Basketball players at Harrogate’s Ashville College are celebrating after winning the U16 Yorkshire County Cup.
The team, coached by former Philadelphia 76ers player Voise Winters, were handed the title after finishing the tournament undefeated – the independent school’s first basketball trophy since introducing the fast-paced sport to the curriculum five years ago.
The U16A Basketball team qualified for this tournament in January by smoothly surpassing local rivals St Aidan’s Church of England High School and Rosset School n an earlier round of the competition.
In York, the team entered the court with a good attitude, ready to win and bring home the trophy. In the first game of the tournament, they played Bootham School. However, after a slow start Anton Nguyen helped the team get back up to pace, getting plenty of assists which helped to beat Bootham by a large majority.
In the second game, they played Ryedale School and quickly took the lead. and Rory Page proved his talent by scoring three, three-pointers in a row, and Oliver Grattoni-May did the same using his skills to dominate the court. This resulted in a comfortable win, with Ashville winning the overall tournament undefeated, claiming the U16 Yorkshire County Cup.
Coach Winters, who at the height of his career faced the legendary Michael Jordan on the court, said: “I’m absolutely delighted for the U16 team who played magnificently throughout the tournament.
“Just a few years ago, basketball was only played at Ashville by a few of our international boarders during their breaks and at weekends.
“Now it’s a mainstream sport, and incredibly popular with overseas and UK pupils alike. This is Ashville’s first basketball trophy, and I’m confident it will by no means be the last. It also means the U16 team has now secured its place in the College’s history books.”
Categories: Ashville College School News
