After a long weekend of basketball, all you're worried about is heading home to your own bed and sleeping it off.
For the U15 girls basketball team from Chief Sunrise Education Centre, they went home to sleep it off knowing they were one of the champions on the hardcourt.
The Wolves captured the Tier 2 banner at the NWT Power Corporation Senior Cager in Yellowknife on Sunday thanks to a 25-22 win over Paul W. Kaeser High School of Fort Smith in the final. It was a nervy last few seconds as the Wolves were made to hang on down the stretch in order to secure the win.
Captain Ava Walsh said all the girls tried to do was run out the clock.
"Everyone was standing and yelling 'hold the ball!'," she said. "Then the buzzer went and we won it."
The ladies kicked things off against Ecole Allain St. Cyr of Yellowknife in their first round-robin game, which they won. They weren't so lucky against Yellowknife's Sir John Franklin High School or St. Pat's High School from the capital, either, and lost the first meeting against PWK in the round-robin.
They got another chance to play against Allain St. Cyr in the opening round of the playoffs and beat them a second time, but weren't able to overcome Sir John Franklin in the semifinal, which bumped them into Tier 2 against PWK, who had lost to St. Pat's in the other semifinal.
"They played four games on Saturday, so they were a tired bunch," said Deborah Reid, the school's principal.
Walsh, who ended up scoring the winning bucket in the final against PWK in the final, said there wasn't anything different to their routine before the final.
"We just woke up like normal and went out and tried our best," she said.
Banners aren't that common at the school, said Reid, and being able to bring one home is exciting.
"We've really tried to get our feet back under us after the floods and wildfires we've had over the past few years," she said. "There's a really strong group of girls who have done all sorts of sports such as archery, soccer, basketball and volleyball."
A big part of that, added Reid, is Kirk Alcos, who coached the team in Yellowknife.
"He's done such a great job making sure our kids stay active," she said. "He's driving our bus to take the kids to all the tournaments, he's always coaching, he makes sure the kids are fed on the road and he's even taking them right back to their house when it's all over."
Playing in tournaments outside of home can be a big deal for some kids, but Walsh said it's all business once they get out onto the court.
"We're not scared of the other teams," she said. "You notice the crowd, but we just get out and play."
Getting out and playing is the goal every time the students play whatever sport they choose to, said Reid, with a competitive spirit the one thing she wants all of her student-athletes to have.
"It's all about being a good winner, but it's also okay if you lose," she said. "You just move on and be nonchalant. I'm just really proud of how the girls conducted themselves in a big gym and they wore the jersey well."
