Record Staff
The Vanier Towhees have qualified for the Vancouver Island Junior Boys Basketball Championships, to be held Feb. 23-26 at Cowichan Secondary School.
"We punched our ticket with an epic win over perennial powerhouse Dover Bay last Friday night," said Vanier coach Tony Edwards. "In the semifinals of the North Island tournament, with a berth in the Islands at stake, we dug ourselves a 21-7 hole in the first half.
"We clawed our way back but were still down a point with 10 seconds left when Trevor Caton stole a Dover Bay inbounds pass, dribbled the length of the court with three guys hanging on him, found his teammate Jordan Balon with a pass.
"Down 48-47, Jordan was fouled hard on his drive to the basket. He stepped to the free throw line with three seconds left, and calmly sank both for the 49-48 win! We closed the game on a 14-4 run, not the first time this year we have dominated a fourth quarter," Edwards said.
"Our record this year is 18-5, with two of the losses to BC #2 Claremont and #14 Wellington. Both will be at the Islands. We are North seed #2 behind Wellington, and will play South #2 Oak Bay on Thursday at 5:15 p.m.. We are the only school north of Nanaimo to qualify.
"(We're) not sure when the last time was that a Vanier team went to Junior Islands. We now have a fighting shot at Provincials, held at Vancouver College in March," said Edwards.
"Foster DeWitt is our captain and MVP this year. He scored 20 in the win over Dover Bay and does everything well...defence, rebounding, passing...he is the complete package and a great leader. Larry (Street) is going to love him at the senior level.
"Trevor and Jordan, along with Colton De Rycke, form our three-guard rotation. They are all great competitors and skilled players who can hurt other teams in a variety of ways.
Joss Biggins is a super athletic forward who has led the team in scoring and usually covers the other team's best player. Alex Kussauer and Blake Stoetzer are tenacious rebounders and defenders," Edwards said.
"Braydon Williams, Jakob Jungwirth, Sam Kussauer and Isaiah Mayo have all contributed to our success, and there were times this year when every single player made the scoresheet."
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