall the girls finished the weekend outscoring their opponents 164-115. The girls finished their season with an overall record of 17 wins and 15 losses, including a third place finish at the Moncton Tournament.
Andrew Swanson, with Craig Wilmot and Vernon Vickruck, coached the mini-boys Titans to a come-from-behind seven-point victory over Cumberland North Hawks. The Titans had lost twice to Cumberland North during the regular season. Third place went to Port Elgin, with a win over Miramichi. The Titan boys previously beat Cumberland North on Saturday and also won against the Moncton Hawks and Miramichi Pulamoo to advance to the championship game. Players of the game included Dylan Cormier, Jonathan Swanson, Dalton Thompson, and James Wilmot. High scorer for the weekend was Dylan Cormier with 47 points. Jonathan Swanson contributed 42 points. Overall the boys outscored their opponents 178- 128. The boys finished their season with an overall record of 17 wins and eight losses, including third-place finishes at the Port Elgin Tournament, Cumberland-Westmorland league and provincials.
Both teams really wanted to win the home tournament, which is also the final weekend of the season. They worked very hard with a deep determination to play as a team and outwork any opponent. The coaches were thrilled to see the determined attitude of each player right to the final buzzer. The championship banners will be hung in the gym at Marshview Middle School.
