Zodiacs drop Plainsmen in Early Bird final
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The Crocus Plainsmen had to give away the first-place plaque this year, but still had some valuable takeaways from the Early Bird varsity girls basketball tournament.
They shook the rust off with a decisive quarterfinal win over the Neepawa Tigers, then handled the pressure of a close game, eking out a 46-44 victory over the Souris Sabres.
The Plainsmen then ran into a terrific Garden Valley Zodiacs squad, falling 76-56 in Saturday’s final.
“We learned a lot throughout the weekend,” Hartman said.
“Against Souris, we were playing too fast and playing out of control, and we were having a lot of turnovers that didn’t allow us to execute offensively.
“I thought (the final) was our best game of the weekend. You take away that third quarter and it’s anyone’s game.”
The Zodiacs, who rolled over the Dauphin Clippers on Friday and beat the Vincent Massey Vikings 77-24 in the semifinals on Saturday morning, had a single-digit lead at halftime before erupting on a big scoring run while limiting the Plainsmen to just two points in the entire third quarter.
Tournament MVP Medkes Wall netted 22 points, with all-star Maria Bergen adding 17.
Iliana Courchene and Kinsley Penner were Crocus’s all-stars, having netted 13 and 12, respectively, in the final.
Courchene did most of her damage from the three-point line.
“She’s come a long way. I coached her older sister a few years back, and Alex was a very similar player where she could score offensively,” Hartman said.
“She shoots the three, she attacks, she creates for her other teammates super well … so this weekend was a coming-out party for her where I think she led our team in scoring each game.
“With Iliana … we need her locking in on some of our key defensive philosophies and being a rock defensively. She has all of the ability to do it.”
The Plainsmen spent significant stretches with a Grade 11-heavy lineup on the floor. Penner led that unit with poise.
“We had so much success last year at the JV level and those kids can play,” Hartman said.
“I’m super excited to see how they continue to develop as the season goes on and how they take that step forward as Grade 12s next year.
“They’re pushing the Grade 12s right now and paying exceptionally well.”
Crocus is back in action at the Pembina Trails Bison Classic in Winnipeg next weekend, starting against the Vincent Massey Trojans on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.
The Plainsmen will play either the Jeanne-Sauve Olympiens or Fort Richmond Centurions on the championship or consolation side.
It’ll be a great test for the group before the Christmas break.
“I really like my team, we’ve got some really good depth,” Hartman said. “We had players who showed up in one game, or two … We need to work on our consistency.”
» tfriesen@brandonsun.com