No OT Tonight
“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships,” (Michael Jordan). The Irish boys and girls basketball teams hope to put those words into play as they travel north this weekend to participate in their first in-season tournaments.
The boys junior varsity and varsity depart on Friday, January 10th, at 11:00 am on their three hour journey to St. Francis High School in Traverse City. The tournament has a religious characteristic, hosting four of Michigan’s significant Catholic schools: Hackett Catholic Prep, Traverse City St. Francis, Saginaw Nouvel, and Jackson Lumen Christi. It is a round-robin style tournament, meaning the winners of the two games on Friday will face off on Saturday to determine first and second place, and the losers will play each other to determine third and fourth place.
Our boys will play TCSF in the first round, and given their impressive 7-1 start to the season, the odds are in their favor. “I think it is going to be a fun experience traveling with the boys. We get to play teams that are not from the ‘269’ and see some new styles of play,” said Tyler Brand, who is excited to get to room with some of his teammates. The team sees this as an opportunity to bond with each other and improve rather than waste the weekend away.
On the other hand, the girls junior varsity and varsity teams are traveling to Manistee to play Onekama High School and Glen Lake High School. The girls leave Friday, January 10th at 11:20 am on their two-and-a-half-hour journey. Our lady Irish has made this trip for the past two years and plans to continue this tradition because of the memories and experiences they acquire along the way.
Senior point guard Natalie Burhans said, “It is really fun because we get to hang out with our teammates the whole time and also get a good basketball experience.” It is safe to say that Hackett takes pride in providing the best opportunities for our student-athletes to grow together as basketball players, teammates, and children of God.
Traverse City and Manistee may be a drive, but if you want to see some competitive basketball and don’t mind exploring some of Michigan's prized destinations, it may be worth the drive to cheer on our Irish.
