The Olds High School senior boys basketball team was defeated 76-53 by the Canmore Collegiate High School Crusaders in the final of the Spartan Classic tournament hosted on the weekend at the Ralph Klein Centre.
"We didn't play particularly well and we still could play with them. I'm trying to take some positives out of it that Ö we can work on a few things and catch up to them,î said Tom Christensen, the Spartans' coach.
Christensen said the Spartans' downfall was inconsistent shooting, while the Crusaders, back-to-back zone champions, are an excellent shooting team.
"That was the difference in the game is our shooting was not what it usually is. We played hard. I got no beef with Ö how the players played in the game, it's just we Ö were maybe rushing our offence a little bit too much. Those are things we can correct,î he said.
The Spartans were down by eight at the half, then ran into foul trouble in the second half, which led to the loss.
The road to the final was paved with a 70-41 victory over the Sundre High School Scorpions and a 75-31 victory over the Innisfail High School Cyclones.
The next league game for the Spartans is Wednesday against Olds Koinonia Christian School, while the next tournament is Feb. 17 and 18 in Lacombe, followed by another one in Drayton Valley the next weekend. Olds hosts the zone finals March 8 to 10.
The senior girls Spartans finished the tournament with a 1-2 record, beating the OKCS Royals 51-24, losing to the George McDougall Mustangs (Airdrie) 77-45 and then losing the third-place game against the Lacombe High School Rams. A score wasn't available for that game.
Coach Karla Schultz said the tournament was a good chance to play other schools from around the zone other than the Mountain View County league. Schultz said all position players played well and learned a lot of skills that will benefit them in future. The Spartans are a relatively young team.
"The experience for my team Ö has been really good to be able to play at the tournament level. The girls individually all met their goals they had this weekend. We're building this year Ö and they're just improving every time we play against other teams,î she said.
The girls have a busy schedule between league games and tournaments before the zone finals. They play a tournament Friday and Saturday at George McDougall High School in Airdrie, followed by another one Feb. 17 and 18 at H.J. Cody High School in Sylvan Lake. The tournament schedule wraps up for the Spartans with a trip to Three Hills March 2 and 3 before hosting zones.
The OKCS Royals girls had a tougher time of it, finishing with a 0-3 record. After losing to OHS, the Royals then lost to Canmore Collegiate High School 51-41. OKCS dropped their final game of the tournament 56-33 to the Innisfail High School Cyclones.
Coach Bonnie Hougestal said the tournament was a good learning experience, playing against schools with much larger populations. OKCS was invited to the tournament at the last minute after another school dropped out.
"This was more of a practice for us, to get back into it (after a break for exams). I think the girls learned a lot. They're continuing to learn to play together as a team,î she said, adding the Royals will be playing a tournament again this weekend against schools their own size (under 100 Grade 10 to 12 students).
George McDougall beat F.P. Walshe from Fort McLeod in the girls final 66-63.
"That was the difference in the game is our shooting was not what it usually is."Tom Christensen, coach, OHS Spartans boys basketball team
