Selwyn Times: October 10, 2018

24 Wednesday October 10 2018
Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
SHOT: The Ellesmere College senior girls basketball team had their best ever result at a national
competition on Thursday.
PHOTO: JOSH THOMPSON
Ellesmere College earns silver
on court at national tournament
• By Jacob Page
THE ELLESMERE College
senior girls basketball team
produced their best ever result
at the national tournament on
Thursday, finishing second in
Palmerston North,
They were the only South
Island school across all the
grades to earn a medal during
tournament week.
The team ended up losing the
final 91-70 to Manukau.
That match came after a
pulsating semi-final against Te
Aroha College which Ellesmere
won 59-57.
Coach Josh Thompson said
experienced players like Paris
Nurse and Megan Ellis helped
steady the team at crucial
moments.
“You need that kind of
experience in tournament
basketball,” he said.
“Those girls have all been there
multiple times and it helps our
younger players cope with the
week at the end of what has been
a pretty long season.”
Ellesmere College also finished
second at the single A South
Island tournament for smaller
schools last month.
Thompson said he was
delighted with how his team
responded to the pressure against
Te Aroha College but they
could not match it against the
height of the opposition in the
final.
“When one of the players is
six foot three (1.92m), it makes it
tough,” he said.
“We tried to do what we could
to combat it, but it didn’t quite
happen.”
Thompson said in spite of
four year 13 pupils leaving the
team, there were seven players in
years 9 and 10 who attended the
tournament.
He hopes this will ensure any
rebuilding of the team would
be swift so they can remain
competitive next year.
Milligan eyes up
endurance series
after tough Bathurst
• By Jacob Page
PREBBLETON’S Jack Milligan
has set his sights on the final
round of the South
Island endurance
series at the weekend
after a frustrating
three races at Mt
Panorama.
Milligan was racing
in the Australian
Toyota 86 series at
Bathurst from Friday
to Sunday, but had no
luck at all in spite of
having a car capable
of quick times.
He was held up during his
qualifying lap on Friday, which
meant he qualified for race one
Jack Milligan
SELWYN TIMES
of three in the middle of the
pack. That race was abandoned
on Saturday after a big crash on
the opening lap.
Milligan had more
luck in race two, working
his way up from 16th on
the grid to finish ninth.
The final race was
under the safety car
for all but one lap and
with the limited time he
finished eighth.
“We’ve gained more
valuable experience at
this iconic track which
is valuable moving
forward,” he said.
“We had the speed but
couldn’t maximise it with the
laps under safety car.”
FOCUS: Jack Milligan has turned his attention to the South
Island endurance series in Timaru at the weekend after
having no luck at Bathurst.
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