Under-13 teams make clean sweep

Eastern Southland under-13 boys’ and girls’ teams have made a clean sweep of the Southern Nationals Basketball B grade tournament in Ashburton.
The two teams finished top of their pools and went on to win the tournament.
The girls’ team, coached by Erin Howes, also won the B grade section of the tournament last year.
The boys’ team is coached by her husband Peter.
Mrs Howes said the win was ‘‘unprecedented’’ for the association.
‘‘We’re certainly punching well above our weight.’’
The back-to-back win for the girls’ team was ‘‘pretty stellar’’.
The format of the tournament was ‘‘brutal’’.
‘‘It’s a four-day tournament . . . and they are away from their parents for a long period of time.’’
The team members had been working hard.
‘‘We had a great group of girls and boys and it was really rewarding to see both the girls and the boys get to the finals.
‘‘The stars really aligned this year.’’
There were 16 boys’ teams and 14 girls’ teams in the B grade.
‘‘It’s a really good chance for these kids to get exposure against other teams in the South Island . . .and experience basketball at a higher level.’’