Smithers Secondary’s senior girls’ basketball team finished third in their AA zone competition after defeating Kitimat in a nail-biting game last weekend.
The Gryphons started off the tournament against a strong team from Caledonia Senior Secondary on Friday night.
The team battled through it, but were no match for Caledonia’s strong offence. They dropped the game 75-21.
“We were a little nervous playing Caledonia because they have such a good program there and they have a lot of good players,” said Kristen Johnson, who plays post. “We pulled through it and had a couple really good shifts.”
On Saturday, in the push to place third in zones, the Gryphons tipped off against Mount Elizabeth Secondary School.
It was a tight game all the way through as the Gryphons finished the first half up by a mere four points at 25-21 with the help of several three-pointers from point guard Margherita Rossi and fast-break layups from junior Chantal Gammie.
In the third, the Eagles started to slowly close the gap, eventually bringing it within four again.
But the Gryphons remained tight on defence and held on to the lead to finish the game 58-42.
“They were a lot less nervous,” said coach Chris van der Mark.
“They were in it all the way along, they worked harder and finished better.”
Rossi said they played with more confidence in the second game.
“We played as a team today,” she said.
It was a tough season for the girls without a regular coach, but the girls believe their play has improved.
“It was a great improvement from the beginning of the season,” said Johnson.
“That game was totally how we wanted to end it.”