It was nothing but net for local basketball fans, this past week.
The Cougar Classic Tournament was held at Barriere Secondary (BSS) School on Dec. 8 and 9 with the senior boys’ teams from Fort St. James, Kamloops St. Anns, 100 Mile House’s Peter Skene Ogden, Similkameen, Vernon Christian School, Ashcroft Desert Sands, and Kelowna Cedars Christian all in contention.
Similkameen Secondary took first place and Barriere Cougars came in second place overall.
BSS Cougars hosted, reportedly showing great sportsmanship and team spirit throughout the tournament towards the visiting teams.
BSS Cougar coach, Kiera Eustache, expressed her pride and appreciation following the tournament saying, “The Barriere Senior Boys Basketball Team would like to send out a sincere thank you to their communities of Barriere and Simpcw for all the support they received throughout the weekend during their Cougar Classic.”
Eustache went on to say, “Words cannot express our appreciation for everyone that came to cheer them on during their games. You joined in celebrating our greatest accomplishments and stuck with us through the harder moments. The boys had a tough battle against Similkameen in the final, but it was everyone’s encouragement and energy that allowed them to stay true to their team philosophies and continue playing for the love of the game.”
Thank you was expressed to the Simpcw First Nation members for opening the tournament with the Welcome Song, to parents, students, staff, friends and family for helping facilitate, to purchasers of trees, concession items, and raffle tickets, and finally to everyone who showed off what it means to be apart of a close-knit community.
