A tie for last playoff spot has given the Comp’s senior girls’ basketball team a chance at post season action.
The Ponoka Composite High School senior girls’ Broncs did not have the best record but a tie record of two wins and eight losses with the Rocky Mountain House West Central Rebels.
They played against the Rebels Feb. 25 but details were not available at press time.
Head coach Phoebe Dortman took charge of the team for the season while their regular coach Jody McElroy was away.
“I honestly can say they’re a great bunch of girls,” stated Dortman.
It can be a challenge for being players not familiar with a temporary coach but she feels the rookies and seniors worked well together.
She also looks forward to playing against the Rebels as they lost by three only points the last time they played. “We’re happy to have another shot at it to move forward.”
The biggest challenge the team faced this year was trying to minimize turnovers — that and the Broncs tended to be shorter than other teams.
“It’s been a challenge to try and improve in those areas and combat those things,” she added. “The girls have really had to try and cope.”
Personal tragedy hit one member of the team this year; Morgan Wiese’s brother, Brett, was killed and she left the team to deal with the loss.
“They’ve had to overcome that and really work together as a team,” stated Dortman.
To honour Brett and Morgan, the team would write his initials on their wrists before a game. “She certainly was in our minds.”
The resilience the team showed in the face of the tragedy is a mark of their personal strength and sometimes the score does not give a true representation of the team’s efforts, explained Dortman.
Sportsmanship and respect are other aspects of the game the coach wanted to see in her players and she feels they have grown from those lessons.
“They’ve got a more positive attitude about things,” she stated.
Dorman will step down and make way for McElroy for next year but she intends to track the four rookies who remain of the team as the rest are graduating this year.
Seven players graduate this year and Dorman thanked them for their dedication to the team during a final home game Feb. 19. The graduating players are: Amy Lank, Paige Bonnett, Irene Ha, Cassidy Corkery, Kendra Joyes, Lauren Sieben and Morgan Wiese.
If the Broncs win they then play against Sylvan Lake.