LAKE LENORE — Teams hailing from Lake Lenore are headed to Hoopla.
The Lake Lenore senior boys team, which is a co-op with Annaheim, hosted and won a regional championship last weekend to book their ticket to the Saskatchewan high school basketball championships. The Middle Lake Lenore senior girls team – made up of players from both Middle Lake and Lake Lenore schools – also hosted and claimed a regional title. Both teams compete at the 1A level.
When asked what his team is looking forward to most about Hoopla, Middle Lake Lenore senior girls coach Curtis Strueby said: playing.
“I cannot wait for these girls to experience that,” he said. “It’s been a long two years for these girls. Two years ago our season was cut short around this time and we were making our way to Hoopla. I am so happy for those girls who lost out on that opportunity to be able to experience it this year.”
Hoopla will look a little different this year with each category being hosted in a community that had previously put in a bid, Strueby explained.
Lake Lenore / Annaheim Senior Boys
The Lake Lenore senior boys team claimed the regional title by downing Nakoda Oyade, 105-45, on Saturday. Nakoda Oyade, from Carry the Kettle First Nation, had earned a spot in the finals by getting by Perdue, 53-49.
The Lake Lenore squad is led by Tiana Hauser, who is helped out by Blair Wourms. The eight-man team is split evenly between players hailing from Annaheim and Lake Lenore. The latter contributes three Grade 11s and one Grade 10 player. Two Grade 12s and a pair of Grade 10s come from Annaheim.
“The season started strong but came to a lull in January as we had to cancel our home tournament due to COVID and other matches followed as well from other schools,” Hauser said. “Luckily, we tried to get many games as we could in February, and just like that, we are in March and heading into the playoffs. For a small team, the boys have learned a lot and have learned how to play as a team.”
They will compete in the 1A final in Stoughton.
Middle Lake / Lake Lenore Senior Girls
The Middle Lake Lenore senior girls team won both of its games on the weekend to claim a regional title.
“I was most pleased with our girls’ execution of what we asked them to do,” Strueby said. “They did exactly what they needed to do in order to make this weekend a success.”
Middle Lake Lenore beat Allan, 58-10, on Friday. The next day the Lancers downed Perdue, 76-17. Strueby said the success was due to a total team effort.
“We had significant contributions from every single player,” the coach said. “I was very pleased about that. Our start against Perdue was fantastic. We used the energy of our hometown crowd to our advantage and really came out flying.”
They will host the 1A final.
