The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
March madness hit Flin Flon this past weekend, as Hapnot played host to the 2004 Manitoba High School Provincial 'AAA' Basketball Championships. After a thrilling weekend of hoops action, the Neelin Spartans boys and girls teams are once again the Provincial Champions. The Neelin girls defeated the Churchill Bulldogs 62-52 in the Championship final to win their fourth straight title, and fifth in the past six years. The boys continued their dominance as well, beating the Edward Schreyer Barons 67-57 to claim their third title in as many years. Flin Flon continued to set the standard for hosting big events, as this year's tournament and the events surrounding it were extraordinary, and the southern teams are likely going to be talking about their northern experience for a long time. "I've been at a lot of 'AAA' Basketball Provincials, and this was, by far, the best I've ever seen," Don Thompson, coach of the Neelin Spartans boys. "I feel sorry for the poor southern teams, because Flin Flon has raised the bar very high." On the court, a total of 24 games were played, with 11 games at Hapnot, 11 games at McIsaac and two games at Creighton School. On day one, the Neelin Spartan boys, ranked number one in the province heading into the tournament, had an easy time against the host Hapnot Kings, beating them 73-39. Danny Halpin was the player of the game for Hapnot with 11 points, while Jaye Hubbard had nine points and was the player of the game for Neelin. In other boys action, the R.D. Parker Trojans from Thompson started off the tournament with a 57-40 win over the Linden Christian Wings, and the Portage Trotters beat the Dauphin Clippers 84-54. In the highest scoring game of the tournament, a back and forth battle saw Beausejour's Edward Schreyer Barons go on to defeat the St. Norbert Celtics 109-96. In girls action on day one, Hapnot was in tough against the Neelin Spartans, losing 82-30. Stacey Anderson led the way for Hapnot with six points and was their game star, while Jayme Menzies had 18 points for Neelin to earn the game star. Danni Cote had 30 points for the Portage Pats to lead them over the Linden Christian Wings by a score of 57-52. Also in girls action, the Churchill Bulldogs defeated the Swan Valley Tigers 60-44, and the R.D. Parker Trojans lost 71-45 to the St. John's Ravenscourt Eagles. Action intensified on day two, as spots in the finals were on the line. On the boys side, the Neelin Spartans continued to roll, as they beat the R.D. Parker Trojans 63-53 to earn a berth in the championship final. In the other semifinal, the Ed Schreyer Barons got 23 points from Matt Zeiler in their 70-56 win over the Portage Trotters, despite Glen Pauch's 26 point effort. In the consolation round, the Linden Christian Wings defeated the Hapnot Kings 74-46. Ian Clark was the game star for Hapnot with nine points, while Mike Spencer had 13 points for Hapnot in his best effort of the tournament. Linden's game star was Tim Bock with 16 points. Dauphin advanced to the consolation final with a 77-59 win over the St. Norbert Celtics. See 'Flin' P.# Con't from P.# In round two action for the girls, The Neelin Spartans beat the Portage Pats 78-62 to advance to the final, while the Churchill Bulldogs got 19 points from Genny Brown as they went on to beat the St. John's Ravenscourt Eagles 46-35. In the consolation round, the R.D. Parker Trojans beat the Swan Valley Tigers 60-58, while Linden Christian shut down the Hapnot Kweens, beating them 61-22. Jacquelyn Fenske was the game star for Hapnot with two points, and Linden's Chantelle Dyck was their game star. On Friday afternoon between draws, the Portage team of Hailey Wright and Danni Cote won the girls 2-ball competition, while the Ed Schreyer team of Matt Zeiler and Matt Jerome dominated their competition to win the boys side. In the challenge round, the Portage girls edged the E.S. boys 41-40. All the chips were down on Saturday, as for many players, this would be their last high school basketball game. In the girls championship game, the Neelin Spartans won their fourth consecutive title, beating the Churchill Bulldogs 62-52. St. John's Ravenscourt Eagles won the bronze medals, beating the Portage Pats, while the Linden Christian Wings edged the R.D. Parker Trojans 43-42 in the consolation final. The Hapnot Kweens ended their season with a 65-24 loss to the Swan Valley Tigers. Kate Rood was the game star for Hapnot. In the boys final, the E.S. Barons put up a good fight, but could not pull within four points of Neelin, as the Spartans went on to win their third championship in a row by a score of 67-57. In the bronze game, the R.D. Parker Trojans lost 64-61 to the Portage Trotters in a close game. The Linden Christian Wings beat the Dauphin Clippers 48-42 in the consolation final, while Hapnot closed their season with an 85-43 loss to the St. Norbert Celtics. Erik Kendrick was the game star for the Kings. Aside from basketball, there were plenty of activities for the teams to participate. Highlights off the court included the surface tours at HBMS, the opening ceremonies, and a pancake breakfast for the teams, pool side at the Victoria Inn. The highlight of the tournament was the banquet at the Flin Flon Community Hall on Friday night. Karen LeMaistre and her banquet committee are to be praised for all of their hard work, as the evening was truly one to remember. Following a dinner-in-the-dark theme, complete with miners in full gear with head lamps to seat and serve the players, the packed house of 340 were treated to a truly northern experience. Hundreds of volunteer hours by John Clark and his core committee made the weekend a complete success, and the tournament certainly wouldn't have been possible without the support of the community.
