Sharks conclude their seasons with astonishing results

The middle school basketball teams and their coaches headed out to Puxi and Suzhou to conclude their seasons with their tournaments early in the morning on May 18. Both JV and varsity girls went to Suzhou Singapore International School. Many of the C1 boys did not participate in this tournament, so the few C1 boys that went were combined with the C2 boys to form two teams; they went to the Shanghai Singapore International School.

A total of 10 teams participated in the boys’ tournament: SMIC 1 and 2, BSN, LFS, SLAS, SCIS 1 and 2, HIS, and NAIS. Each team had a total of four games. The Sharks performed very well, winning 7 out of 8 games the two teams played combined. In order to make up for the missed game against SLAS, since they arrived much later than the other teams, SMIC 2 played BSN twice. Both games were a challenge for the Sharks, since they were evenly matched. The first game resulted in a 6-4 win for SMIC 2, but they unfortunately lost the second game in a 6-8 loss.

Coach Joe Chen said, “I’m very proud of the way this team is playing. I know this school has been tough to beat, but all that matters is for the [kids] to have fun.” There were three games where our SMIC 1 team crushed the opposition team, such as winning 20-2 against NAIS, 22-5 against SSIS, and 21-2 against HIS. The last SMIC 1 game against SCIS 2 ended in a 17-12 win.

The game against HIS was particularly interesting. The other team’s players lost their composure and committed two technical fouls during the game against SMIC 1. The first technical foul came from a HIS player nearly slide-tackling a SMIC 1 player. After careful consideration from the student referee and an apology from the HIS coach, the HIS player was sent off and not allowed to play for the rest of the game. The second technical foul came from a fight that happened between a HIS and SMIC 1 player. It started when SMIC 1 intercepted a pass given to the HIS player. The HIS player lost his temper and pushed the SMIC 1 player, giving him the middle finger. He, too, was sent off and not allowed to play the rest of the game.

The other 2 games that SMIC 2 played were against SCIS 1, which ended in a 12-8 win. The last game played was SMIC 2 against LFS, resulting in a 20-12 win for SMIC 2. Yohan Ryou (7A) was arguably the best player out on the court that day, scoring over 24 points for his team.

The girls’ tournament also went reasonably well. With three ties against SLAS, BSN, and Concordia, two wins against SCIS and SSIS Shanghai, and a loss to Dulwich, they were satisfied wtih their accomplishments. Tiffany Chang (6D) was extremely proud that everyone on the team had tried their best and was happy with how successful they had been. Her encouragement to her team was, “It’s not about whether you are big or not, it’s about whether you play big. We Sharks are known for the noise we make and how amazingly loud we are, so let’s go Sharks!!!”

It’s amazing to see how these experiences prepare young Sharks for the High-School sports program. Keep on working and practicing, and no doubt you’ll be the best on the team!

Featured Image – C2 boys teams feeling positive about their successful day Photo Courtesy of Isaac Ma

by Isaac Ma