Tom Campbell’s men’s team and the Rez Coast women’s team won a third consecutive Tseshaht Lightning Open title on May 18 under the bright lights of the Alberni Athletic Hall.
Tom’s team beat the Nation Warriors from Bella Coola 60-53.
“I can always count on these guys. They watch the scoreboard and pick up their play when they have to,” said Campbell, a veteran Ahousaht First Nation coach.
Men’s MVP went to Jacob Thom, a Vancouver Island University coach and ex-player.
“He’s a great player all-around for years. It’s always fun to have him around,” said Campbell. “My grandson wanted to sit beside me. Hopefully later on in his life he will remember this team that pappa had. All these guys train all year-round. They take care of themselves.”
Rez Coast breezed to another beauty victory with a 45-29 win over the Hesquiaht Descendants.
Rez Coast player Jade Montgomery-Waardenburg travelled with her sister Jasmine from Similkameen in the Okanagan Valley to play in the open hoops tournament.
“It’s always a powerful gym. It’s very cool to play against the home team too. It’s competitive, it’s gritty, they cheer the loudest for sure. It’s a powerful energy in the gym; nothing like anywhere I’ve ever gone and I’ve been to a lot of rez tournaments,” said Montgomery- Waardenburg.
Rez Coast played a tight game against the Hesquiaht Descendants earlier on in the tournament – they only won by a couple points. Last year, the ladies pick-up team beat Hesquiaht in the finals as well.
Rez Coast player Harriette Mackenzie was named women’s MVP.
“I’m still riding on the high of getting to play with my friends,” said Mackenzie, a 6-foot-two former Vancouver Island University forward. “My sister joined us this time. That was really exciting. This is such a fun tournament. It’s my favourite one.”
Ahousaht Islanders and Diversity Draft Picks win U17 titles
Ahousaht Islanders boys U17 team showed the fans how hard they’ve been working with a fast-paced game against Naani, a team made-up of Ucluelet Secondary School athletes.
Coached by Luke Swan Jr., the Islanders took the title 61-51 with the help of Innu twin brothers Yoan and Noah Penashue, who travelled from Quebec and Labrador to play in the tournament.
Dad Bart Penashue said tournament organizers introduced them to four coaches, which eventually led to the boys joining the Ahousaht squad for the May long weekend.
“It was kind of slow for them to play, but the last three games they’ve been awesome playing. I guess it was a little break for them at the end,” said Bart.
“It was a great opportunity to get playing in with some really good players. It was a great experience,” said Yoan.
“It helped me understand how good they can be. It’s fun to know how that Indigenous players can be this good,” said Noah.
Nuxalk and Ahousaht First Nation’s Luke Robinson coached the Diversity Draft Picks (DDP) U17 girls squad to a commanding 51-24 victory over Port Alberni’s Rain.
The DDP team included players from Comox Valley, Ahousaht and Cowichan.
“(Basketball) takes a commitment from parents. It takes commitment from people that have played the game before to give back. Right now, I think parents are doing the best that they can in giving their effort and time to keep the culture alive. A lot of people don’t know that this is culture,” said Robinson.
He also hit the court as a player for Ahousaht’s Maaqtuusiis Suns men’s team, who won the master’s division in a close game against the Black Dogs, a local pick-up squad. Robinson was named MVP for the master’s men’s division.
“It was a classic battle. It’s nice to compete against friends. It was like a four-point game,” said Robinson. “I don’t know why they chose me from MVP. There were lots of players that could have won MVP.”
Nuql’stmc co-ed and Ravens girls win U13 titles
Two teams from Bella Coola battled it out in the boys U13 division final, with the Nuql’stmc co-ed team nabbing the win 28-23 over Nuxalk.
“Nuql’stmc is a small village from Nuxalk. There is a mountain called Nuql’stmc and we call it the sleeping giant,” said coach Angel Mack.
“It was a long drive. We drove down to Kamloops and then Kamloops over to Qualicum, we stayed in Qualicum for two nights. But because we played early Ed hooked me up with his Auntie Marilyn and we stayed with her for a night,” said Mack, who coached the Nuxalk girls U17 dynasty team at the Junior All Native Tournament (JANT).
Her son Mack Gottfriedson earned top-scorer and MVP.
“I just focus on fundamentals first. Fundamentals and defense. For our community, man-to-man is what we focus on. Everyone plays zone, but I feel it puts kids almost at a deficit,” said Mack.
Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ (Ucluelet First Nation) Ravens hoisted the U13 girls trophy after comfortably beating the rival team Maaqtusiis Suns from Ahousaht by double digits. Earlier this year the Ravens lost to the Suns in a heartbreaking JANT final, but took revenge at the ‘Nupps’ Charleson Memorial Tournament in April and now again over the May long weekend. Coach Tyson Touchie says they could meet for a fourth time this June at the upcoming Coastal Wave Indigenous youth basketball tournament in Victoria.
Ravens player Chenoa McCarthy-Tom was named MVP and earned an All-Star.
“I couldn’t have done it without my team. We’ve been working on team chemistry and zone defense at practice,” said McCarthy-Tom.
The annual Tseshaht Lightning Open basketball tournament has become one of Vancouver Island’s largest with 75 teams entering this year.
