A great run by the Elphinstone bantam boys basketball team ended last Wednesday night in North Vancouver.
The Cougars lost 43-37 to Seycove in the division 1 North Shore League semifinal.
The team compiled a 5-2 league record and were 6-2 overall including an exhibition win. They won their first playoff game over West Vancouver on Monday, Feb. 3.
The Elphi senior boys blasted Collingwood 67-43 last Thursday night in Gibsons to finish 5-1 in league play with a record of 24-9 including exhibition and tournament play.
The win also clinched the North Shore regular season championship banner for the Cougars.
"We came out strong. We went up 19-0 and that set the pace," said head coach Mike Sopow. "It was nice to win the banner at home. It was a really proud moment for me to watch that and for family and friends to be there was really nice for the guys."
Elphi gets a bye in the first round of the playoffs. They will play their first game this Friday night against the winner of Seycove/Collingwood, which played Thursday night.
Elphi's next game would be Monday night. If Elphi wins Friday and Monday, they will advance to the North Shore final Wednesday night and also book their ticket to the provincials as the North Shore is receiving two berths this year.
"We're firing on all cylinders and peaking at the right time," Sopow said. "Every game now is a must win. Hopefully we can keep it rolling."
Pender Harbour teams split their return matches with Brooks Secondary School from Powell River when the teams locked up on the Coast last Thursday (Feb. 6).
The Pender senior girls won 34-15 while the boys' team lost 51-30.
The senior girls and boys team travelled to Sechelt on Thursday, Feb. 13, for games with Chatelech.
Next week the senior girls travel to the Lower Mainland for the zone finals with a trip to Vernon for the provincials on the line.
Pender has just cracked the top 15 in the province for single A schools ranking number 14 in the Feb. 4 provincial rankings.
