Junior Boy's Rainmakers take their Provincials experience to the last seconds

For the Junior Boy's Ranimaker squad, the final two games of their Provincial Tournament provided for their best performances and a sample of some of the energy that took them to Langley.

After a sluggish start to their tournament on Wednesday, Kevin Sawka's Rainmakers found their game as the week came to an end, battling it out in close contests on both Friday and Saturday.

Their final match up of the week,  this morning's showdown with Yale provided for some exciting back and forth basketball, which saw the lead change hands a number of times before the final horn sounded.

In the end, the Rainmakers couldn't find the range to squeak out a last minute victory, Yale having taken a four point lead in the final sixty seconds of play, held the furious Rainmaker attack off to secure the 48-44 victory.

While the loss left the Rainmakers without a win over the four days, the games on both Friday and Saturday could have gone either way, such was the pace of the action and the bounce of the ball.

For those boys that will return to the Junior program in the fall, the tournament provided them with their first glimpse of the nature of the provincial competition and should help to spur them on for hopes of a return in the Spring of 2015.

For those that head off to try outs for the Senior program in the fall, the experience of high tempo basketball and the atmosphere from their provincial travels will be part of the path ahead for their travels ahead with the Senior team.

The full results from the week long tournament can be found below:


Saturday, March 1 
Yale 48 vs Charles Hays 44

Friday, February 28 
Southern Okanagan 44 vs Charles Hays 38  

Thursday, February 27 
Lord Tweedsmuir 53 vs Charles Hays 39 

Wednesday, February 26 
Kelowna 83 vs Charles Hays 30 

The Provincials are clearly the Big Show when it comes to Basketball in British Columbia, the calibre of the competition impressive, the enthusiasm of the players and fans in the stands rather infectious.

For those back in Prince Rupert, the opportunity to view the games from the Langley Events Centre is a bonus opportunity to track the home side on the road, the streaming feeds charting the course of the Junior Rainmakers for the week.

And the basketball may not be over yet for Charles Hays boys, the Senior team is in Smithers this weekend taking part in zones.

Looking to punch their ticket to the BC High School Boys AAA Provincials in the very same Langley venues in the week of March 11-15.

You can review some of the past items of note on the Rainmakers from our Archive page on Charles Hays Athletics