KENTVILLE, NS - After learning last year how to take losses in stride, the Valley Heat U12 girls remained humble through an undefeated season that culminated in a provincial championship banner.
The Valley Heat under 12 girls handily won the Basketball Nova Scotia Division 1 provincials in Sackville on March 25. The top eight U12 girls’ teams from across Nova Scotia competed in the tournament. The championship win came against the Halifax Hurricanes (Waye) with a final score of 51-26.
This was the closest score of the five tournament games the Heat played. The team scored 251 points while only allowing 66 against.
“It’s crazy how far they’ve come,” said Renee Levy, whose daughter Mya plays on the team. “They were never down on themselves last year, losing almost every game, and stayed humble this year winning every game.”
There were 49 girls’ teams from across Nova Scotia competing for provincial banners in Divisions 1 through 7 from March 23 to 25. Throughout the season, teams from across the province are seeded and then placed in appropriate divisions to compete at the end of the season tournament.
Two Valley teams made the cut for Division 1: Valley Heat (Starratt/Veale) and the Aldershot-based Piranhas (Wilson). The Piranhas concluded the weekend with a fourth-place finish.
Basketball dads Brian Veale and Jeff Starratt co-coach the U12 Valley Heat girls, with help from Tony Smith when he isn’t coaching football. Veale said that he and Starratt knew they had a special group that was talented and committed as young as age 10. The coaches decided to make the move to play in the Metro Basketball League in 2016.
“It meant travelling to the city to play games every Saturday but our players and parents were all very keen – we knew we needed to seek out tougher competition in order to continually get better,” Veale said.
He said the team was well into its first season in the Metro League before they won a game but this was the best thing that could have happened to the team. The girls learned to compete for every possession and they continue to play this way today.
Starratt said that, from October to March, the coaches expect basketball to be the girls’ top priority.
“As coaches, we have reinforced a consistent message - as a player you’re in 100 per cent control of the effort you put forth every time you step onto the basketball court,” Starratt said. “The players understand that we shouldn’t have to coach effort. Girls on this team realize that effort is an expectation and that it comes as soon as you commit to this team.”
He said this has meant missing school dances and birthday parties at times but it teaches an important lesson about commitment.
The commitment level is relaxed in the spring and the girls are given the summer off from basketball. More than half the team plays Valley United soccer year-round, so the coaches want to ensure that they also have time to concentrate on this pursuit. Veale said they’re trying to keep their athletes multi-sport for as long as possible and he recognizes benefits in the players, physically and mentally.
Valley Heat team manager Jyl Bishop Veale said the girls are “pretty pumped” about the championship win. There are nine players on the team, in grades 5 and 6. The core is Wolfville based but the roster spans from Hantsport to Coldbrook. They also have a player in Grade 4 who practices with the team and gets called up to games when needed.
The Heat isn’t a tryout-based team. Bishop Veale describes it as a group of players and parents with a similar mindset and commitment level when it comes to basketball.
“The team practices twice weekly out of New Minas and attends extra training sessions, like Spring and Fall League, with the Junior Axewomen and Dave Harris,” Bishop Veale said.
She said they have strong defence which is difficult to penetrate. The team features a gritty group of girls and they put forth their best effort every time they step foot on the court, which has carried them through.
“Being in a position where they were forced to play better teams last year has helped them develop into the group that they are now,” Bishop Veale said.
She said the girls picked a slogan at the beginning of the season that they aspired to: “Don’t Wish for it, Work for it. You are your Only Limit.” Bishop Veale had t-shirts made for the girls featuring the slogan on the back.
Bishop Veale said the players know they’ll face a new set of challenges moving up to the U14 level and playing against bigger, stronger girls. However, as their slogan says, they’re willing to “work for it.”
