The Glacier Bears girls’ basketball squad swept the Don Hather tournament last weekend in Skagway, winning all five games and bringing home a first place trophy.
The Lady Bears went into sudden death overtime against Tok to compete for the number one seed, earning them a bye for the tournament’s bracket.
Coach Greg Brittenham said the Bears were down four points with 30 seconds left in the final period. With four seconds left, down two points, senior Makayla Crager rebounded a missed shot and scored, which tied the game and sent them into sudden death overtime.
In overtime, Haines got the jump ball but turned it over. A Tok player missed the shot and fouled senior Brittney Bradford. She sunk her first free throw and won the game 31-30.
“It was a great way to win the game,” Brittenham said. “We struggled offensively, but the girls fought back. If you’re not scoring, you find other ways to contribute to the success of the team and every girl did that.”
The Lady Bears competed against Tok, and Whitehorse teams F.H. Collins and Vanier early in the tournament. They beat Skagway in the finals.
Crager and Bradford were the high scorers for Haines throughout the tournament and were selected for the all-tournament team.
Brittenham said the two seniors are serving as excellent mentors for a young team.
“The best thing about this young team is we’ve got two senior leaders and one junior leader, Mirissa Haddock, and they have really stepped up to help these young players,” Brittenham said. “They are patient and encouraging.”
Bradford said more than half the team has never played high school basketball and several never played the sport at all until this season. She said she’s impressed by their dedication.
“They all work hard. They all want it,” Bradford said. “They don’t just watch a ball go out of bounds, they run for it.”
Freshman Haley Boron said she was nervous during the first game when they competed against F.H. Collins.
“They’re these big, tall burly girls and if they’re not playing basketball they’re playing hockey so I was very intimidated but we won,” Boron said. “It took teamwork and we worked really hard.”
Boron said she’s looking forward to the rest of the season, and playing with a great group of girls and an “awesome coach.”
Brittenham commended Boron’s defensive skills during the final game against Skagway when she shut down their best offensive player. He also recognized sophomore Marirose Evenden as a “rebounding machine” and sophomore Debby Cheng’s play after she chased down a critical loose ball which allowed the Bears to maintain the lead.
He said his favorite part of the tournament was “seeing them come together as a team, as a unit. Every single member of the team contributed to the win.”
Haines beat F.H. Collins in the first game 34-25. They beat Vanier 56-42 in the third game, Tok 58-50 in the fourth and Skagway 41-26 in the final.
The Lady Bears play Metlakatla at home Jan. 12 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 6 p.m.
Next week’s issue will cover this and next weekend’s boys basketball games.