Geraldton falls at final hurdle at Basketball WA Country Championships but future looks to be in good hands

Geraldton basketballers have fallen just short again at the Basketball WA Country Championships but there were plenty of strong signs for the future of local basketball. Both boys and girls’ under-16 sides and boys’ under-18 team were in action last weekend as all managed to qualify for finals. The under-16 boys made a statement on Saturday in a massive 43-point win over Albany in their opening game, with four of their five starters recording double figures. The Buccs then brushed aside Bunbury, with Max De San Miguel (19) almost outscoring the entire Bunbury line-up (20) before they completed a Saturday sweep with a 13-point win over Mandurah 40-27. Sunday saw Geraldton face the undefeated Australind. They made the better of a low-scoring first half to take a seven-point lead but Australind star Lucas Jacob caught fire in the second, dropping 17 second-half points as Geraldton went down by two. The Buccs got back on track with a 53-29 thumping of Margaret River, with De San Miguel hauling down 22 points while Trevor Farrell supported with 13. In a testament to the team’s depth Noah Bennett led the attack with 15 points in the semifinal in a 46-27 win over Mandurah, setting up a rematch with Australind for the final. Despite 14 points from Riley Fong and Byron Chapman it was not enough as Geraldton took home the silver medal. De San Miguel finished as the division’s second top scorer (82), while Fong was fourth (77). Coach Mick Surtees was full of praise for his side. “Extremely proud of them and the way they went about the weekend. (I was given) the task to get them over the line against Australind, so in that regard I failed,” he said. “However, the improvement I witnessed this weekend in how they played as a team, for me, was a win in itself. We might have lost the game but we won with the friends made and lessons learned.” The girls also made a strong start to their tournament, easily accounting for Busselton 28-19 with Sahba Horstman leading the way with 12 points. However, they suffered back-to-back close losses to Mandurah and Australind despite putting up spirited fightbacks in both games. It left them needing a win over Albany to qualify for finals, which they got thanks to points across their line-up with Horstman leading the way again with 11. They faced Mandurah for a place in the final but were under the pump after giving up the first 10 points of the game. Sophie Kirkpatrick and Sharntay Westberg mounted a comeback but they still trailed by seven at the half. Mandurah wrestled the momentum back down the stretch and held on for a two-point win, but coach Jasmine Bowley couldn’t have been prouder of her team. “We were unfortunate not to close it out, going down by two points. I’m so proud of our teamwork, will to win and never-quit attitude,” she said. Westberg, Kirkpatrick and Horstman finished in the top 10 for points scored throughout the weekend, but like the boys had different members stand up at key moments to suggest the talent pool is wide for Geraldton. In the under-18 division, new WA State country member Jake Criddle led the team with 15 points in a 63-35 thumping of Kalgoorlie but it came at a cost, with Max Creasy and Thomas Wellstead suffering weekend-ending injuries. Levi Owen exploded with 23 points against Bunbury as a big second half surge saw them topple Bunbury 51-38. However, after the impressive start they fell to three straight losses but still managed finals in a competitive division. But Australind were too powerful despite a spirited performance in a 52-41 defeat. Levi Owen finished in the top five scorers, averaging 11 points per game. Coach Carter Cook said his squad showed incredible fight all weekend. “All in all, I was happy with how the boys showed fight all weekend. There were plenty of times when they could’ve given up, but they fought through a lot of adversity to make Doc and I am proud to be their coach,” he said.