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So, Parksie finally got that Senate appointment. 

This brings us to the first installment of In The Stands, which is a weekly contribution to my retirement savings fund. It’s also an insight into my thoughts on everything that interests me, so basically sports and music. 

The subject of my inaugural column of less than insightful observations actually started with a song, O’Canada to be exact. A couple of Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) students sung a beautiful rendition of our national anthem to kick off the final round of the 82nd annual McLeod Series last Wednesday at the school. 

I’ve been a sports reporter in Estevan for almost two years, but I have served as a scribe of all things athletic in different towns and cities across the Great White North at various points before that. Until the Elecs senior boys beat the Weyburn Comprehensive School (WCS) Eagles 11-7 in overtime to complete this campaign’s McLeod Series, the greatest game of basketball I had the pleasure of witnessing and writing about came approximately nine years ago. 

It was the City of Ottawa senior girls basketball final between the St. Matthew Tigers, my alma mater, and the St. Peter Knights, their cross-town rivals. I don’t remember the final score or the names of any of the players or coaches, but I do recall the last basket. 

The final seconds of overtime were ticking down and the Tigers were up a point when a Knights player stole the ball at mid-court, raced down the middle of the hardwood and rolled a shot off the backboard and in as the clock struck zero. The baskets at Hillcrest High School, where the championship game was played, were only a few feet away from the back wall and the Knights’ hard-charging momentum caused her to crash heavily into it before she fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. 

At this point, the Knights bench and their other four players on the floor dashed toward their overtime hero who, despite the fierce collision, seemed to be crying tears of joy instead of pain. I then looked toward mid-court and saw one Tigers player who provided a vastly different take on the events as she raised her gaze up to the rafters while tears of disappointment rolled down her cheeks. 

I was fortunate enough to witness a game of last-second heroics and victory captured from the clutches of defeat once in Estevan. The Sacred Heart School Crusaders girls basketball team was down 33-32 to the St. Mary’s Monarchs with seconds to play in the fourth quarter of the Â鶹ÊÓƵ East District Athletic Association (SEDAA) Grade 7/8 championship game last March when athleticism, determination and a little bit of luck shined through. 

After Monarchs player Hannah Mantei put her squad up by a point with under a minute remaining, the Crusaders’ Marci LeBlanc forced a turnover at mid-court, raced into St. Mary’s zone and launched a perfect shot that found the basket with one second left to play. The Sacred Heart fans at Spruce Ridge School erupted, as did the other Crusaders players, but heartbreak was all that could be seen from the Monarchs once the final second ticked off. 

The Elecs senior boys win over the Eagles didn’t feature a last-second Hail Mary, but it did showcase a group of kids battling their hardest to achieve a common goal. The athletes who played, both the senior boys and senior girls from ECS and WCS, were sportsmanlike, honest and passionate. It was my pleasure to be able to watch the McLeod Series and write about it and for that privilege I have to thank these kids and their coaches as well as the many supporters of this great tournament. 

People always seem to ask me why I want to cover sports. I can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t.