Club basketball is making a comeback in the Mountain View area.
The Central Alberta Basketball Club - Mountain View Region springs into action with a tournament-based schedule between May and June.
Tryouts which were held March 27-30.
The new Mountain View region teams will offer both boys' and girls' teams, split into age groups for under 13, under 15 and under 17, as well as a development program for ages nine-14.
The teams will practise twice weekly, with the girls' Mountain View Queens based in Carstairs and the boys' Mountain View Kings training at Olds High School. There will also be biweekly dryland training sessions with former Olympic track athlete Ian James, who is the manager of community services in Sundre and will also coach the boys' U-17 team.
The program is being spearheaded by Amber Pedler - a former Carstairs High School basketball player - who runs basketball camps in Carstairs each spring.
"We really want to get the idea out about building a strong basketball program in the community, and to develop athletes who can play at a post-secondary level if they choose to," said Pedler.
In coaching the camps, she began hearing from high school players who were looking for other development opportunities, but the closest program was in Airdrie, and the $1,300 fee was cost prohibitive.
The new club program will come under the umbrella of the Central Alberta Basketball Club based in Red Deer, which is run by Red Deer College women's basketball coach Ken King. King will be directing the Mountain View coaching staff and occasionally acting as a guest coach.
More information can be found at www.basketballcamp3d.com.
COACHES:
Mountain View Queens
Girls U-13 head coach: Schaane Cameron
Girls U-15 head coach: Maya Parker
Girls U-17 head coaches: Amber Pedlar and Diane Sewell
Mountain View Kings
Boys U-13 head coach: Josh Baquie
Boys U-15 head coach: Byron Sayer
Boys U-17 head coaches: Ian James
Junior Queens and Kings
Coaches: Jeff Johnson, James Lefebvre, Travis Butt, Angie Fretz and Amber Pedlar
"We really want to get the idea out about building a strong basketball program in the community, and to develop athletes who can play at a post-secondary level if they choose to." AMBER PEDLERFORMER HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL PLAYER
