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.
After joining her fellow teammates on the Senior Varsity basketball team at Hapnot Collegiate in Grade 9, Caitlyn Ticzon made her presence felt on Team Manitoba this summer. As the lone Northern player, Ticzon joined the provincial team as they travelled to Chicago, Regina and Toronto. Team Manitoba was faced with some tough competition this summer. Ticzon said Chicago was the toughest challenge for the team, noting that the game is played differently in the United States than it is in Canada. "The girls are really good," she said. "They could compete against the universities in Canada." Playing against the high school level girls, Ticzon said, made Team Manitoba really step up to the plate. "It was a new level (and) the game was faster," she said. Though the girls from Manitoba did get beat, Ticzon said they held their own as they were only 10 to 15 points behind. "The girls were really good and it was good preparation for Nationals," she said. Following Chicago, Team Manitoba traveled to Regina for another tournament before heading east to Toronto for Nationals. In Regina, Team Manitoba was able to take what they learned to Chicago and use it against the other teams. Regina was good practice before the team made their way to Ontario. Once there, the girls often found themselves down by nine or even 12 points in the fourth quarter. In the majority of the game, the girls were able to make a comeback and win by two or three points. The girls were 2-0 after beating Saskatchewan and Newfoundland in the round robin. A third game, against New Brunswick, left the team trailing by 12 points Ð a familiar story for the team. Ticzon said the team was able to earn a few points against New Brunswick, but the East Coast team picked up the pace and earned the win, leaving Manitoba eight points behind them. With a record of 2-1, the girls went on to play Prince Edward Island. Manitoba went on to win by 20 points Ð giving them the right to play in the fourth or fifth place round. A game against British Columbia, and a loss, left Manitoba fighting for either fourth or fifth place in the tournament. "It was a big game," Ticzon said, as B.C. is one of the top three teams in Canada. "We (didn't think) we were going to do very (well), but we ended up staying close by five points the whole game,"she said. "But they just got to a point where they played better." The final game for Manitoba was against New Brunswick. Team Manitoba came out on top by 20 points and earned a fifth place finish for themselves in all of Canada. The game against New Brunswick ended early as an injured player resulted in the East Coast team forfeiting the game. As Team Manitoba was already ahead by 20, the game went to them. New Game Team Manitoba picked up a few new skills and game plans after their tournament in Chicago. Ticzon said it was a different game than they had seen before. "They were aggressive in Chicago," she said, noting that some of the players who were only in Grade 8 stood six feet tall. But Ticzon attributes the girls' abilities to the fact that they play together often and have for many years. Team Manitoba took pointers from the American teams and brought their new game to Toronto. "We brought it to Nationals and we were able to keep up to the girls from Ontario and B.C.," she said. Through it all, Ticzon says it was "a good experience." Ticzon said joining the provincial team was a good experience as well. "It's a different level (of basketball) than the North. The girls are all really good and the coaching is (good)," she said. With that said, Ticzon said she will be able to bring back a few things she learned to the Hapnot Kweens for the 2010-11 school year. "I learned to play in a faster level and a faster game pace," she said. But more importantly, Ticzon said she learned that there are always going to be players, somewhere, that are better. "Knowing that there are going to be girls out there better than you, that makes you work harder and make your place on the team," she said. Ticzon plans to join the Kweens' Senior Varsity team for the upcoming season.
