After a year of absence, Edward Milne community school has gathered enough teens to start up a junior girls basketball team in the B division.
Ebony Logins, junior girls basketball coach, said the team has about 11 players in Grades 9 and 10.
“I’m really excited... because a lot of the girls are very athletic, they do other sports -- and that means they’re busy -- but it also means they have the basics that other Grade 9 and 10 teams might not have already,” she said.
The team has been practising since September, and Logins said she’s observed several players who are natural defenders and plenty of good shooters.
“They kind of already know certain defensive strategies and certain offensive strategies so they’re able to bring those from other sports and then apply them to basketball.”
Another advantage of the team is an established team dynamic. Grade 9 players already have experience on the court with one another from the previous year at Journey middle school.
Last year, an effort to recruit players for a junior team failed due to a lack of players.
Logins attributed the poor turn out to lack of interest, involvement in other sports or activities, and a smaller student body at EMCS.
She added junior teams at EMCS come in waves, with teams some years and none for others.
With the season rolling around the corner, the girls’ immediate goal is to expand on camaraderie between players.
“I think our first goal is just to continue building on our team dynamics because there is a Grade 9/10 split,” Logins said.
“It’s been going really great so far, so as long as they can continue building that trust and understand each other’s strengths and how that applies in the team dynamic, I think that would be great.”
The first game of the season is tentatively scheduled for Dec. 13 at 5:45 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Catholic high school.
“Hopefully this year, we’ll be able to win some games and prove that it’s more that just fun.”