A recap of the basketball seasons
Mya Fraser (She/Her) // Sports Editor
Ethan Woronko (He/Him) // Illustrator
Both the women’s and men’s CapU basketball teams have wrapped up their seasons after competing at the provincial tournament from February 29 to March 2 at Okanagan College.
The women’s team finished second in their league and earned a bye to the semifinals. They faced off against the home team of the tournament, the Okanagan College Coyotes at Kelowna Christian School but fell short by six points. They played the Vancouver Island University Mariners, the first seeded team in the bronze medal match, but unfortunately also fell short by six points to lose the game.
The team’s top three scorers of the season were all named amongst several PACWEST All-Star Teams.
First year forward Barcha Hnizdilova of Ústí nad Labem, Czechia was named a Second Team All-Star, and also named to the All-Rookie Team and topped it off winning the PACWEST Rookie of the Year Award. Hnizdilova averaged 11 points and started every game of the season.
Fifth year point guard Kirsten Abo was named a First Team All-Star. Abo dropped 17.5 points per game, a personal high during her time as a Blue.
Third year forward Madeleine Coffin was named a Second Team All-Star. Coffin averaged 12.4 points and tied a season best of 17 boards in the last game of the regular season. When reflecting on her role on the team, she expresses how it has changed in a multitude of ways. “I’ve become more confident regarding my playing style (taking open shots without the fear of missing), I’m understanding my job on the court more and gaining experience as to the best way to contribute to the team’s successes.”
Despite the outcome, Coffin shares her outlook on the situation. “Win or lose you’re going to be around your teammates for an extended period, sharing a hotel room, going out to dinners, doing homework together, hanging out in each other’s rooms. Being with teammates for five days nonstop, you’re bound to return home closer to one another then when you left.”
In the off season, she explains how their coach, Chris Weimer organizes ‘open runs’ which helps keep everyone playing at a high intensity and having fun. “He invites in a multitude of players from other PACWEST teams, USport teams and some NCAA DIV one and two teams to come out and scrimmage with us. It’s one of my favorite parts.”
In regards to next season, Coffin says she’s looking forward to growing with other returning players as well as welcoming in our new recruits. “We currently have signed Mia Parkin from Australia and having met her a few months ago, she is a perfect fit into our culture. I’m also excited to see how we as a team can come back from our upset this year.”
The men’s team finished fifth in their league and played in a quarterfinal match winning against the Columbia Bible College Bearcats and advancing to the semifinals to play the first ranked Vancouver Island University Mariners. They unfortunately came up short by seven points which put them in a bronze medal match against the Langara College Falcons.
The team rallied and came up strong, clenching a 14 point lead at halftime. The final score was 89 to 86 for the Blues. These are the first bronze medals for the team since the 2011 season.
As a third year player but first year as a Blue, guard Kash Lang of Idaho was named a First Team All-Star. He led the team averaging 15.4 points per game and started in all regular season games.
First year guard Arshya Ghasemi was named to the All-Rookie Team. Ghasemi averaged 9.1 points per game, started in 12 of them and scored 24 points in just his third university game.
The team is holding an identification camp on Apr. 6, 2024 to start scouting new talent for the next season.
Follow both teams (@capuwbb and @capumbb) on Instagram to keep up with the basketball teams.
