Hapnot’s senior boys basketball team picked up a consolation round title at provincials earlier this month, beating several of the province’s top teams on their way.
The senior Kings headed down to Virden March 16-18 for provincials, hoping to pick up a high finish for the school. Hapnot entered as zone 11 tournament champs, having won their zone banner March 4. The Kings were one of just eight teams in the final tournament, but were not ranked in the season-end Manitoba High Schools Athletic Association (MHSAA) power rankings.
The Kings would open the tournament with a hard seed, facing off against the College Regional Gabrielle-Roy Roys from Ile-des-Chenes. The Roys headed into the tournament atop the provincial power rankings for AA boys teams and were the number one seed.
Hapnot gave the Roys all they could handle, but lost 78-54, falling out of contention for a provincial banner and entering the consolation round. The Roys would later win the provincial title, beating both the fifth-ranked Green Valley Pirates from Grunthal and the Virden Bears, the second seed in the province on their home court - the 24-point margin the Kings lost by was the closest game the Roys had all weekend.
In the consolation round, the Kings would face the MacGregor Mustangs, the third-ranked team in the province who had been upset by Green Valley in the opening round. Hapnot would hand the horsies a second L, beating them 73-58, setting up a matchup in the consolation round final with the eighth-ranked team in Manitoba, Winnipeg’s Immanuel Christian Falcons.
The Falcons and Hapnot had a hard battle, but the Kings pulled ahead late and held off the Winnipeg squad en route to a 55-53 victory, winning the consolation round and finishing fifth in total.
Hapnot’s Bryson Dumas received the players’ choice award amongst all players at the tournament.
This year’s provincials marks the end of seven Kings’ high school basketball careers, all Grade 12s - Seth Ames, Tye Burke, Dumas, Cole Eardley, Chris Francoeur, Dax Lawrence and Jamal Lone. The remainder of the team are Grade 11 students and are currently eligible to play for Hapnot next season.
