If the Team B.C. boys' basketball team wins gold at next month's Western Canada Summer Games in Kamloops, they will have two players from the Sunshine Coast to thank for their efforts.
TJ Turenne and Nate Hagland, who have helped anchor the junior boys' team at Elphinstone Secondary School in Gibsons for the past two years, are part of the 12-member squad going for gold Aug. 5 to 14.
Team B.C. will send 345 athletes aged 12 to 22 and 72 coaches to the Western Canada Summer Games. B.C. has won the Western Canada Summer Games Cup every year since the Games' inception in 1975. The Games itself will bring together approximately 2,300 athletes competing in 19 sports, along with coaches, managers and officials from B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nunavut, Northwest Territories and the Yukon Territory.
The Coast players were selected through area all-star teams, which were chosen after the high school season ended in May.
"This is what we call our elite season," said Richmond-based Team B.C. basketball coach Brent Meier. "The players practised for about six weeks, and then we had a big tournament where all the provincial team coaches were on hand. We then selected the players for the U15 team for the Western Canada Summer Games."
The team was on the Coast last Thursday, July 21, where they practised at Elphi in the morning and then took on the Elphi alumni team in an exhibition game in the afternoon. The team was also treated to some first-class Sunshine Coast experiences with a trip to the Coast on a private boat, a hike up Soames Hill and swimming near Gambier Island.
"This is a great opportunity to come up here, practice, have some fun and take in some great things that the Coast has to offer," Meier said. "Many of the guys had never been to the Sunshine Coast before, so we're all excited to be here. This is truly a 'Team B.C.' We have players from as far away as Prince George. We want the whole province to get on board and cheer us on for the gold in Kamloops."
The team has already experienced some success, winning two tournaments in Washington and finishing with a 2-2 record at a tournament in Seattle, one of the largest and top talent-laden tournaments in the Pacific Northwest.
"To go up against that many top teams and do as well as we did puts us in a good position heading into Kamloops," Meier said. "We'll be favoured in Kamloops, because at the national level the three top teams are Ontario, Quebec and B.C. and with this just being the Western Games, there will be no Ontario or Quebec.
"The last time the Games were held four years ago, B.C. won gold. The expectation is that if we don't win gold, this will not be a success for us."
Meier said both TJ and Nate bring a lot to the team.
"I remember TJ when he was in Grade 8 when I saw him at another tournament and I've worked with him at other performance camps as well. He has very strong fundamentals and works really hard. You never question his effort and he is a tremendous leader," Meier said. "As for Nate, well, Nate is a house. For someone his size and at his age, he moves incredibly well. He is very strong and athletic. He needs to work on his shot, but he is stepping up as one of our top defenders."
For their part, both TJ and Nate said they have enjoyed the experience so far, the long hours of practice time and getting to put on the Team B.C. jersey.
"It's pretty incredible. We've had two or three days off all summer, we've been practising really hard in Richmond. It's been exciting," TJ said.
Nate said if the team can keep up its defensive intensity and continues to work hard, they will win gold.
"It's been a lot of hard work, but I think we'll have a really good shot to win," he said.
