Boys: Carson Graham vs. Caledonia
Written by Tom Keast and Scott Leigh, Handsworth Grad 2006
The Eagles of Carson Graham have a new look, going all Hoosiers with the bold red and white-striped warm-up tearaways. The Kermodes i.e. Spirit Bears, from Terrace’s only high school, have travelled 700 km. by air rather than what would have been a 1400 km road trip. I must admit I haven’t done the math, but there were more than a few hours saved by opting for air travel for this Caledonia squad.
MC Justin gave it an awesome start in team introductions and, after the ‘No Regrets‘ video the teams got down to work to a standing room only crowd. Eagles diminutive spark plug Chris Demetillo quickly proved that its not the size of the dog in the fight, its the size of the fight in the dog. He showed excellent quarterbacking skills.
A brief admonition from the veteran ref for all to tuck uniform shirts in brought some levity to the first quarter. At the end of the first quarter Carson was ahead 19-12. The Ostler brothers were starting to make a mark for Carson Graham and pushed the Eagles into the half with an 18 point lead. Carson Graham built up a sizeable lead in part due to their energy level, and likely in part due to their matching ‘No Regrets’ themed socks.
The Kermodes were not quite ready to let this game slip away at the start of the second half, as they came out pushing the ball and looking for easy buckets. The Eagles managed to keep pace with the Kermodes with the long ball, draining a number of threes early in the 3rd quarter. With only one quarter left, the Eagles have extended their lead to a healthy 34 points.
The energy levels of Caledonia seem to be slowing as the game progresses, which makes you ponder if the intense travel may be the demise for the Kermodes on this Thursday afternoon. I am sure they are looking forward to a night of rest down at the Comfort Inn in North Vancouver tonight before gearing up for another battle tomorrow! The significant lead for Carson has allowed both teams to spread the minutes around and let all players get comfortable for their upcoming games. Bardia Afzal, not surprisingly #13, went on a solo 8 point run with a couple deep threes and a layup in transition to officially put this game out of reach.
In the end, the relentless pressure from the Eagles was too much for the Kermodes to handle, and Carson Graham won with a final score of 84 to 45.
No Regrets.