It was a seventh place finish for the Riverside Rapids at the B.C. senior girls Triple A basketball championships - the team's seventh provincial appearance in a row.
Unfortunately for Riverside, lucky numbers were no match for the solid South Kamloops Titans squad, which won their second straight provincial title at the Langley Events Centre on Saturday.
The Rapids met the Titans in the quarter finals of the tournament, in a game best described as a blowout.
"We were playing the number one ranked team and our kids didn't think they could compete," said Rapids' coach Paul Langford in a post-season interview with The Tri-City News on Monday.
And even though Kamloops came on strong out of the gate, the game wasn't a total wash for Rapids' shooting guard Desha Puri, who went five-for-eight from the three-point line in the 84-44 decision.
Port Coquitlam was then matched up with another Okanagan team, the Kelowna Owls. Langford noted that Rapids' forward Fiona Beales - who recorded a double-double - played outstanding offensively and defensively during the game which ended in favour of Riverside, 59-66.
In their final game, of the tournament, the Rapids played the Argyle Pipers for fifth and seventh placement. Riverside was up by one at the end of the half.
Argyle then took control of the game, leaving the Rapids with no opportunity to recover.
"We didn't have enough left in tank," said Langford, of the nine points separating his team from tying the game.
Looking back on the season, Langford has nothing but praise for the girls, especially graduating players Puri, Beales, Chelsey Sanchez, Tessa Needham and Megan Cornish.
"They are five of the nicest kids around," said Langford.
Beales, who will play for Simon Fraser University this fall, made honourable mention for the tournament all-star team, and also scored two scholarships - a $2,000 provincial prize and the $1,000 Quinn Keast Memorial Scholarship. These honours are awarded to players who not only excel at the sport, but also maintain a high academic standing and a commitment to community service.
"She's phenomenal," said Langford, explaining how Beales volunteers as a coach and referee for the local multi-age basketball program, Just a Bunch of Girls(JABOG). "She's a tremendous mentor to the rest of the program."
And with Riverside's junior girls finishing fourth in the province, Langford is looking ahead to next season, which holds plenty of promise. The longtime Rapids coach also has a basketball prodigy on his hands, in eighth-grader Shae Sanchez who was called up to the senior team this year.
"She's a pretty good player, a provincially recognized [basketball] kid," said Langford. "So the future looks good [for the Rapids]."
