Sports | DrumhellerMail

Battle of the border to highlight rural football talent

    A Drumheller Titans coach will be leading a select team of Alberta high school football players to take on British Columbia.
   Ron Laprise says that All Pro Camps is in the midst of introducing an Alberta-B.C. football all star game, or “Border Bowl” to showcase the talents of players from rural areas. He will be coaching the inaugural Alberta team and it may feature some top Drumheller talent.
   Right now, he is assembling a coaching staff and setting up tryouts. Fellow Titan coach Ken Fournier was selected as the team's defensive coordinator. The first tryout for the Alberta team will be in Sherwood Park on February 22, in Airdrie on February 23, and on February 24, in Drumheller. This will coincide with a Media Day.
   “From the top 100 kids from those three tryouts, we will select the top 45 players who are going to be in B.C.,” said Laprise.
The first Alberta-B.C. Border Bowl will be at the Apple Bowl in Kelowna on May 11. All Pro Camps already hosts a of couple Border Bowls in Eastern Canada.
   It will feature the best Grade 10 and 11 players from the rural communities.
   Laprise said the game is not affiliated with Alberta Football, which annually hosts the Senior Bowl for top prospects. The Border Bowl fills a gap to allow players from smaller schools in rural areas to get exposure.
   “It gives rural kids a legitimate shot at being seen,” said Laprise. “There are a lot of kids who have the ability to go on, but they don’t get seen, they don’t have that chance.”
   In its first year, Laprise said the major goal is just to make sure the game goes off without a hitch. As the move forward the event will grow to include possible a banquet. In the future, they are planning to have the Border Bowl games for pee-wees, bantam and senior teams. Next season the game will be in Alberta.

Dynos win silver at home tournament

    The Junior High A Boys DVSS Dynos basketball team was seeing silver after hosting eight teams at their home tournament January 25 and 26.
   The Dynos came out strong versus their cross-town rival the St. Anthony’s Saints and walked off the court with a win.
   This put the Dynos up against Prairie Christian Academy in their second game. The Dynos had a slow start out of the gate and found themselves trailing most of the game.
   “We didn’t give up however, and ended up prevailing 51 to 47,” said coach Al Molzan.
     This put the Dynos into the finals against a strong team from St. Joseph’s Composite High School from Brooks. St. Joseph’s led for the whole game. The Dynos were able to fight back to within four points a couple of times, but couldn’t close the gap, losing 61 -52.
   “It was a tough loss, but was still a great accomplishment to make it into the final, and end up second out of eight teams,” said coach Molzan.
   The Dynos won’t be back on the court until Tuesday February 12, when they head to Linden, and then again on February 14 when they meet in Three Hills. Then it is three tournaments in a row. On February 15 and 16, they are at Prairie Christian Academy, and then on February 22 and 23 they play in Strathmore. On March 1 and 2, the Dynos will be in Strathcona to compete in zones.

The DVSS junior high boys won silver at their home tournament. They are (back; l-r) Brian Flater (Asst. Coach), Travis Molzan, Gerardo Obregoa, Sam Brown, Lincoln Linville, Josh Thomson, Dustin Lo, Garth Giffin, Mackenzie Leitz and Al Molzan (Coach), with (front; l-r) Noah Miles, Zach Flater and Eric Westman.

Sabres take home third from Forestburg tournament

    The St. Anthony’s Sabres hit their stride, beating the number four-ranked team in the province at the 1A level, and taking home third place at a tournament in Forestburg.
   The Sabres having a strong season with a tightly knit team. Last weekend they headed north to Forestburg for a 12-team tournament.
   The Sabres first went head-to-head with Sedgwick and quickly jumped out to a first quarter lead. They never looked back and every player made it on to the court contributing to the win 73-62. Tanner Borowicz had 24 points and 22 rebounds, Nathan Comstock and Travis Dietrich each had 16 points. Jakub St. Jean was an effective floor general with 13 points and seven assists.
   This put them up against Bashaw for their second game Friday night. The game was in a smaller gymnasium and Bashaw had some size to clog up the Sabres’ inside attack. This opened up floor for St. Jean, who exploded for his season high 30 points. Borowicz had 26 points as they went on to a 72-63 win.
   The Sabres faced the home team in the semifinal and were in for a battle. Forestburg led most of the game. The Sabres pulled them in with a strong fourth quarter and led for a spell, but an unlikely shot late in the game put Forestburg up and they defeated the Sabres 54-50. Borowicz again led the way with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Comstock had 16 points and seven boards.
   This put them in the third place game versus Daysland. A defensive effort closing off the baseline and backdoor cuts nullified the Daysland offense and they were able to take over the game. A balanced offensive effort by the Sabres saw Borowicz score 17, St. Jean had 16 point and Dietrich had 10. The Sabres went on to a 57-48 win.
   Coach Dan Patterson said what has set this team apart was the strong leadership by their key veteran players. This has allowed payers to develop their skills and support each other.
   “Having good communication and everyone on the same page, makes the game and the year go a lot smoother,” said Patterson.
   There is basketball action at St. Anthony’s this Monday as the school hosts the Christ the Redeemer School Division Grade 7-8 girls divisional tournament. This will include teams from all over the school division. The Saints will be on the court at 8:30 a.m. The final is at 4 p.m.

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