MC Basketballers Contests HRIS Opens Title

“It’s that time of the year again, the annual Opens HRIS basketball gala day. The gala day is a chance for schools to showcase their talent, display their skills and have fun. Players get to enjoy numerous games through a round robin system to determine an overall winner. 

Our Opens Girls side coached by Mrs Tracy Martin had a challenging day finishing up in 5th place. Led by Selina M (12M) the team had numerous close games which was a fantastic effort given the team has a lot of new players. The girls knew they were a relatively inexperienced team, and were there to give it their all. Mrs Martin stated “They did really well today, we only had a few training sessions and some girls were still learning all the rules as we played!”. The girls bounced back from a heavy defeat in their first game to the eventual champions, Hunter Valley Grammar School.  Our team continued to improve as a team as the day progressed. The girls now look ahead to next year and with Hannah R (9B) coming into the side, they will certainly be a force in next year’s competition.

The Senior Boys side coached by Mr Roennfeldt came 3rd overall from 12 competing sides. The boys played hard and well throughout the day, with a number of highlight plays along the way with year 12 Ryan R (12M) starring as he led the side. Ryan was not alone in providing exciting plays but his heroics and leadership in all the games cannot be overlooked. In the first game of the day against Avondale, Ryan hit three free throws after the buzzer to tie the game, showing incredible nerve when it was needed. The Boys progressed from pool play into the final stage which contained the four best sides on the day. Macquarie lost to eventual champions Hunter Valley Grammar School and also Central Coast Adventist in the final games despite leading Central Coast by a point at half time. The boys bounced back from these tight defeats in a comprehensive win over Bishop Tyrrell Anglican College, to finish 3rd place. 

This 3rd place result is terrific for Macquarie College, but in the years to come overall champion is an achievable goal. Marcus A, Joshua L and Thomas S (10W) all gained valuable experience on the day as they are only in year 10 and showed extreme promise against older, stronger competitors. With a number of other promising year 10 students available for next year and an injured Fynn W (10W) back in the side, the future is bright for Macquarie College Basketball. 

And that’s how it was, the HRIS Opens Basketball day, it was very encouraging to see the support both sides gave the other as they watched and cheered along all MC games. We cannot forget that days like these are made possible due to committed and willing people like Mr Martin and coaches of all respective teams. Mr Martin in particular was announcing over the PA system all day, directed two different ambulance teams to injured players (from other schools) and organising the event behind the scenes to allow things to run smoothly.

On behalf of both MC Open teams, we sincerely thank all who made the day possible.”

Samuel W (10W)